Meliá Hotels International, the leading hotel group in Spain, recognised as the most sustainable company in the world for its sector by S&P Global, has begun implementing its new sustainable event initiative: Road to Net Zero Events. This project, which the company is presenting at the IBTM trade fair in Barcelona, is the result of technology developed in collaboration with Creast, a company that specialises in measuring, reducing and offsetting the environmental impact of events, which has been tested for the past year in Europe at Meliá Barcelona Sarriá and Meliá Berlin.

Road to Net Zero Events, as the name suggests, was developed to find improvement opportunities that would help the company towards the goal of achieving carbon neutrality in events, responding to increasing demand from professionals in the sector. Accordingly, the initiative is focused on three key aspects:

Firstly, Meliá has worked with Creast to develop cutting-edge technology that calculates the carbon footprint at two crucial points: the quotation stage and the end of the event. This technology is integrated into hotel management systems and provides measurements based on data specific to each hotel and each event. It calculates the carbon emissions produced by the accommodation, the meeting rooms and, as a novelty, the consumption of food and beverages: it is the only hotel system that provides detailed information about each menu's carbon footprint.

Secondly, Road to Net Zero Events is designed to help event organisers make responsible decisions based on Meliá Hotels International's commitments and initiatives to reduce their environmental impact. This will enable the customer to discover first-hand the emissions they have avoided at their events by choosing Meliá, a company that has achieved a green energy consumption level of 100% at all its hotels in Europe, along with its various other initiatives to manage its waste and water footprint, among other things.

Finally, to strengthen its commitment to a more sustainable management model, Meliá Hotels International will offset the carbon footprint of all events held as part of its Road to Net Zero Events initiative. As José Miguel Moreno, VP of Corporate & MICE Sales Strategy at Meliá Hotels International, explains, “With this initiative, we're going one step further to create events that not only inspire and connect people, but that also contribute towards a greener planet. We will work hand in hand with our customers to offset the carbon footprint of their events, whether through a solution of their choice or our emissions-offsetting initiative, The Planet We Love". This initiative makes it possible to acquire carbon credits certified by the United Nations, which support a selection of projects in developing countries to reduce emissions, applying blockchain technology to ensure traceability for the entire process.

At the initial stage, Road to Net Zero Events is available for large events at a dozen different Meliá hotels in Europe and the Caribbean, including Meliá Madrid Princesa, Meliá Valencia and Meliá Palma Bay in Spain; Meliá Milano (Italy), Meliá Paris La Defense (France), Meliá Frankfurt (Germany) and Paradisus Palma Real (Dominican Republic), in addition to Meliá Barcelona Sarriá and Meliá Berlin, as already mentioned.

Over the coming months, other hotels will also be included in the initiative, with the midterm goal of incorporating all the properties in the group where the MICE segment is particularly important​.