IHG Hotels Lead GBTA Foundation Green Travel Talks

Green Solutions Shared at IHG-GBTA Sustainability Summit

IHG Hotels & Resorts and the GBTA Foundation, the charitable arm of the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA), brought together some of travel’s most prominent sustainability leaders during 2024 Climate Week NYC to spark dialogue about the decarbonization of business travel. In collaboration with co-hosts IDEO, Accenture, American Express Global Business Travel, Delta Air Lines and Hertz, the event challenged attendees to explore tensions and collaborative approaches inherent in balancing the necessity of business travel with the imperative to reduce carbon emissions.

Travel for business purposes continues to be vital to the world economy. International business travel expenses are predicted to surpass $2 trillion by 2028 and reach USD 1.48 trillion in 2024, according to GBTA's 2024 Global Business Travel Index Forecast report. But there has never been a more crucial time to reconsider how travel may be both necessary and sustainable as the globe struggles with the growing effects of climate change.

Catherine Dolton, Chief Sustainability Officer, IHG, said: “While business travel continues to evolve and grow, the importance of human connection to solve complex problems and drive business growth remains. Our industry’s scale gives us an important opportunity to reduce carbon emissions, however, to make meaningful strides we must work together more and inspire innovation. At IHG, for example, we continue to innovate through our recently introduced Low Carbon Pioneers initiative. The first community of its kind in the industry, this group of low operational carbon hotels will help us test, learn and share findings on sustainability measures.”

Delphine Millot, Senior Vice President, Sustainability and Managing Director at the GBTA Foundation, said: “GBTA and its Foundation are at the heart of building a sustainable future for global business travel. Climate Week NYC wouldn’t be possible without the collective power of the business travel industry to bring together businesses and policymakers in person to foster change. The continued success of our industry depends on mobilizing organizations through events like this as well as our new Sustainability Acceleration Challenge to drive practices that materially reduce emissions from business travel.”

More than 80 guests from significant firms and organizations representing all travel industry segments attended the event, which was held at IHG's Kimpton Hotel Eventi. Attendees debated the industry's most essential possibilities and problems while testing each other's perspectives on climate action using IDEO's "Creative Tensions" interactive format, created in collaboration with the Sundance Institute. One contentious discussion, for instance, focused on prioritizing the acts that would have the most significant impact or yield the fastest outcomes. Despite the different techniques used by the guests, they all agreed that innovation and cooperation are crucial to decarbonizing business travel.

Alex Gallafent, Executive Design Director, IDEO, said: “Leaders today must balance competing demands and tensions while transforming their businesses to meet the challenges of the Climate Era, and there are no easy solutions. However, these tensions fuel inspiration, learning, and commitment – discovering how others are approaching similar challenges is critical to making brave choices and acting on them. Building the future isn’t a spectator sport, so IDEO is proud to partner with the world's leading organizations and help them thrive responsibly, sustainably, and in ways that return value to the world.”

This year's most significant annual climate event, Climate Week NYC, takes place from September 22 to September 29, and it features over 600 in-person, hybrid, and online events and activities throughout the City of New York. Leaders of international corporations, political activists, local policymakers, and civil society representatives come together annually to spearhead the shift, expedite development, and support ongoing change. The Sustainable Development Goals of the UN are in line with IHG's Journey to Tomorrow responsible business plan, which serves as the foundation for the company's sustainability initiatives.