A group of four Year 2 students from the BSc in Environmental Management and Technology program (EVMT) has been named the Student Stream Champion at the Eco-Innovation Challenge: Reimagine Waste, Redefine Hospitality, organized by A Plastic Ocean Foundation.  

The team, called “The Roots”, comprised EVMT students Yoyo LAI Lok-Yiu, Charlotte LEUNG Siu-Hei, Edie NG Wing-Yin, and Kathryn TY Ka-Ching, who presented an idea for environmental friendly hotel key card holders to reduce waste in hotels. “Our aim was to develop practical waste-reduction solutions for hotels. We want to find out the root cause of the problem and come up with solutions to deal with it. The name also serves as our hope for building a more sustainable future for our community and planet.”

“The most inspiring part was the job shadowing session,” they reflected. Visiting both front and back of house departments allowed them to see hotel operations up close. “We realized that sustainability isn’t only about benefit the profit or environment, but also about helping employees by reducing unnecessary steps and simplifying procedures.”

They initially explored ideas like educating, reducing electricity, water, and food waste, they soon recognized that some were either impractical or lacked innovation. “So we went back to the starting point and mapped out what guests do at every step of their stay. We noticed that a significant amount of paper waste is generated during the guests’ stays, so at last we decided to do something on tackling the issue.”

Their concept for environmentally friendly hotel key card holders will be explored further for potential implementation at Langham Hospitality Group Hotels. The award is a testament to the team’s innovative thinking and the practical potential of their nature-based solutions. 

Congratulations to the team!