Accor has announced it has created an open knowledge platform on sustainable development for the hotel industry.

 

The platform called Earth Guest Research aims to contribute to progress in the tourism industry by making sustainable development surveys and methodologies available to all industry operators, as well as to the general public, the company said.

 

As a first step, the group surveyed hotel guests on their concerns and expectations with regard to sustainable development. The survey of hotel guests’ sustainable development-related expectations was carried out by French market research institute IFOP in six countries — Australia, Brazil, China, France, Germany and the United Kingdom — from August 9-30, 2010. Representative of hotel users in each country, the sample groups comprised nearly 7,000 respondents who had spent at least one night in a hotel in the previous 12 months, including a cross-section of hotel types (chain, independent, etc.) and segments (budget, economy, midscale, upscale and

luxury).

 

Key Findings

 

 A typical profile has emerged. Young, male business guests who use economy hotels seem to be the most concerned about sustainable development.

 

 A global consensus on water, energy and waste. One slight difference: Brazilian guests are particularly concerned about local development and Chinese guests about health and well-being.

 

 NGOs and international organizations rank last on the responsibility scale. One in three guests believes that sustainable development is first and foremost the responsibility of individual citizens.

 

 A constraint turned into a desirable experience. Seven out of ten guests said they would select a responsible hotel even if it was less well-situated and slightly more expensive.

 

Read on for more of the key findings for the research