Senior sustainability and operations leaders from some of the Gulf’s most influential hospitality brands, including Rotana, Taiba and Five Hotels & Resorts, came together at an exclusive industry forum hosted by Ecostars in Dubai to discuss the sector’s evolving approach to sustainability and environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance.
The closed-door roundtable highlighted a growing consensus across the sector: in one of the world’s fastest-growing hotel markets, sustainability is becoming a strategic business priority, and meaningful progress will depend on data, technology, and shared learning.
Hosted by Jose Luis Santos, the CEO at Ecostars, the sustainability intelligence platform dedicated exclusively to the hospitality sector, the event brought together some of the industry’s leading sustainability and operations experts featuring Carole Gemayel, Sustainability Director at Rotana; Hassan Ahdab, Chief Hospitality Operations Officer at Taiba; Hamad AlSalman, VP, Marketing and Communications at TAIBA; Amritha Prasad, Director of HSEQ department at FIVE Hotels & Resorts; Benson Koshy, Lead Health, Safety & Environment Officer at FIVE Hotels & Resorts.
The gathering comes as the GCC region cements its position as one of the fastest-growing hotel markets in the world, with a record development pipeline and rising regulatory momentum around sustainability, from the UAE's Net Zero 2050 strategy and Dubai's mandatory hotel carbon reporting to Saudi Arabia's Green Initiative, said the organisers.
Defining market for sustainable hospitality
The Gulf is rapidly becoming a crucial market for sustainable hospitality, combining one of the harshest climates in the world with rapid growth and ambitious clean-energy investment, they stated.
One of the most defining tools for cutting emissions and operating costs was found to be energy management. In a region where cooling can account for the majority of a hotel's energy use, participants identified opportunities in cooling efficiency, on-site and grid renewable energy, district cooling, and building-efficiency improvements.
Another strategic priority that surfaced during the conversation was water management, said the organisers.
Given the Gulf's water scarcity and heavy reliance on desalination, participants noted that the greatest reduction opportunities often lie beyond guest rooms, with landscaping, pools, and irrigation accounting for a significant share of consumption.
Technology, governance, and the road ahead
As reporting expectations rise across the region, participants agreed that technology and consistent, comparable data are becoming fundamental to credible ESG performance.
At the same time, there was clear alignment that technology is only part of the answer: data and benchmarking can reveal where action is needed, but sustained progress ultimately depends on strong operational discipline and execution.
The forum closed on a shared view that the next phase of sustainability in Gulf hospitality will combine stronger operational practices with more consistent and actionable ESG data, supported by governance frameworks that keep pace with the region's rapid growth.
Reliable benchmarking will also be key to the tracking progress, identifying areas of improvement, and continuous action across the industry.
For Ecostars, the findings highlight a significant opportunity for the sector to position ESG not merely as an environmental responsibility, but as a strategic driver of long-term competitiveness, resilience, and sustainable business growth.-TradeArabia News Service
