Senior sustainability leaders from the region’s major hotel groups gathered in Singapore for a closed-door roundtable on turning sustainability ambition into measurable progress.
Ecostars, the AI-native sustainability and ESG certification platform for hotels and hotel chains, hosted the first edition of its Sustainable Hospitality Forum in Southeast Asia on October 20 in Singapore, bringing together senior sustainability and operations leaders from some of the region’s most prominent hotel groups.
The panel brought together leading hospitality industry experts, including Melissa Chong, Senior Manager, Sustainability & Responsible Business, APAC, Hilton; Eden Camilleri, Director, Operations Excellence, Hotel Openings & Projects, Accor; Johnny Gao, Assistant Vice President, Sustainability, The Ascott Limited; Choong Han Yeo, Group Sustainability Manager, Banyan Group; Teddy Dominic, Deputy Head of Legal, Compliance and Sustainability, Global Premium Hotels Limited; and Cédric Viguier, AI Transformation & Sustainability, COMO Hotels & Resorts.
Held at Hilton Singapore Orchard, the conversation centered on a shared question: how the region’s fast-growing hotel sector can move from sustainability ambition to measurable results. Several priorities emerged.
Data and measurement as the foundation.
Participants agreed that reliable sustainability data is becoming a central pillar of hotel groups’ strategies. Measuring performance across energy, water, carbon, and waste at the individual property level, and consolidating it into consistent reporting across international portfolios, was seen as essential to identifying inefficiencies, setting credible targets, and demonstrating real progress. The clear direction of travel: sustainability is moving beyond individual initiatives toward a structured, data-driven approach built on measurement, transparency, and accountability.
Circularity as an efficiency opportunity.
Reducing waste, rethinking food and beverage operations, and moving away from linear consumption models were recognized as both an environmental responsibility and a route to operational efficiency, while participants noted that implementation must be adapted to the recycling and waste-recovery infrastructure available in each destination.
Biodiversity and responsible sourcing as regional priorities.
In a region defined by exceptionally rich ecosystems, from tropical forests to coral reefs and mangroves, leaders highlighted the close link between protecting natural capital and the long-term appeal of destinations, and the importance of prioritizing local and responsibly sourced suppliers to strengthen both resilience and surrounding communities.
The forum also addressed the social dimension of sustainability, including the role of employee education and responsible employment practices in embedding sustainability across daily operations.
Ecostars confirmed that the Singapore edition is the first of a continuing series across Southeast Asia, with further forums planned for the region.