This is a good question. Most of us are caught up in our everyday lives. People are looking for cost savings, quality, affordability, convenience, experience, joy, the best for less etc etc.
So, it is a hard one to judge. But we can’t deny that everything we do is having an impact on our environment so what can we do?
As businesses we can choose to educate and we can choose to lessen our impact where is practical and possible and use this as benefit and selling point of our business.
Let’s have a look at one industry in particular – Hotels/Accommodation
There have definitely been changes in this industry around sustainability and a broad number of hotels are implementing practices and policies to minimise their environmental impact, promote social responsibility and maintain economic viability.
There is a growing number of eco conscious travellers across the globe seeking to stay at places that are actively involved in minimising their carbon footprint and environment impact.
Some of the areas that the Hotel industry is making changes in are;
Energy Efficiency, Water conservation, Waste management, Healthier cleaning products, Sustainability experiences.
Implementing these changes has a benefit to the Hotel from the perspective of;
Market differentiation, Positive Public Relations, Local community support and Global Impact.
Let’s take one example – water conservation. Simple changes can immediately improve the impact that a hotel has on the environment. Guests typically use an extremely high amount of water during their stay. By reducing water pressure, asking guests to re-use towels, having dual flush toilets or just half flush toilets, having grey water systems/recycling water systems, hotels can drastically reduce water usage.
We have seen this simple change going on for awhile now however more can be done.
Whatever industry your business is in, there will be resources and guidance on what is changing and how you can change. Take the time to investigate and learn, you could make a big difference in our world!
