Sharjah's Sustainability Developments Take Center Stageat The Annual Hilton Sustainability Summit

Key figures from Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA),Sharjah Electricity and Water Authority (SEWA) and Bee’ah Environment and Waste Management came together at the second annual Hilton Sustainability Summit. Hosted by Hilton Sharjah in line with Hilton Worldwide’s commitment to eco-friendly initiatives, the summit focused on sharing eco-best practice to further enhance environmental developments across the Sharjah community.

SCTDA’s guest speaker H. E. Khaled Al Midfa opened the summit by noting that, “The emirate of Sharjah has long regarded environmental sustainability as an indispensable component of its tourism and commerce development strategy and actively encourages all organizationsto maintain a sustainable approach to the way in which we all do business. Hilton Sharjah is playing an integral role in this effort by providing a platform for developing eco-solutions in the industry.”

While speaking at summit, Mr. Mohammad Abdalla Bin Ali, Director of Strategy and Excellence, SEWA said, “Sustainable energy is one of the most pressing issues of our time. Every effort that is made through platforms such as the Hilton Sustainability Summit, make a real difference to our approach to eco-initiatives in the emirate.”

Richard Gosling, general manager of Hilton Sharjah said, “We are pleased with the outcome of the second annual Hilton Sustainability Summit in Sharjahwhich aimed to provide practical and sustainable solutions to future energy challenges in the region. Sustainability is at the core of what we do as a Hilton hotel, so this summit was a great opportunity to connect with Sharjah’s leading authorities to share best practice and further develop a culture of environmental consciousness in the Middle East.”

During the summit, Vinesh Hurrychurn, director of engineering operations, Hilton Worldwide Middle East & Africashared insightsonenvironmental efforts across Hilton Worldwide hotels, which isthe first major multi-brand hospitality company to make sustainability measurement a global brand standard. Amongst the many initiatives discussed was LightStay, a proprietary measurement system developed by HiltonWorldwide to calculate and analyze sustainability performance across Hilton Worldwide hotels. Amongst some of the latest achievements were accumulated energy and water savings amounting to 17% and 16% respectively.

The summit also included a tour ofBee’ah Waste Management Centre, where guests, which included team members from across the region’s Hilton Worldwide hotels, observed Sharjah’s leading environmental and waste management organization at work.

After the tour, Mr. Najib Faris, Chief Commercial Officer, Bee’ah Environment and Waste Management Company commented on their involvement in the summit, “At Bee’ah, weare pioneering forward-thinking initiatives in an effort to achieve a zero- waste to landfill ratio in Sharjah by 2015, making Sharjah the first Arab city to divert 100% of its waste from landfill. The Hilton Sustainability Summit is setting the stage for the discussion of these importantenvironmental measuresas weaim to create a truly sustainable Sharjah.”

The Hilton Sustainability Summit was the second of its kind in the region, after the success of last year’s opening event in Dubai. The summit, which is set to take place at Hilton Capital Grand Abu Dhabi next year,aims to connect Hilton Worldwide properties and local stakeholders, as Hilton Worldwide continues to meet its global sustainability targets. The summitorganizers were grateful to a range of sponsors including Diversey, Schneider Electric, Methven Showers and Organic Foods and Café.

Emirate:  Sharjah

Date: Mar 26, 2014

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