About the Net Zero Methodology for Hotels
This methodology has been developed to support hotels and the wider hotel industry as they seek to make net-zero commitments and take action to achieve them. It sets out a recommended approach which is relevant for hotel companies of any size, but can be adapted as necessary to align with specific requirements of individual companies.
To operationalise the methodology, an accompanying ‘Practical Guide to Getting Started’ has been produced. This guide sets out the steps to be taken once the methodology has been reviewed and digested.
What’s included?
This methodology provides specific guidance in the following areas to help set a Net-Zero commitment:
- Setting a baseline from which to pursue a net-zero target
- Establishing the boundary of emissions that hotels should address over time as part of the baseline and target
- Establishing default categories for planning a net-zero pathway, with milestones to achieve at five-year intervals
- Understanding how the hotel’s emissions will relate to the wider value chain of tourism and real estate
- Commencing the net-zero planning for a commitment
Access the appendices here.
How was it created?
The methodology was developed in a joint initiative between Tourism Declares, Greenview, the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA), Sustainable Hospitality Alliance and the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) and supported by an Advisory Group of experts of over 20 hotel companies from around the world, with broad stakeholder consultation.
The Second Edition of the Methodology further strengthens the content from the first and updates the sources, learning and developments that were observed on climate action in the past year. This edition also incorporated feedback from practitioner panel members, who are hotel organisations that had used the 1st edition of the Methodology to implement net zero goals. Updates include:
- Further technical guidance on the sources, boundaries, and quantification of Scope 3 emissions
- Enhanced resources for emission factors and their use across all scopes where publicly available
- Enhanced guidance on addressing the scope 3 boundary of guest travel to the hotel when organized by the hotel or parent company
- Further guidance on how to implement the methodology in practice, including simplified guidance for a single hotel property and templates for communicating a net zero plan and IMP
- Expanded technical guidance on purchased renewable energy
- Up-to-date references and resources with latest available information and initiatives
- Expanded guidance and best practices on pursuing target validation by the Science-based Targets initiative
- Expanded guidance on carbon offsetting claiming and purchasing
- Further clarifications and guidance within reason based on user feedback and requests
The Methodology is supplemented with two Practical Guides, one for hotel companies and second for single properties.