JA Resorts & Hotels, a leading homegrown hospitality brand from the UAE, is showcasing the large-scale success of its ongoing eco-friendly initiatives at the ongoing 30th annual Arabian Travel Market (ATM) in Dubai.

Using a holistic approach to sustainability, JA Resorts & Hotels engages its employees, guests, and local communities in efforts to reduce its carbon footprint. JA The Resort – the brand’s iconic flagship destination – plays a significant role in supporting the development of new solutions, with cutting-edge ideas being tested across its three on-site hotels before being implemented across the company’s wider portfolio.

The one-million-square-feet experiential resort has also led the way to provide training on sustainability to several global hotel chains, whilst continuing to maintain its reputation as ‘Dubai’s Most Sustainable Five-star Resort’.

Commenting on the brand’s dedication to eco-conscious policies and procedures, William Harley-Fleming, Vice President of Operations for JA The Resort and Indian Ocean, said: “Sustainability is at the heart of JA’s identity and continues to drive a lot of the forward-thinking decision-making across our local and international destinations. We pride ourselves on being set apart as an eco-friendly industry leader, with plastic-free environments, on-site bio gardens, and waste management all being key elements of our operations.

“We aim to close the loop independently as much as possible, such as with the resort’s water bottling, reverse osmosis, and sewage plants, which see fresh water provided to guests and grey water filtered and repurposed for the resort’s landscaping, gardens and golf course. We are constantly looking for new ways to become self-sufficient in the sustainability space and are committed to remaining dynamic in our approach as we learn from other leaders at this year’s Arabian Travel Market.”

Some of the brand’s other signature sustainability initiatives include:

WasteMaster, JA The Resort
All food waste across the property is cycled into the on-site WasteMaster, which is capable of repurposing over 500kg of waste in a day, or given to the resident animals. In the period between October 2022 and February 2023, the resort’s WasteMaster technology loaded over 15 tonnes of organic food waste – the equivalent to eliminating 3,395 cars or powering 797 homes – which has led to a 27.9-tonne reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.

Recycling Cooking Oils with Neutral Fuels, JA The Resort
JA The Resort has partnered with Neutral Fuels, the first company in the UAE which recycles otherwise-harmful cooking oils to generate cleaner biofuel. The collaboration supports local sustainability initiatives and continues to drive JA’s efforts towards a circular economy.

Sirene: Message in a Bottle, JA The Resort
Sirene is an engaging, fully immersive dining concept that takes guests on a sustainably-focused sensory journey, with a five-course dinner spectacle – complete with tale-telling theatrics, illusions, and cutting-edge 3D graphic technology – on a boat off the coast of JA The Resort.

Terra Cabins, Hatta Fort Hotel
Terra Cabins is a recently opened extension of Hatta Fort Hotel, Dubai’s first and only mountain resort. The low-impact, environmentally friendly development houses 23 modular-build ‘cabins’, each equipped with a slanted roof to allow for solar power panels and an infrastructure that regulates temperatures amongst many other features that make these a fitting choice for a ‘sustainable’ stay.

Ocean Bottles, JA Manafaru Maldives
Further afar across the Indian Ocean, the multi-award-winning resort JA Manafaru Maldives has partnered with Ocean Bottles, an entrepreneurial start-up attempting to close the loop on plastics entering the world’s oceans. The launch of JA Manafaru Ocean Bottle encourages the use of sustainably minded reusable bottles, made up of part stainless steel and part ocean-bound recycled plastic, which can be refilled at stations located around the resort. With each purchase, guests have the opportunity to fund the collection of 1,000 plastic bottles that would ultimately enter our oceans.

Green partnerships
In partnership with Dubai Economy and Tourism, JA Resorts & Hotels plays an active role in His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum's, Dubai Crown Prince and Chairman of The Executive Council of Dubai, sustainability initiative, ‘Dubai Can’. Aligning on common goals, the initiative aims to reduce single-use plastic water bottle waste and encourages conscious, sustainable living.

JA Resorts & Hotels also boasts several properties that have been included in the Global Hotel Alliance’s newly launched ‘Green Collection,’ which highlights world-class industry examples of positive environmental and social impact. JA Resorts & Hotels also recently received a Special Commendation award at the Global Hotel Alliance’s annual CEO conference held in South Africa.- TradeArabia News Service