Companies can make customers ambassadors of sustainability, hospitality expert says

By Patricia B. Mirasol, Multimedia Producer

Companies that communicate their sustainability efforts enable their customers to become ambassadors of sustainability, according to a hospitality expert.

Small changes in everyday operations can have a big impact in the environment, said Barun Jolly, senior vice-president of Robinsons Land Corp. and business unit general manager of Robinsons Hotels and Resorts (RHR).

A towel, as he pointed out in an interview on Oct. 18, takes eight liters of water to wash.

“Be it in water, be it in linen, we are telling the guest what the impact is and how they can be part of it,” he told BusinessWorld at the sidelines of the publication’s forum with The Freeman. “In our linen reuse program, for example, we don’t want to not change the linen and not let the guest be aware about it.”

The point of the linen reuse information cards in every room, he added, is to give the customer the choice of whether or not they need new towels or sheets, thus allowing them to take part in the advocacy.

RHR focuses on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) on good health and well-being (3), affordable and clean energy (7), sustainable cities and communities (11), responsible consumption and production (12), climate action (13), life below water (14), and life on land (15).

Climate change is an area where the Philippines is regressing, according to Edwine Carrie, deputy resident representative of United Nations Development Programme Philippines, in said forum.

“Although the Philippines is in an upward trajectory, climate change is the main challenge,” he said at the event. “It could impact its ambition to be upper income in the region.”

The impacts of climate change reduce a country’s ability to advance SDGs, noted the 2024 Asia-Pacific SDG Partnership Report.

RHR’s sustainability efforts for 2024, Mr. Jolly also said, include an Earth Hour activity that resulted in a 0.39 reduction in greenhouse gas emission, as well as a water bottling plant in five of its hotels that decreased single-use plastic bottle use by 8.1 tons per year.

The organization is also looking into variable frequency drives — a motor controller that drives an electric motor by varying the frequency and voltage of its power supply — as an energy-saving tool.

Air-conditioning and heating carry the biggest impact in a hotel’s energy consumption, Mr. Jolly said.

“If a ballroom only has 100 people, [the technology] will adjust the cooling temperature so you’re not overcooling the area,” he said. “That can reduce 20%-30% of consumption.”

The initiatives extend to its workforce through the company’s internal sustainability awards, Mr. Jolly added.

“We hope our efforts inspire people… to be more attuned to green and sustainable energy,” he said.