On October 30th, Ecostars hosted the ‘Sustainable Hospitality Forum: Benelux’ in Amsterdam, bringing together sustainability leaders from some of the region’s most renowned hotel chains. The gathering provided a collaborative space to exchange insights, discuss shared challenges, and identify key priorities that will shape the development of sustainable hospitality in the Benelux region.
The Forum also featured guest speakers from Booking.com, David Noe (Senior Manager, Sustainability Strategy) and Thomas Loughlin (Program Manager, Sustainability), who presented Booking.com’s ESG strategy and actions across the Benelux market.
Participating Attendees + Hotel Chains
- Gavin Fraser & Andrew Mulet Indrayanti | Sircle Collection
- Sijbrand Booij | Van der Valk International
- Sander Kiezebrink | Leonardo Hotels
- Sanne Lammers | Radisson Hotel Group
- Kees Tol & Shalen Chen | The July
- Milo Smits & Merel Greven | Inntel Hotels
- Esther Ruijgvoorn | citizenM hotels
- Gisela Boersma | The Usual Hotels
- Joris Tensen & Rob van Hemert | Conscious Hotels
- Mirjam Kiestra | Stayokay
Beyond the Conversations
The Forum provided an open space to encourage networking among the sustainability leaders in the hospitality industry within the region. They had the opportunity to share best practices, and explore future collaborations, thereby strengthening relationships that will support further progress toward common ESG goals in the Benelux hotel industry.
Key Priorities Identified
In order to promote communication and cooperation among the industry leaders, we held an interactive roundtable session during the event where they discussed their top ESG sustainability concerns, with a particular emphasis on these three key areas: Energy & CO₂, Water, and Circularity.
ENERGY & CO₂
- Energy efficiency remains a priority, with hotel chains investing in systems and technologies that minimize consumption and emissions.
- Sustainable construction and renovation practices are progressively being integrated to ensure long-term energy performance.
- Real-time monitoring tools are being implemented to track and optimize energy use across hotel portfolios.
WATER
- Efficient technology, including intelligent meters, are becoming more and more popular in the industry.
- Monitoring and data analysis are crucial to understand consumption trends and pinpoint areas for improvement.
- Water conservation initiatives are being strengthened to reduce scarcity risks and align with sustainability goals.
CIRCULARITY
- Eliminating plastics and single-use items is still a common goal among the hotel business.
- Sustainable material sourcing (e.g., FSC-certified materials) is becoming a standard in procurement processes.
- Efforts to reduce waste and recycle continue to progress, with the support of digital tools for tracking and optimization.
A Shared Commitment
A clear message emerged from the Forum’s discussion: sustainable hospitality demands continuous collaboration, innovation, and data-driven action. The Benelux hotel sector is transitioning towards a model of sustainable maturity, where ESG has emerged as a fundamental driver of competitiveness, reputation, and operational efficiency, in addition to being a strategic focus for reducing environmental impact.
“Sustainability isn’t written, it’s cultivated. With Ecostars, data grows into real impact.“
