12 May, 2016

Starwood sustainable meeting offer

Starwood Asia Pacific Hotels & Resorts has rolled out its newest meeting offer, urging meeting planners to do more for the planet.

Additionally, for every event booked at nearly 300 participating hotels in Asia Pacific, meeting planners and organizers who participate in the default Sustainable Meeting Practices set-up will receive 2,000 bonus Starpoints®.

Meant to encourage and reward meeting planners and organizers for selecting environmentally responsible options for their events, the new offer leverages Starwood’s current Sustainable Meeting Practices (SMP) and its rigorous Global Citizenship work around sustainability.

The new Sustainable Meetings offer is a tailored, well-rounded, yet simple approach to achieving environmentally responsible meetings.

As part of the program, participating hotels offer a comprehensive range of options that are both environmentally friendly, socially responsible and enhance the guest experience. The hotels will also work with each customer to tailor a meeting that meets their needs while reducing their environmental impact.

Starwood simplifies the process by making sustainability the standard in every aspect of the meeting with practices including:
• Post-consumer recycled paper for printed materials and flip charts, as well as double-sided printing
• Environmentally friendly non-paper supplies
• Smart resources, including LED signage and whiteboards
• Potted plants, organically grown flowers or sustainably sourced botanicals
• Access to sustainable transportation services
• Recycling bins in all meeting spaces

Sales proposals, menu selection, room-list creation and reservation crosscheck are all available to help customers conserve the resources used for their meeting.

With Sustainable Food and Beverage practices, hotels minimize the procurement of overharvested and endangered species, work with local vendors, minimize waste and source the finest ingredients for guests. In 2014, Starwood was the first international luxury hotelier to ban shark fins in its restaurants and last year it launched an innovative guide for associates to make sustainable seafood decisions.

Customers may choose:
• Sustainable menu items featuring locally sourced produce and sustainable seafood
• Meeting tables that do not require coverings, or, if preferred, tables with reusable coverings
• China service or, if customers prefer disposable food packaging, environmentally friendly serving options
• Condiments in bulk dispensers
• Environmentally friendly alternatives to conventional bottled water

Available free-of-charge, this report assesses the environmental impact of individual events via indicators such as energy and water consumption, waste management and sustainable food choices. Once the MIR is calculated using the Hotel Carbon Measurement Initiative, meeting planners can offset the event’s carbon footprint with a list of donation opportunities through South Pole Carbon, our global carbon-offset partner, that advance emission-reduction projects around the world.

Customers can promote team-building and giving back to local communities with activities that contribute to their organization’s corporate responsibility goals. For example, at The Andaman, a Luxury Collection Resort, meeting planners can opt in for Coral Nursery Program where meeting delegates can take part in coral transplanting as part of their teambuilding.
Better Meetings, Bigger Rewards

For more information about the offer, please visit www.spg.com/bettermeetings.

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Email the Travel Weekly team at traveldesk@travelweekly.com.au

Starwood Hotels & Resorts