Guests at Marriott hotels can now offset the carbon created by their stay. The initiative is part of the Marriott Spirit to Preserve programme, and allows guest to offset their carbon emissions online, with a minimum contribution of $10 (equivalent to ten nights).
Marriot says it calculated the $1 per room per night offset figure by measuring its electricity and gas consumption in guest rooms and public spaces at nearly 1,000 managed hotels worldwide, as well as at its headquarters building and regional offices. The hotel group added that the calculation followed the World Resources Institute's Greenhouse Gas Protocol and has been independently certified by ICF International, a leader in climate change consulting services.
The carbon offset donation can be made online or by post, and Marriott say that the contribution is taken in a separate transaction from the room charges, as it is being managed by justgive.org. Donations will go towards the Juma project, a rainforest protection programme which is part of the Amazonas Sustainable Foundation in Brazil (ASFB).
Note that 30 cents per transaction will go towards justgiv.org’s administration costs, while four per cent will be collected by your credit card provider, and 1 per cent by the Community Foundation for the National Capital Region, a nonprofit organization which will forward contributions to ASFB. Contributions by US taxpayers are tax deductible.
For more information visit marriott.com/green-brazilian-rainforest.mi.
