With over 150 million visitors per year, the Alps are one of the most popular holiday destinations worldwide. In view of the enormous economic importance of tourism, climate change is particularly hard on the Alpine area. For many alpine hotels, their business is based on seasonal activities such as winter sports and hiking, and are thus dependent on climatic conditions. At the same time, they also contribute to global warming through their own energy consumption. Many hotels could use energy more efficiently and thus not only contribute to climate action but also increase their own competitiveness.
The Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety (BMUB) has commissioned adelphi to carry out an informational and networking event to allow alpine hotels to better understand their energy saving potentials. The aim is to provide practical approaches to the implementation of energy-saving measures, to identify the cost-saving potentials of energy efficiency measures, and to provide information on funding support possibilities. In addition, participants will discuss their experiences with the introduction of systematic energy management in hotels. This is intended to remove hurdles that make it difficult for small and medium-sized enterprises to introduce climate-friendly measures. Overall, the event benefits sustainable tourism and climate action in the Alps and thus also supports the objectives of the Alpine Convention.
adelphi is leading the project in connection with successful predecessor projects. For example, a practical handbook drawn up as part of the "Export Initiative Environmental Technologies" and software for energy management in Alpine hotels will be introduced at the conference for the first time. Speeches by energy experts and tourism companies will form the basis for a practical exchange of know-how and current experiences. The project team is also expanding the already existing online guide for tourism-related climate initiatives in the Alpine region and will use it to advertise the event and publish the results of the event.
The event "Energy Management in Alpine Hotels – Saving Energy, Reducing Costs, Protecting Climate" will take place at the EURAC Convention Center in Bolzano on 28 and 29 November 2017. All publications and the event itself will be available in the four languages of the Alpine Convention (German, French, Italian, Slovenian).