Luxury and green must mix in top hotels

Lelei TuiSamoa LeLaulu,

It is eminently possible to blend luxury and environmental responsibility, and a development specialist has urged other expensive resorts to follow the example of an award-winning Indian hotel chain if they wanted to stay at the highest levels of the industry

Lelei TuiSamoa LeLaulu, chairman of the Leadership Council in the Department of Tourism and Hospitality Management at the George Washington University’s School of Business, asserted India’s ITC Hotels being declared the “greenest luxury hotel chain in the world” should encourage other groups to “step up to the challenge and put their money where their conservation declarations reside.

“The people who pay for the best accommodation money can buy are usually savvy travelers and they want to see concrete examples of responsible tourism in the properties where they put their money,” reminded LeLaulu who is also Co-Chairman of the Innovation for Sustainable Development Centre.

All ITC luxury hotels had been accorded the highest rating: LEED Platinum (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), making it the ‘greenest luxury hotel chain in the world’, he recalled, “and they worked hard for the honor.”

“This distinction,” he contended, “is an endorsement of ITC Hotels’ credo of ‘Responsible Luxury’ – an ethos which integrates world class green best practices with contemporary design elements to deliver the best of luxury in the greenest possible manner.”

The “Responsible Luxury” commitment of ITC Hotels, LeLaulu averred, “blends elements of nature, a deep cultural heritage and community benefit to deliver a unique value proposition to discerning guests, who are keen to assert their own personal commitment to responsible tourism. High-end properties should emulate these approaches refined by ITC if they wished to remain at those elevated room-rates.

“What singles out ITC,” he observed, “was, in addition to the wide spectrum of environment friendly measures that ITC Hotels implement, the ITC group’s carbon positive, water positive and solid waste recycling positive status ensures that a guest’s stay at any of its luxury hotels contributes to a lower carbon footprint.”

A founding director of the World Tourism Forum for Peace and Sustainable Development, LeLaulu remarked how encouraging it was for guests “for example, to see the ITC Maurya Hotel in New Delhi, favored by visiting heads of state and government leaders, cleaning and recycling its water to irrigate an adjoining city park, and to note how much of the energy they consumed was generated by the hotels own renewable energy systems.”

Navin Berry, the visionary founder of SATTE, the leading annual expo of the South Asian travel and tourism industry, lauded ITC’s determination to embed its cultural roots into the way it works on the international stage: "As a progressive chain of hotels, they have been India-led – in their architecture, in their cuisines, in their thinking. Yet, they have also been most forward looking in embracing technology and provide the best in contemporary services. They have partnered with Starwood for many years, indeed being their first partners in India. Most notably, the chain has excelled in their effort to be the leading green company in India. Their effort has been exemplary."

Nakul Anand, Executive Director of ITC Ltd., was delighted that the “coveted feat uniquely positions ITC as the first hotel chain in the world to have all its premium luxury hotels accorded the highest rating: LEED Platinum by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). It exemplifies the credo of ‘Responsible Luxury’ adopted by ITC’s Hotels Division – delivering globally benchmarked quality, services and luxury in the greenest possible manner.”

All ‘ITC Hotels’- ITC Maurya, New Delhi; ITC Maratha; Mumbai; ITC Grand Central, Mumbai; ITC Sonar, Kolkata; ITC Windsor, Bengaluru; ITC Gardenia, Bengaluru; ITC Kakatiya, Hyderabad and ITC Mughal, Agra, are rated LEED Platinum by USGBC, for their commitment to perform to the highest standards of energy, water and waste efficiency and continuing to provide inspiration to the Green Building movement in India.

“The LEED Platinum rating demonstrates tremendous green building leadership”, said Rick Fedrizzi, President, CEO & Founding Chair of the U.S. Green Building Council. “The urgency of USGBC’s mission has challenged the industry to move faster and reach further than ever before, and the certified ITC Hotels serve as a prime example with just how much we can accomplish.”

See ITC story: http://www.travelmole.com/stories/1148670.php

Valere Tjolle
Valere is editor of the Sustainable Tourism Report Suite 2011 Special Offers HERE