InterContinental Hotels Group is pleased that the hotel industry now has a standardised approach to measuring carbon footprints.

The new methodology has been formulated by the International Tourism Partnership (ITP) and the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), in collaboration with IHG and 22 other leading global hospitality companies. The carbon footprint of hotel stays and meetings will now be able to be calculated and communicated in a consistent and transparent way.

Prior to this, approaches to measuring and reporting on carbon emissions varied widely, leading to confusion amongst customers, particularly corporate clients, looking to understand their own potential carbon footprint.

The Hotel Carbon Measurement Initiative (HCMI) Working Group, comprising of hotel members within ITP and WTTC, was formed in 2011 to address inconsistencies in hotel approaches and to devise a unified methodology. Named ‘HCMI 1.0', the methodology launched this month is a consolidated move, led by the hotel industry, establishing a global standardised approach for the sector and its customers.

The methodology was first developed in 2011 and has since been tested in hotels of different style and size in different geographical locations and refined through a stakeholder engagement process.

The development of the methodology follows on from a Cornell University study, ‘Developing a Sustainability Measurement Framework for Hotels: Towards an Industry-wide Reporting Structure', which was co-sponsored by IHG.

Through common measurement and language, stakeholders will now be able to understand more easily the footprints and impacts communicated to them from hotels.

"As an industry, we've standardised our practices around how hotels calculate carbon emissions, making it easier for our guests and corporate clients to understand the environmental impact of their hotel stays," said David Jerome, IHG's Senior Vice President of Corporate Responsibility.

IHG will be using the new methodology developed by the HCMI to build a carbon calculator into Green Engage, its industry-leading online sustainability tool that allows hotels to measure, manage and reduce their environmental impacts including energy, water and waste.

The calculator will enable nearly 2,000 hotels using Green Engage to respond to their corporate clients with information on their carbon footprint per occupied room and the carbon footprint of client meetings and events.

This new function ensures that Green Engage remains a leading tool and demonstrates IHG's continued innovation and investment in this area, as well as helping to keep our hotels competitive and driving revenue.