Green-minded business travelers and travel managers would be fair to find sustainability assessments of U.S. hotels a bit of a slippery target.
And while the state of concern over the sustainability of business travel may not be in the United States what it is in Europe, it's still important to a good number of companies: More than 31 percent of travel manager respondents to BTN's 2022 Hotel Survey indicated that it was "critical" or "very important" that their companies source from sustainable hotel partners. For many travelers, an encompassing certification that highlights a hotel's bona fides is among the most effective ways to communicate that green stance. About 65 percent of 33,228 travelers surveyed globally in February by Booking.com indicated they "would feel better about staying in a particular accommodation if they knew it had a sustainable certification or label."
Into the breach this year stepped the American Hotel & Lodging Association, which in recent years has dabbled in establishing environmental best practices for its members but hasn't developed a green certification. For that, AHLA looked north.
AHLA in September announced it had reached an agreement to form a joint venture with the Hotel Association of Canada to bring that group's Green Key designation to the United States. HAC established Green Key in 1994. The certification is designed as a succinct but encompassing rating, ascending from one to five keys based on a property's environmental operations.
Participating hotels, for a fee, will answer a roughly 160-question analysis of operations to determine their rating, and also receive a performance audit and recommendations.
"Increasingly, business, group and leisure travelers want to know they're staying in a hotel that shares their commitment to protecting the environment, and AHLA is excited to enable and support its members' ability to meet guest expectations by bringing Green Key Global certifications to branded and independent hotels across the U.S. and Canada," AHLA president and CEO Chip Rogers, making his second appearance on this list, said in a September statement.
The certification's abilities are recognized by the Global Sustainable Tourism Council and align "with all 17 of the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals," according to the associations.
AHLA hasn't disclosed the financial considerations involved in developing the joint venture, but the new entity will serve as Green Key's owner.