In celebration of World Environment Day, Fairmont Nile City highlights the importance of staying green through its sustainable operating decisions social responsibility initiatives.

The hotel has been adopting the luxury brand’s Green Program for years introducing light sensors, energy efficient lighting, custom programs to deactivate heating, ventilation, and air conditioning while space and guest rooms are not in use in order to provide guests with an unbiased guarantee that their stay is as green as possible. The hotel’s decision to stay green is another way to reduce the environmental impacts associated with conventional electricity.

“Guests around the world continue to demand environmental sensitivity when they travel, so that's when Fairmont’s Green Program made perfect sense to our entire portfolio of hotels,” said Frank Naboulsi, Regional Vice President – Egypt and General Manager, Fairmont Nile City, Cairo.  “Our hotels have implemented an incredible number of green initiatives over the past 25 years, and the rating system we have in place is a great way for us to audit, benchmark, and even further reduce their environmental footprint,” continues Naboulsi.

Going green is not the only practice that Fairmont Nile City adopts as a part of its social responsibility, the hotel has been partnering for the past four years with the Egyptian Food Bank where excessive food from functions held at the hotel are boxed and donated to those in need.

Fairmont Nile City has been working in collaboration with the Ministry of Irrigation for years on the conservation and protection of the river Nile where we get to clean our community and preserve the Nile.

“As part of our duty and commitment to the communities we live and in collaboration with the blood bank, Fairmont Nile City volunteers donate blood biannually,” said Magdi Gamil, area director of sales and marketing, Fairmont Nile City, Cairo. “Because every donation counts and we are keen on contributing to community issues such as blood shortage across the country, the hotel team is always excited to raise awareness, shed light on such a noble cause, and make a difference in the community where we live and work,” Gamil adds.

Another major milestone as the pioneer of going green is the brand-wide Eco-Meet program – an environmentally friendly conferencing program, intended to minimise harm to the environment during meetings, conferences and similar events. Utilising green meeting and conference planning option allows meeting planners to organise conferences and events that consider the environment, result in reduced waste, and also conserve valuable resources. Planners can work with the hotel's knowledgeable staff to tailor aspects of this unique program including providing disposable-free food and beverage services and recycling stations in the meeting rooms, guest room recycling bins, optional sheet and towel replacement, energy-efficient lighting, and water-conserving showerheads, toilets and tap aerators, incorporate local, seasonal and organically grown foods wherever possible, and providing activities and guest-speakers to complement the Eco-Meet experience. There are also paperless services available for events including a dedicated TV channel to provide information and updates to delegates, electronic paperless check-in/checkout and e-mailed contracts and information used where possible.

For close to two decades, Fairmont has strived to minimise its impact on the planet through its award-winning programme, a comprehensive platform focused on key areas such as waste reduction, energy management, water conservation, and innovative community outreach programs. In a sign of corporate leadership, the company also encourages others to follow in its footsteps and has developed the Green Partnership Guide, a how-to text that any company can obtain to create or grow their environmental programming. - TradeArabia News Service