Environmental sustainability practices in the hotel industry in New Zealand

Abstract

PurposeThis paper analyses Environmental Sustainability (ES) policies of the hotel industry in New Zealand (NZ) and compares them with a recognised global standard – the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI).Design/methodology/approachThe study considered ES policies of ten major hotel groups (consisting of 208 accommodation providers) in NZ and employed content data analysis using Leximancer software to identify the themes relating to ES and benchmark them against the GRI standards.FindingsFirms in the sample are lagging behind in regard to ES practices in comparison to GRI. Firstly, they did not follow the global standard guidelines strictly in reporting their environmental impact; secondly, they have not quantified the impact or related reductions to environmental damage and thirdly, they did not cover all relevant impact areas as outlined by the GRI in reporting some ES initiatives already in place.Research limitations/implicationsThe research findings are based on the content data from websites and their executions were not validated. In addition to GRI, there could be other global organisations that can be used for future research.Practical implicationsThis study confirms the prior research findings on environmental impact in NZ, induced by tourism-hospitality sector, and provides an opportunity for the practitioners to reflect upon and develop environmental policies in line with global practices such as GRI.Originality/valuePrior studies on analysing ES of the businesses in the hotel industry are scarce. To the best of our knowledge, no prior study has attempted to analyse online content data of the NZ hotel industry to examine sustainability policies and practices and compare them against any global standard.

Sustainability reporting in the hotel industry

“…The GRI reporting standards are one of the most widely used. The first version was introduced more than two decades ago, but we still find that companies do not consistently follow the requirements suggested by the standards (Guruge, 2022). Low level of internal and external harmonization of environmental and social key performance indicators has been found Halmi, and Poldrugovac, 2023).…”

The Moderating Role of ESG Administration on the Relationship between Tourism Activities and Carbon Emissions: A Case Study of Basic Local Governments in South Korea

“…Additionally, the efficacy of ESG strategies has been validated in the public sector [40]. For instance, in New Zealand, the implementation of strict environmental regulations for sustainable tourism has led to a significant reduction in the environmental footprint of the tourism industry [41]. In South Korea, ESG has emerged as a focal issue receiving considerable attention in academia, business management, and public policy [42,43].…”

Supply Chain Social Sustainability & Economic Performance: A New Zealand SME Perspective

“…There is limited research concerning supply chain social sustainability within a NZ context let alone social sustainability research in a wider context (Scott et al, 2000;Ancell & Thompson, 2008;Flint & Golicic, 2009;Sajjad et al, 2015;Sajjad et al, 2020;Dodds et al, 2013;Guruge, 2022;Fairweather & Campbell, 2003;Battisi & Perry, 2011). Scott et al (2000) addresses the concept of social sustainability in a broader sense through employing ethnographic research focusing on rural communities in Northland, NZ.…”

“…NZ studies that have considered a specific sustainability dimension in their research have often focused on environmental sustainability (Dodds et al, 2013;Guruge, 2022;Fairweather & Campbell, 2003). Dodds et al (2019) looked into the drivers of environmental sustainability within the NZ Wine industry.…”

“…They discovered that concern for the environment and social responsibility were among the top drivers for environmental sustainability engagement followed by requirements for exporting and protection of agricultural land. Another study conducted by Guruge (2022) compared environmental sustainability policies within the NZ hotel industry with the global reporting initiative standards. The study revealed that NZ accommodation providers were not adequately reporting their environmental sustainability practices, environmental impact and efforts to reduce their environmental damage.…”