beach cleanups and the use of renewable energy but also
encourages education about food sourcing and seasonal
eating. The hotel is affiliated with La Senda, an organic,
non-GMO farm that provides all produce consumed by
guests. Cala Luna also works with local farmers to engage
the community in their mission.
Boutique hotel El Ganzo in Los Cabos has a different
undertaking, enabling social change and fostering the arts
through the El Ganzo Community Center, an art project
funded by the hotel that offers workshops and events to
local children free of charge.
Both Cala Luna and El Ganzo are members of Kind
Traveler, a curated hotel booking platform that donates
$10 a night to a local cause chosen by the hotel.
Large conglomerates like Hyatt and Virgin Hotels are
also reducing their carbon footprint. Hyatt, which has
a 57 percent overall CSE rating, launched a 2020
environmental sustainability strategy in 2014 aimed to
reduce waste and water consumption. The company also
eliminated single-use plastic straws and partners with
Clean the World, a non-profit that collects used soap and
shampoo products from hotels, recycles them and donates
them to communities in need.
In classic Virgin style, Virgin Hotels are built with
locally-sourced materials to offset the emissions of
transportation, 70 percent of all lighting is LED, water-
conserving fixtures that reduce consumption by 20
percent are installed in all hotels, and each room comes
with its own recycling bin. Virgin Hotel also offers a
“Green Your Stay” option which donates $1 per night
towards the guest’s effort of choice. By purchasing a
carbon offset, guests neutralize the carbon emissions of a
stay by supporting a carbon-reducing project somewhere
else in the world.
How can your hotel adopt eco-friendly practices? Start
with plastics reduction. Several hotels have announced
plans to remove disposable straws altogether and
plastic stirrers, in fact, now guests demand it. Brands
like Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants are also proactively
working to replace single-use plastic straws with
compostable or metal straws. Water conservation is also
a big focus. Hilton Los Cabos is one of the few hotels
in the destination with a desalination plant to provide
its own supply of drinking water which has less of an
impact on the community’s water shortage. Linen and
towel reuse programs are also now an industry standard.
Energy conservation, from lighting systems to automated
energy management systems, now it is easier than ever
for hotels to reduce energy consumption. The more
daring, like Azulik in Tulum provide a luxury experience
sans air conditioning systems. Waste reduction, as simple
as establishing
recycling
programs and
educating staff
about ways to
reduce paper
and other
disposable
About the author
materials. Bath
Amy Sedeño is Director at Carolyn Izzo
Integrated Public Relations (CIIC) http://
Amenities can
www.ciicnews.com
also be provided
A pro at in the hospitality and tourism
in recyclable
industry Amy manages the travel &
packaging or
tourism division at Carolyn Izzo Integrated
bulk dispensers
Communications (CIIC) including the
and bottled
Quintana Roo Tourism Board and
Barbados LATAM accounts. In addition
waters can be
to destinations, this selfproclaimed,
eliminated and
“hotelista” has a large roster of properties
replaced by
under her belt, including Marriott
International Inc. where she supported
reusable bottles.
nine brands and
more than 79 properties in Mexico and
Latin America. She has also
worked with Grand Lucayan (Bahamas),
Solmar Group (Los Cabos),
Mexico Grand Hotels (Los Cabos), Hotel El
Ganzo (Los Cabos), Cala Luna
hotel (Costa Rica), Casa del Mar (Los
Cabos), Hyatt Ziva and Hyatt Zilara
(Mexico and Jamaica), Caribe Hilton,
Hilton Puerto Vallarta Resort, Krystal
Grand Hotel Group (Mexico).
Amy has also spearheaded campaigns for
high-profile Real Estate clients,
including the launch of Rancho San Lucas,
a real estate and resort
development in Los Cabos and the first to
feature Greg Norman-branded
oceanfront Estates. Amy is also the lead for
the Vivo Resorts account, a
real estate development in Puerto
Escondido, Oaxaca by two-time
Olympian, Cary Mullen.
ILHA 39