Hotel Sustainability Benchmarking Study

Abstract

This document presents the results of the first Cornell Hotel Sustainability Benchmarking (CHSB) study of hotel carbon and energy data. To date this research represents the single largest publicly available benchmarking study of hotel energy usage and carbon emissions—one that will continue to evolve each year. The results are presented by geographic market and segmented in alignment with common industry benchmarking practices of occupancy and ADR to lay the groundwork for subsequent benchmarking studies and multivariate regression analysis that is market specific. In developing industry benchmarks, the aggregate data can be utilized for the benefit of internal and external audiences and to provide a more thorough understanding of attributes affecting energy usage and carbon emissions. Lessons learned can be applied to both internal and external stakeholder audiences with a goal of reducing the environmental impact of hotel operations.