"Suzana, can you tell us about the main sustainability initiatives that Hilton Grand Vacations has implemented in its European resorts?"

Our roadmap to sustainability started in 2011, when the resorts located in Spain, under Diamond Resorts Management, obtained the ISO14001 certification. To date, all 26 resorts in Europe managed by HGV have this certification, and we recently obtained the Ecostars certification as well. 

Our dedication to the environment is an ongoing effort that has driven us to enhance and expand our sustainability efforts for 13 years. We aspire to commit to a greener, more resilient future for all, and one of the keys is to involve our stakeholders in all that we do. 

Team members, members and guests’ participation is of upmost importance because only with their engagement can we improve our impact and become fully sustainable. 

As part of this, our Sustainability Focus Group along with Sustainability Ambassadors are our main drivers. We prepare and deliver continuous “Green Tips” and “Best Practices” training sessions for all team members. We also involve members and guests by asking them to help us with our efforts to reduce the impact that resorts have on the environment and local communities.

Our commitment to sustainability includes sustainable gardens with crops that are at the disposal to our members and guests.

Since 2016, we have focused on reducing single-use plastic. We realized quite early (before it became a mainstream topic) that the biggest impact on nature is plastic pollution and we made it our goal to reduce the use of single-use plastic across the resorts by 80% at the end of 2025. To date, our reduction percentage is just over 70%. 

We have completely reduced using single-use plastic water bottles across resort operations by installing water filters in all kitchens in accommodations (except in the UK resorts where tap water is safe to drink). This enables members, guests and team members to refill their reusable bottles with filtered water. A water jug is also provided for the fridge.

In 2019, we partnered with We Are Water Foundation (WAW) with a key focus on three main areas: Education and Engagement, Fundraising and Entertainment. 

Educating and engaging our team members, members and guests to build awareness on sustainable water practices and to also encourage them to be rational and sustainable in their use of water. This is done through informative, educational and fun activities and programs to ensure they are making a positive contribution with their participation. 

Fundraising is done by embracing the goal of helping WAW bring clean and safe water to communities in need across countries such as Guatemala, India, Indonesia, Morocco, Madagascar, Ukraine and Tanzania. 

Entertainment is done by carrying out WAW’s flagship activity “Aquanauts,” - water keepers - to help teach adults and children alike about the importance of bringing clean water to communities worldwide. Activities include water hunt gymkhanas, the water lab where members and guests learn how to “clean dirty water” and “health cards” that show water related situations.

As part of this partnership, we have also branded aluminum water bottles, with each team member using their own to discourage bringing plastic water bottles to work. The remaining stock is sold as merchandising in the reception area, where €/£1 of proceeds are donated to WAW.