Publications by Tag: Travel & Tourism
Blog
Staff Spotlight: Celine Suarez
Celine Suarez, Manager, Advisory Services
Our staff spotlight on Celine Suarez. Read more
BSR Conference Session Summaries
The Travel and Tourism Industry’s Role in Preventing Human Trafficking
BSR Conference 2011
Read moreBSR Insight Articles
BSR, Hilton Launch Center to Help Companies Integrate Sustainability Into Procurement Decisions
Celine Suarez, Manager, Advisory Services
As more sustainability data has become available in recent years, many companies are struggling with how to apply this information to the products they purchase. Today, BSR and Hilton Worldwide launched the Center for Sustainable Procurement (CSP) to help global business procurement managers integrate sustainability data into their purchasing decisions. Read more
Business: Blue and Green
By Michael Sutton, Vice President, Center for the Future of the Oceans, Monterey Bay Aquarium
Tomorrow, the Economist’s World Ocean Summit in Singapore will highlight for an audience of global business leaders the latest concerns about threats to our oceans, and how business activities are impacting this ecosystem. While all of us can play a role in caring for our ocean resources, perhaps the only force powerful enough to reverse the decline of our global environment is commerce itself. Read more
2012: Sustainability Steams Ahead in Uncertain Times
Aron Cramer, President and CEO
History moved fast in 2011, even as the economy was stuck in neutral, and 2012 promises to be a wild ride. Exactly how it will play out is hard to say. 2011 provides ample evidence of how difficult it is to foresee specific changes: Last January, few anticipated the Arab Spring, and Hosni Mubarak was ejected from office before the end of February. And early in 2011, any mention of the "Occupy Movement” was more likely to be considered a good name for a new indie rock band than one of the most potent political forces seen in years. Read more
Reflections From the BSR Conference 2011: We Have the Will—and the Power—to Act
Kara Hurst, Vice President
In his opening address at the BSR Conference 2011, former U.S. Vice President Al Gore talked about the “functional insanity” of CEOs and CFOs who choose short-term gains over long-term sustainability. He referenced a study in which these leaders were asked what they would do if they were given a chance to make an investment that would increase their company’s profitability and sustainability—with the catch being that they would miss their quarterly targets. Eighty percent said they would not make the investment. Read more
Re-Scaling for the New Local
Linda Hwang, Manager, Research
In the next decade, rapidly growing urban regions will need redesigned infrastructure, goods, and services to match peoples’ needs and work within planetary constraints. New efforts to track well-being and happiness, ecological systems under stress, and community and culture shocks like forced water restrictions and food-safety scares are driving people to pursue more resilient solutions such as low-impact housing, off-grid water and energy, seed-sharing programs, and community-supported agriculture. Read more
Why Is Living Wage So Complex?
Roger McElrath, Manager, Advisory Services
Ever since the United Nations adopted its new human rights framework, companies have had an added impetus to ensure that the treatment of their employees, workers in supply chain partners, and people in local communities is just and in accordance with international standards. Read more
Traveling in a Changing Climate
Celine Suarez, Manager, Advisory Services
Perhaps no other industry is more dependent on climate than travel and tourism. From warm, sunny, beachfront resorts, to majestic, snowy mountains, and turbulence-free flights, nearly every aspect of the industry is better off and more profitable when the weather is stable and predictable, and travelers can move about safely and without disruption. Read more
BSR Around the World
From helping the world’s largest shipping company develop a sustainability strategy to building a multi-stakeholder coalition to address the challenge of conflict minerals in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, we work with business in all sectors and regions to redefine leadership in sustainable business. Read more
Conducting Site-Level Human Rights Impact Assessments
Alejandra Martin, Manager, Advisory Services
Although more than 270 companies have human rights policy statements in place, few have implemented the policies, and even fewer have conducted human rights impact assessments at the site level. These assessments are particularly relevant for companies operating in remote areas where local governments and civil society have limited experience interacting with the private sector. Read more
Waste Not, Want Not—An Overview of Food Waste
Guy Morgan, Director, Advisory Services
As highlighted in BSR's new research brief on food waste—the first in a series exploring different elements of sustainable consumption—there is enough food to feed the world, but 30 percent of all food grown worldwide (approximately US$48.3 billion) is either lost or wasted before it reaches the consumer. Read more
Prosperity on a Crowded Planet: BSR’s Next Phase of Work on Sustainable Consumption
Virginia Terry, Director, Advisory Services
By nearly any measure, our current consumption patterns are not sustainable. The 2010 World Wildlife Fund Living Planet Index—which reflects changes in the health of the planet’s ecosystems—shows a drop by about 30 percent since 1970, and its 2010 Living Planet Report concludes that we are now using 50 percent more natural resources than Earth can sustain. This decline is already stalling progress addressing the needs of the more than 1 billion people who still lack adequate food, clothing, and shelter. As the population continues to grow, from 7 billion today to 9 billion in 2050, we need to shift to a more sustainable form of consumption that meets people’s needs without overtaxing natural resources. Read more
Women and Sustainability: Integrating Women Into Your Business and Sustainability Strategies
Racheal Yeager, Manager, HERproject
Growth in women’s income, education levels, and labor participation rates makes them essential participants in the global economy, and engagement with women and girls increasingly critical to sustainable growth for every industry. Women contribute to the private sector’s social license to operate; market, crop, and supply chain stability; a talented and stable employee base; and market growth and innovation. Additionally, investments in women have a multiplier effect, as women are more likely to reinvest in education, health, and economic activities at the community level. Read more
Will Old Europe Become the New World of Sustainability in 2011?
Peder Michael Pruzan-Jorgensen, Managing Director, Europe, Middle East, and Africa
European companies, government officials, and civil society representatives have tended to scoff at their American cousins’ approach to sustainability, and also at the perceived fundamental disregard for the environment and human rights in BRIC countries. But as we make our way into 2011, I sense a shift in Europe toward a more somber mood, similar to the sobriety that comes to a soccer team the day after an unexpected defeat by a mignon competitor: heads down, feet dragging, and a realization that something different has to be done. Read more
State of Green Business 2011
GreenBiz's fourth annual "State of Green Business" report presents the top 10 trends and 20 indices for measuring how well companies are improving their environmental performance. According to the report, green business did not die during the recession; rather, companies are diving deeper and investing in longer-term sustainability initiatives. Read more
Biodiversity Conservation and Human Development
Linda Hwang, Manager, Research
The private sector is recognized as an essential actor in supporting development and poverty reduction, and companies themselves are increasingly recognizing the business opportunities associated with engaging in development challenges. However, the complex interrelationship between poverty and biodiversity and ecosystem services (BES) requires that companies take an integrated perspective to these issues in order to make a positive contribution to the sustainable development of host communities. Yet, today many companies have programs that support biodiversity conservation and separate programs that support local economic development, and in some cases these programs are in conflict. To make positive contributions to sustainable development, companies need to integrate the objectives of these programs and unlock the synergies among business, conservation, and poverty reduction. Read more
Branding Sustainability in Hospitality and Tourism: A Q&A on Hilton’s LightStay Program
Interview with Christopher Corpuel, Vice President, Sustainability, Hilton Worldwide, by Eva Dienel, Communications Manager, BSR
After two years of development, Hilton Worldwide rolled out a new system to analyze the environmental impacts of its 3,600 properties. The company’s LightStay program measures energy, water, waste, and carbon impacts throughout 200 areas of hotel operations including housekeeping, paper product use, food waste, chemical storage, air quality, and transportation. In 2009, following the first year of the program, Hilton reported that the company has conserved enough energy to power 5,700 homes for a year, enough water to fill more than 650 Olympic-size pools, and the carbon emissions equivalent of taking 34,865 cars off the road. Hilton’s Christopher Corpuel spoke with us about how Hilton is using LightStay to save money—including more than US$29 million in utility costs alone in 2009—and elevate sustainability as a global brand standard. In its 3,600 properties around the world, Hilton has a variety of brands and also different operating models (some hotels are owned, some are managed, and some are franchised). Given that context, how does this program work at the ground level? Read more
How Sustainability Can Transform the Travel and Tourism Sector
Kara Hurst, Vice President
In the past, social responsibility in the travel and tourism sector was equated with “ecotourism.” However, companies such as Accor, Hilton, Hyatt, IHG, and Starwood are now implementing innovative solutions that also reduce the environmental impact of their operations, save money, and benefit local economic development. Read more
Minding the Gaps: Three Unmet Needs for Climate Leadership
By Besty Fargo and Ryan Schuchard
Building on our article last week on why climate matters for every company, managers should be aware that there are some important, and very specific, opportunities for creating business value while promoting climate stability. Read more
Hero for Troubled Waters: A Q&A with Sylvia Earle
Interview with Sylvia Earle by Eva Dienel, Communications Manager, BSR
The ringtone for renowned ocean explorer Sylvia Earle’s royal blue mobile phone is the hollow ping of a sonar device, a constant but unnecessary reminder to its owner that the world is mostly ocean, what Earle calls our planet’s “life-support system.” Earle, a 2009 TED Prize winner who will be speaking at the BSR Conference 2009, recently sat down to talk with us about her new book, The World Is Blue (released today by National Geographic Books), and why business should put nature—and especially the world’s water resources—on the balance sheet. Read more
Events
BSR Conference 2011: Leadership Required
Leadership in business is changing fast. In today’s global, integrated, and transparent world, business is expected to do more than deliver shareholder returns. At its best, business is a creative force and an integral player in delivering prosperity for 9 billion people, applying game-changing technologies for social benefit, and radically reducing our use of natural resources. Learn more
Responsibility in the Licensing Industry
BSR is hosting this seminar on the topic of responsibility in the licensing industry at this year's Licensing Show in Las Vegas. The two-hour seminar is part of the efforts of BSR's Licensing Working Group, and is open to all attendees of the conference. Learn more
Reports
Maximizing Benefits From a Sustainable Supply Chain
Leading companies are working to improve the social and environmental performance of their supply chains by building closer relations with suppliers, developing supplier capacity, and identifying and investing in opportunities for improvements along the supply chain. Read more
Waste Not, Want Not: An Overview of Food Waste
More than 1 billion people (one-sixth of the world’s population) suffer from chronic hunger. It is not a problem of supply, since the food system continues to provide enough food to feed the world. One of the reasons for this disconnect is simply waste. By many estimates, one in three food calories is currently wasted. Read more
Case Studies Report
BSR Membership: A Global Network of Sustainability Leaders
BSR is proud to support and partner with our powerful network of member companies, who share with us a focus on building a just and sustainable world. We work every day to provide our member companies with value based on the insights, expertise, and relationships we’ve built through years of hands-on work in the field. Learn more
Hyatt Hotels: Developing an Integrated CSR Strategy
We worked with Hyatt to develop an integrated sustainability strategy that connects corporate responsibility objectives to business goals and engages both senior leadership and the broader employee base. Learn more
Sustainability Matters
Preparing for the 2011 Proxy Voting Season
Proxy voting is an important tool that many investors use to show their support for ESG issues, with a goal of garnering attention for areas they view as critical to a company's business.
Learn moreBSR Review
Women and Sustainability
In response to a question about Saudi Arabia's economic competitiveness in 2007, Bill Gates famously announced to the gender-segregated audience: "If you're not fully utilizing half the talent in the country, you're not going to get too close to the top." View email publication
Other Publications & Events Tagged, Travel & Tourism
- Blog [ 1 ]
- BSR Conference Session Summaries [ 1 ]
- BSR Insight Articles [ 19 ]
- BSR Review [ 1 ]
- Case Studies [ 0 ]
- Events [ 3 ]
- Research Reports [ 2 ]
- Sustainable Investment in China Article [ 0 ]
- Sustainability Matters [ 1 ]
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