SASB Hotels & Lodging

1. Download the SASB Standard: Access the SASB Hotels & Lodging standard (industry code SV-HL) for free at sasb.org. Review the full set of disclosure topics and accounting metrics specific to the accommodations sector.

1. Conduct a Materiality Assessment: Identify which of the SASB disclosure topics are most material to your organization — typically Energy Management, Water Management, Waste & Hazardous Materials Management, and Labor Practices.

1. Assign Internal Ownership: Designate sustainability, finance, and operations leads responsible for collecting each required metric. SASB metrics often span multiple departments (facilities, HR, procurement).

1. Establish Data Collection Processes: Build or adapt internal systems to track the quantitative metrics defined in the standard, such as total energy consumed (GJ), water withdrawn (m³), and employee turnover rates.

1. Use the SASB Navigator: Leverage the free SASB Navigator tool (navigator.sasb.org) to access technical protocols, implementation guidance, and worked examples for each metric.

1. Draft Your Disclosures: Incorporate SASB-aligned disclosures into your annual sustainability report, integrated report, or SEC filing. Follow the technical protocols for units, scope, and boundary definitions.

1. Consider Third-Party Assurance: Optionally engage an external assurance provider to verify your reported data, which increases credibility with institutional investors and ESG rating agencies.

1. Monitor Standard Updates: Subscribe to IFRS Foundation/SASB communications to stay current with any revisions to the SV-HL standard and update your disclosures accordingly.

The SASB Hotels & Lodging standard (SV-HL) defines disclosure topics and associated accounting metrics across four primary sustainability dimensions relevant to the hospitality sector.

Energy Management requires disclosure of total energy consumed (in gigajoules), the percentage from grid electricity, and the percentage from renewable sources. This topic reflects the significant energy intensity of hotel operations — HVAC, lighting, laundry, and food service — and the associated cost and regulatory exposure.

Water Management requires reporting of total water withdrawn (in cubic meters) and the percentage in regions with High or Extremely High Baseline Water Stress, as defined by the WRI Aqueduct tool. Given that hotels are among the most water-intensive commercial building types, this metric is considered highly material.

Waste & Hazardous Materials Management covers the amount of hazardous waste generated and the percentage diverted from landfill, as well as total food waste generated. This reflects growing regulatory pressure and guest expectations around waste reduction.

Labor Practices encompasses voluntary and involuntary employee turnover rates (disaggregated by full-time, part-time, and contract workers), total recordable incident rate (TRIR), and the percentage of employees covered by collective bargaining agreements. The hospitality sector's high turnover and reliance on seasonal and contract labor make this a particularly material topic.

Each metric is accompanied by a detailed technical protocol specifying the unit of measure, scope boundaries, and calculation methodology. Organizations are expected to disclose all applicable metrics or explain why a metric is not relevant to their operations.

The SASB Hotels & Lodging standard occupies a unique position in the hospitality sustainability landscape as the primary investor-grade ESG disclosure framework for the sector. Unlike certification programs such as Green Key or GSTC, SASB is not a pass/fail certification but a structured reporting standard used by publicly listed hotel companies and REITs to communicate material sustainability risks to capital markets. Its adoption is concentrated among large institutional players — Marriott, Hilton, Hyatt, IHG, and major hospitality REITs routinely reference SASB metrics in their annual sustainability and proxy reports.

The standard gained significant momentum following SASB's merger with the International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC) to form the Value Reporting Foundation in 2021, and the subsequent consolidation of SASB standards under the IFRS Foundation in 2022. This integration with the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) and the publication of IFRS S1 and S2 in 2023 has substantially elevated SASB's global profile. ISSB explicitly incorporated SASB's industry-specific metrics as the basis for its industry guidance, meaning SASB's Hotels & Lodging metrics are effectively embedded in the emerging global baseline for sustainability disclosure.

Demand for SASB-aligned reporting is growing, driven by regulatory pressure (SEC climate disclosure rules in the US, CSRD in Europe), investor demands from major asset managers including BlackRock and Vanguard, and ESG rating agency requirements from MSCI and Sustainalytics. However, SASB faces competition from GRI, which remains more widely adopted globally, particularly among non-listed companies and those prioritizing stakeholder-oriented reporting. The two frameworks are increasingly used in combination rather than as alternatives, with SASB serving the investor audience and GRI addressing broader stakeholder communication.

The Sustainability Accounting Standards Board was founded in 2011 by Jean Rogers in San Francisco, with a mission to develop industry-specific sustainability accounting standards that help businesses disclose material, decision-useful information to investors. Modeled on the financial accounting standards-setting process, SASB developed standards across 77 industries organized into 11 sectors, with the Hotels & Lodging standard falling under the Services sector (later the Consumer Goods sector). The Hotels & Lodging standard (SV-HL) was provisionally released in 2013 and codified in its full form in 2018 following an extensive industry working group process involving hotel operators, investors, and sustainability experts.

A pivotal moment came in 2021 when SASB merged with the International Integrated Reporting Council to form the Value Reporting Foundation. In 2022, the VRF was consolidated into the IFRS Foundation, placing SASB standards under the stewardship of the newly formed International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB). The ISSB published IFRS S1 (General Requirements) and IFRS S2 (Climate-related Disclosures) in June 2023, explicitly referencing SASB's industry-based metrics as the basis for industry-specific disclosure guidance. This transition effectively elevated SASB from a US-centric voluntary framework to a foundational component of the emerging global baseline for sustainability reporting, significantly increasing the relevance of the Hotels & Lodging standard for international hospitality companies.