Cornell launches free hotel sustainability measurement tool

Cornell school hotel administrationA new tool created at Cornell’s Center for Hospitality Research (CHR) is designed to enable the hotel industry to compare ranges of energy and water use, as well as carbon footprint. Developed by researchers Howard Chong and Eric Ricaurte, the “Hotel Sustainability Tool 2015” is available for free from the CHR at no charge.

In Brief
  • Chong and Ricaurte developed the benchmark ranges using aggregate input for 4,725 hotel properties from eleven international hotel organizations: Hilton Worldwide, Hongkong and Shanghai Hotels, Host Hotels & Resorts, Hyatt Hotels Corporation, IHG, Mandarin Oriental, Marriott International, Park Hotel Group, PGA Golf Resort, Saunders Hotel Group, and Wyndham Worldwide.
  • The benchmarks are for calendar year 2013, the most recent year with complete available data, and use the metrics of carbon footprint per room, per occupied room, and per area unit (either square foot or square meter); hotel energy use per occupied room or per area unit; and water use per occupied room or per area unit. A benchmark for HCMI carbon footprint for rooms and meeting space is also included.
In Depth
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Jeremy Smith
Jeremy Smithhttp://www.jmcsmith.com
Jeremy Smith is the editor and co-founder of Travindy. He is a writer and communications consultant working for a more responsible and sustainable tourism industry. He is the author of two books, writes a fortnightly blog on responsible tourism for World Travel Market, and provides consultancy to a wide range of companies and organisations, ranging from National Parks to individual hotels and tour operators.

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