Marriott is proud to announce its global campaign called Race to Zero. This campaign will fundraise the companies, cities, regions, and financial and educational institutions that aim to reach net-zero chain greenhouse gas emissions by no later than 2050. 

“We are driven to make a positive and sustainable impact wherever we do business. This attentive commitment to reach net-zero emissions is a needed for us to do our part of helping the communities and environments where we live, work and visit remain resilient and vibrant,” said Anthony Capuano, Chief Executive Officer, Marriott International. 

He continued that they navigate one of the industry’s most difficult periods. Marriott International’s portfolio of hotels has been working to reduce its carbon footprint as part of its existing 2025 sustainability goals. This latest commitment to climate action is the next step in the company’s sustainability journey. Achieving these new targets will require partnering with Marriott’s dedicated associates across disciplines along with the company’s valued hotel owners and franchisees. 

Over time, initiatives may include increased use of renewable energy, building electrification to maximize renewable electricity, continued modifications to design standards. Hence, buildings are more efficient, and automation systems and energy efficiency upgrades (for example, smart thermostats) are installed. In addition to the company’s goal to provide further visibility to the carbon footprint and environmental impact of their travel with Marriott, guests and customers will see an enhanced focus on existing sustainability efforts such as solid waste and food waste reduction and natural capital restoration, with the opportunity to participate in activities such as reforestation as well as coral and mangrove plantings.

In support of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), this announcement aligns with the company’s sustainability and social impact platform, Serve 360: Doing Good in Every Direction, which guides Marriott’s commitment to helping take on the world’s most pressing social, environmental, and economic issues, delivering value for associates, customers, owners, the environment, and communities across the globe. It also builds on Marriott’s long-standing history of embedding sustainability throughout its business strategy, operations and value chain. 

Starting with the company’s core value to Serve Our World and its first-generation environmental impact reduction goals to its latest series of waste reduction initiatives, Marriott is promoting the sustainable development of the communities in which it operates and the resiliency and longevity of its resiliency and longevity the business.

Marriott’s sustainability strategy is driven by a wide range of initiatives to reduce environmental impacts by constructing and operating sustainable hotels and responsible sourcing while protecting and restoring the ecosystems on which life depends. Recent initiatives include reducing single-use plastics, including replacing tiny, single-use toiletry bottles of shampoo, conditioner and bath gel in guestroom showers with larger pump-topped bottles. When fully implemented globally in 2022, the company’s expanded toiletry program is expected to prevent about 500 million tiny bottles annually from going to landfills. 

The roll-out of an internal food waste prevention and reduction educational campaign is designed to support Marriott’s goal of reducing food waste by 50%. The launch of a publicly available responsible sourcing guide to help Marriott’s supplier community join its sustainability journey on the path to responsibly sourcing 95% of the company’s top ten priority categories.

Develop a certifications database to help properties operate more responsibly and work towards the goal of 100% of the portfolio receiving a third-party sustainability certification. Planting more than 415,000 trees over the last several years, including through the company’s work as a founding member of the Evergreen Alliance, a select group of Arbor Day Foundation partners and collaborators committed to advancing trees and forests as natural solutions for corporate sustainability and citizenship goals.

Innovative ecosystem restoration and carbon sequestration projects, such as working with The Ocean Foundation, aims to remove and repurpose sargassum seaweed, which has had devastating impacts on the environment.