Dive Brief:
- Hyatt Hotels Corporation detailed its commitments to environmental action, particularly carbon reduction, water conservation and responsible sourcing; diversity, equity and inclusion goals; and responsible business practices in a report last week called World of Care.
- Institutional Investor named “World of Care” one of the top three ESG programs in the lodging and gaming category. This year’s report features an added emphasis on sourcing responsible business partners and anti-human trafficking efforts.
- Hyatt CEO Mark Hoplamazian emphasized the importance of the ESG program in the company’s recent second-quarter earnings call, saying it “drives alignment across Hyatt and how we advance care for the planet, people and responsible business to support thriving destinations around the world.”
Dive Insight:
Updates to Hyatt’s latest ESG report fall primarily into three pillars: caring for the planet, caring for people and caring for responsible business.
Hyatt’s planet-oriented updates include a pilot food waste reduction program, which the company launched in 2022, and a renewable electricity program at the company’s U.S. properties.
According to the report, Hyatt-owned hotels in the U.S. adopted 100% Green-e Energy certified Renewable Energy Certificates that matched their electricity use, reducing building emissions by more than 50% on average. Hyatt’s U.S. hotels also offer carbon-neutral meetings and events. This year, Hyatt hotels plan to obtain several certifications recognized by the Global Sustainable Tourism Council to recognize its environmental efforts.
As for the people part of the strategy, Hyatt is both continuing its diversity, equity and inclusion programs and expanding those that fight against human trafficking. On the Q2 earnings call, Hoplamazian said: “We believe that our teams should reflect the diversity and experiences of the communities in which Hyatt operates hotels.”
“Hyatt is prioritizing inclusive behaviors at all levels of our organization, and we are committed to ensuring that our DE&I practices are more than just words on a page,” said Malaika Myers, the company’s chief human resources officer, at the time of the report’s release.
In 2022, the company assisted in the launch of the AHLA Foundation’s No Room for Trafficking Survivor Fund, which recently announced its first grantees. Last month, Hyatt CFO Joan Bottarini joined No Room for Trafficking’s Advisory Council as co-chair.
Hyatt’s responsible business practices now include a new focus area, dubbed Working with Other Businesses. Through the focus, Hyatt will prioritize working with diverse suppliers. It will also partner with EcoVadis, an organization that screens supplies for criteria related to environmental practices, labor and human rights, ethics and sustainable procurement.
On the Q2 earnings call, Hoplamazian said Hyatt had already exceeded its 2025 goal for expansion of spend with diverse suppliers. The company will continue to identify opportunities to support businesses in underinvested communities, “through efforts like holding deposits at minority-owned banks and helping to expand suppliers' businesses in several markets,” he said.
