EDITOR'S COMMENT
• As COP27 took place in Egypt last week, the path towards a more sustainable future was back among the news headlines. As a result, STRz spoke to five passionate environmentalists in the short-term rental sector who gave their perspectives of what is needed in our industry - specifically true leadership - to set an example to the world at a time when actions will speak louder than words.
That call to action was answered as six industry associations, including The European Holiday Home Association [EHHA], The UK Short Term Accommodation Association [STAA], and The Vacation Rental Management Association [VRMA], joined together to launch The Global Short-Term Rental Sustainability Research Project. The initiative has been created to develop a ‘united voice’ and will assist the industry in determining where they are at in terms of sustainability best practice - property owners, property managers and suppliers can fill out the following questionnaire in English, French, German, Spanish and Italian.
Given that tourism accounts for eight to ten per cent of global greenhouse gases, the actions of industry leaders reverberate even more powerfully around the world when we work together to reduce our environmental footprint. Sustainability reports and publications are all well and good, but it is up to investors, CEOs, founders, governments and travellers alike to "walk the walk" by making and promoting more meaningful, responsible travel choices.
• It was sad to see the news that AvantStay is letting go of 22 per cent of its workforce due to “over-hiring for the current world" and nor will it be the last firm to announce widespread layoffs. Other operators and global tech firms [e.g. Meta, Twitter] are heavily cutting jobs at the end of a year marked by economic turbulence and the impacts of the war in Ukraine.
Therefore, our next RockSTRz webinar tomorrow [15 November, 4pm GMT] on "Tackling the talent shortage: the path to recruiting and retaining hospitality superstars" will be vitally important in highlighting the way forward for concerned hospitality professionals. Speakers include Steve Trover [Better Talent], Amber Erickson-Hurdle [Amber Hurdle Consulting] and Kieron Bailey [Otolo] - sign up for our no-cost webinar at this link.
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