How Hilton is Helping Groups Meet with Purpose

The impact of where we go and how we meet is more important than ever, and event professionals know that the business partners they choose matter. Working with hospitality brands who take that responsibility just as seriously as they do can go a long way in not only reducing their collective carbon footprint but also in sharing their story with stakeholders in an easy and compelling way.

“As we emerge from the pandemic, at Hilton, we see sustainability as a continued priority for both our guests and our customers,” said Frank Passanante, senior vice president, Hilton Worldwide Sales – Americas. “Our Travel with Purpose commitment has been to double our social impact investment and cut our environmental footprint in half by 2030. We plan to achieve these goals through use of our award-winning tool, LightStay, as well as offerings like Meet with Purpose.”

The LightStay™ program is designed to assist event professionals in predicting, reducing, and offsetting an event’s carbon emissions. Since 2009, each property in the Hilton portfolio has been required to track its waste, water, energy usage, and community impact. Hilton’s Meet with Purpose program includes several components that can help event professionals do their part as well. For instance, many hotels offer menu items made with locally sourced and sustainably grown ingredients. Event professionals can also share the bounty with others by working with the hotel to donate excess food. In fact, its food donation program — available at Hilton-managed properties around the world — has helped to feed more than 160,000 people annually.

Bringing it all into perspective is Hilton’s complimentary Meeting Impact Calculator report, available at every Hilton property around the world. This tool allows event professionals to track the energy, carbon, water, and waste produced from their event or meeting. Post-event, they’ll receive a full report detailing their overall impact, and Hilton will offset those emissions with a contribution toward one of several high-quality carbon reduction projects chosen by partner South Pole (learn more about those projects at southpole.com/Hilton).

For a more comprehensive look at Hilton sustainability and social responsibility efforts, check out the brand’s most recent Travel Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Report.