Sustainability is no longer a ‘nice-to-have,’ it’s a prerequisite.” This assessment by WorldHotels president Ron Pohl is at the heart of what veteran lodging industry executives are discovering daily about the expectations of TMCs and corporate travel buyers when it comes to care for the environment.

“At BWH Hotels, we’ve seen a definitive shift. Buyers now actively seek proof of sustainability initiatives, EPC (earth, people and community) policies and transparent reporting,” says Pohl, who also serves as the company’s president of international operations. “In 2024, nearly half of travel professionals said sustainability was a high priority, with many of this cohort already integrating sustainability initiatives into their programs. Globally, we’re seeing even higher interest in sustainability requirements from TMCs and travel buyers.” 

Megan Brumagim, vice president upscale brands and chief sustainability officer at Choice Hotels International, agrees corporate travel buyers and TMCs are increasingly prioritizing sustainability as a core component of their travel programs. She points to GBTA research that finds nearly two thirds of travel buyers are selecting their suppliers based on sustainability criteria.

“We’re seeing this shift reflected in the growing number of sustainability-related questions in RFPs,” Brumagim notes, who adds that more than 50 percent of Choice’s key corporate accounts are now including sustainability requirements or questions in RFPs. “Buyers are asking about everything from our environmental policies and decarbonization strategy to operational practices like energy and water conservation.”

Corporate lodging and payment technology platform HRS reports that 90 percent of its customers in the 2025 RFP season ranked sustainability among their first to third priorities alongside savings, satisfaction, safety and security, according to Fabio Fornari, HRS sustainability product manager. “We surmise this is because companies are increasingly under pressure to report, reduce and remove Scope 3 [greenhouse gas] emissions, which include business travel, in line with net-zero commitments,” he says.

Audits & Actions

So, forget “authentic.” Being “transparent” is what’s wanted now – and clearly backed by sustainability data.

“The information each buyer is looking for can vary,” observes Angie Gadwood, senior vice president of sales for Wyndham Hotels & Resorts. “Sometimes, it’s fairly basic. For example, they want to know what a hotel’s general sustainability practices are, while other times they may ask for specific metrics, such as the room night carbon factor (carbon emissions per room night sold), water consumption per room night, waste diversion rates, etc.”

Navan Travel’s CEO Rich Liu says the corporate travel and expense management platform’s customers are demanding three critical capabilities in business-travel sustainability: Transparency in emissions tracking, actionable intelligence that drives behavioral change and seamless integration with their ESG reporting frameworks. “Businesses want partners who can deliver granular, auditable data at the trip, department and individual traveler level while providing the tooling to actually reduce emissions and not just report them,” he maintains.

Also broadly in the mix is the growing expectation that this type of information is easily accessible within the booking process. “Corporate buyers want the ability to make sustainable choices for their travelers without adding friction to the booking process. So, ensuring sustainability data flows into platforms like Concur or other online booking tools is becoming critical,” says Gadwood.

The expectations of the client’s corporate sustainability team and their auditors come into play as well, according to Matt Esper, director of sustainability and social impact at Direct Travel. “Audit-grade sustainability data is becoming table stakes when clients request climate-related travel data, especially by those in jurisdictions facing ESG regulations like California, Canada and Europe. Many are seeking external verification of their travel-related emissions, especially for aviation. More advanced companies are now asking for emissions data from hotel stays and ground transportation as well.”

Esper’s colleague, Donna Brokowski, executive vice president, global supplier management, consulting, ESG lead at Direct Travel, agrees. “That’s absolutely right,” she says “Historically, the focus has been on aviation, but hotel-related emissions are now gaining more attention. Many companies are still in the early stages of tracking emissions from hotel stays, largely because they’re more complex to calculate. Hotel emissions can include everything from electricity and heating/cooling to waste, embodied carbon in building materials, transportation-related activities, purchased goods and services and more.”

Little Things Matter

The majority of hoteliers, TMCs and corporate travel buyers who are deeply involved with the current sustainability dynamic are quick to point out that most of their companies have been wrangling green efforts for a decade or more, consistently expanding, upgrading and promoting programs as environmental concerns – and technology – advance.

All the major hotel chains have some sustainability programs in place. Choice Hotels has implemented a range of initiatives to help reduce environmental impact across Its portfolio, according to Brumagim. “Some of these are brand standards and include common-sense solutions like energy-efficient lighting, low-flow water fixtures, employee-engagement training and recycling programs. Many of our properties also have adopted smart thermostats and occupancy sensors to reduce energy usage. From there, we encourage hotels to work toward more-advanced practices like EV charging stations, onsite renewables like solar panels, cool roofs, xeriscaping and gray-water recycling.”

BWH Hotels has a diverse portfolio of hotel brands within three hotel companies – WorldHotels, Best Western Hotels & Resorts and SureStay Hotels. Pohl notes that with some 4,300 properties across 19 brands, the group embraces “corporate travel buyers seeking sustainable initiatives and practices that fit within their clientele’s budgets.”

BWH Hotels on a global basis has room standards such as low-flow water fixtures, bulk amenity dispensers, energy-efficient lighting and recycling programs, plus opt-in housekeeping policies that reduce water and energy, and more.“We also empower our hoteliers to support their local communities and environments, from beach cleanup projects to locally sourced ingredients featured in their bars and restaurants,” says Pohl, adding that via its expanding “Because We Care” program, it’s working to introduce more EV charging stations.

At the heart of Wyndham’s proprietary “Green Program,” formally launched in 2019, is an internal certification process that promotes energy and water conservation, waste diversion, responsible purchasing, as well as guest, team member and franchisee education and engagement, says Gadwood. She adds that the program enables hotels to track, measure and report on their environmental performance data, “which is critical to minimizing environmental impact over the long-term.”

Measuring Up 

HRS sees a clear and growing expectation from its corporate customers to have sustainability as a core part of their hotel programs. “Our customers are looking not just for transparency while booking hotels, but for reliable sustainability data that enables them to implement a holistic strategy starting from procurement all the way through reporting,” says Fornari. “We see a clear shift in our customers’ behavior, with the role of travel managers changing to balance sustainability with savings. Accordingly, they seek a reliable standard for sustainability metrics and solutions to help them make the right decisions,” he says, noting the company is responding with its Green Stay Initiative, an ISO-14067 certified solution for hotels and meetings, “integrating accurate and verifiable sustainability data in our end-to-end offering.”

While Liu acknowledges hotels are continuing to implement sophisticated sustainability measures (think LED lighting, solar panels, single-use-plastic bans, AI-powered energy-management systems that adjust based on occupancy), he stresses it’s fragmented reporting that prevents meaningful comparison and measurement.

“The key differentiator for travel buyers is data accessibility. The properties that win corporate business on their sustainability credentials provide real-time metrics through standardized frameworks, third-party certifications and API-enabled data integration with TMCs and corporate ESG platforms,” Liu asserts.

Brumagim stresses that you can’t manage what you don’t measure. Toward this, Choice has enhanced its “Room to be Green” program focused on energy, water, waste reduction to help hotels meet these consistently evolving expectations. The megachain – it has more than 7,500 worldwide across 22 brands – introduced a dashboard powered by Schneider Electric that enables properties to track energy and water usage, and automatically calculate CO₂e emissions, giving hotels the ability “to easily pull this information in real time, equipping buyers with the data they need to make informed, responsible decisions,” she explains. “Our property-level, utility-tracking dashboard is a cornerstone of our data-driven approach.”

The franchisor also continues to test technology solutions at the hotels it directly owns and manages, and shares those learnings with its franchisees. “Smart thermostats, for example, have a very fast payback, and have saved us thousands of dollars a month in energy usage at the hotels we manage,” says Brumagim. “Similarly, we’re currently piloting AI-powered food-waste-reduction technology at several of our managed hotels, and we anticipate a payback period under one year on that investment.”

BWH Hotels deploys a number of measurement tools to collect data, says Pohl, notably partnering with Green Key Global, a hospitality industry sustainability certification program, to create a standardized platform in North America. “We also are a member of the World Travel & Tourism Council, the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) and the World Sustainable Hospitality Alliance, a collective of hospitality brands globally that is working to move the entire hospitality industry forward in its commitment to sustainability,” says Pohl. “Partnerships such as these demonstrate to TMCs and corporate buyers our steadfast commitment to offer our guests and corporate customers a place to stay, host events and plan meetings that align with their sustainable travel goals.” 

Pohl adds that the company has made a commitment that 50 percent of all its hotels will have a sustainability certification by year-end 2025 and 100 percent by 2026, measured within each country globally.

Certified and Bona Fide 

Getting third-party validation from various certification organizations and standards groups also helps affirm the “legitimacy” of a hotel’s sustainability program and claims made, according to the executives.

Choice’s partnerships include Green Key Global and the WTTC (and its Hotel Sustainability Basics program). “Additionally, we report annually through several key frameworks, including TCFD (Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures) and SASB (Sustainability Accounting Standards Board), which have now both moved under International Sustainability Standards Board. We also report annually to the Carbon Disclosure Project, which provides transparency to investors and corporate partners alike. These credentials are not just badges – they’re benchmarks that guide our efforts to continuously improve,” says Brumagim.

With a portfolio of some 9,300 properties across 25 brands worldwide, Wyndham recognizes a number of external certifications – notably LEED and Energy Star – as well as accreditations from organizations such as GSTC and Travalyst. “These credentials are essential because they ultimately help ensure a level playing field that allows hotels to easily understand how they stack up not only within their individual brands or companies but across the industry as a whole,” says Gadwood.

Fornari indicates carbon footprint metrics remain the focus of HRS’ corporate customers and can understand hotels are in different moments on their sustainability journey. “Accordingly, they value when hotels track the implementation of ways to monitor, report and continuously improve on their sustainability practices,” he says.

Similarly, HRS is continuing to invest in solutions that drive more sustainable procurement and booking practices for transient meetings and long-stay segments, he says, touting its enhanced new Green Stay Audit platform for hotels and Copilot for corporations.

Just as its customers’ needs have evolved, so, too, has Navan’s sustainability tooling, says Liu. In 2021, it launched its Sustainability Suite to help companies track and reduce their travel-related emissions. Last year, it made greater strides in its approach. “We established a dedicated sustainability team, achieved EcoVadis certification, and became signatories to both the UN Global Compact and Science Based Targets initiative,” says Liu.

And right now, Direct Travel is expanding its own climate-reporting tools across three service tiers (basic, enhanced and premium), which allow clients to assess emissions from different travel categories, including air, hotel and ground. “As these tools mature, they will be increasingly useful for integrating supplier-level sustainability data – like hotel energy use or GHG intensity – into travel program decision-making,” says Esper.

Even as advancements continue, Brokowski suggests a key challenge remains in getting more sustainability information into the booking process itself. “We can have all the right policies, data and commitments flowing between travel management companies and travel-service providers, but if we can’t empower the traveler to make a conscious decision at the time of booking, it can only move the needle so far,” she says. 

“Travelers today are juggling a lot, so the booking experience needs to be seamless. That means sustainability information has to be front and center – not buried in a PDF or post-trip report,” Brokowski contends. “Making it easy for travelers to see and act on sustainability data in real time is something we’re thinking about very carefully right now.”