to hold concessionaire and internal focus groups , what these partnerships will look like will become more defined .
Establish a Sustainability Committee
The creation of a Sustainability Committee comprised of representatives from the various specialties within the Authority and our many stakeholders would establish a regular forum to support on-going sustainability efforts and identify opportunities to partner on specific activities . As part of this committee , an Authority chairperson could be assigned to perform primary duties of a sustainability coordinator or this role could rotate amongst different Authority staff members . The role of this coordinator would be to manage committee participation across stakeholder groups , and act as a primary internal advocate for sustainable practices and meeting our goals as laid out in the Sustainability Plan .
Conduct Green Meetings and Continue with Telecommuting Practices
While some activities may involve higher costs , there are those that do not and that might even save us money . Recent shifts including telecommuting and the move to virtual meetings is one of those activities . Telecommuting results in reductions in commuting and congestion . According to the Texas A & M Transportation Institute , 39 Metro DC has the third worst traffic in the nation with drivers spending more than 100 hours per year in traffic delays . Virtual meetings have the added benefits of reducing printing and handouts . In addition , for those meetings that require being on site , we want to make sure we add a virtual option to all our meetings to allow our dispersed staff to attend from their primary facilities when it isn ’ t necessary to have all parties in one location . While the impacts are modest from these activities , these seemingly small behaviors set the tone for the bigger ambitions we have for ourselves .
Publicly Recognize Our Concessionaires Operating in a Sustainable Manner
Other major airports around the country promote and celebrate their concessionaires that are operating in a sustainable fashion . When we surveyed our concessionaires in 2019 , we heard from them that they too would like some level of acknowledgement of their sustainable activities . Many consumers today , including our airport customers , seek out opportunities to vote with their pocketbooks and want to give their business to those operating in a sustainable fashion . Employees also want to work for companies that are doing the right thing , from an environmental and socially responsible perspective . Making it easy for our airport customers to know where to find these concessionaires throughout the airport is something we should be doing . Ideally , not only will a program of this sort recognize those concessionaires employing sustainable practices but also encourage all concessionaires to think more sustainably about how they conduct their business at the airport .
Summary
Implementing , codifying , and promoting a culture of sustainable administration is a key component of our sustainability planning process . Codifying a higher level of sustainable requirements across all of the Authority ’ s documentation , contracts , practices , and plans increases the likelihood that the desired outcomes , whether it be less fuel use , a reduction in municipal solid waste generation , and airport
39 The Washington Post , “‘ It ’ s a waste of time ’: Washington is No . 3 in traffic congestion , study says ,” Aug . 22 ,
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