The Ups and Downs of Sustainability
With Felicity Stevens Australia ๐ฆ๐บ and Jennifer Schnier ๐จ๐ฆ @Jennifer3225 (HAB 2022-2023)
โCapturing natural power makes good sense. A sustainable solution can always be found especially when you are at the stage of initial purchase. Thinking about long term incentives and energy saved when planning your lighting, may make for some sustainable and beneficial decisions.โ
Consider Solar Energy and choose renewable energy providers for your listing.
Guests want to know that you have planned ahead and thought about the environment when you set your listing up. Adding Solar energy and or choosing to use a renewable energy provider is the biggest step you can take to reduce the emissions if you're listing.
Highlights
Thoughts from Up North ๐จ๐ฆ
According to Solar Power Statistics in Canada, the solar growth is shared by several provinces in the country: Alberta has the largest contribution with 250 MW, and some small portions are from Saskatchewan (21 MW), Quebec (9.5 MW), Nova Scotia (4.8 MW), Ontario (0.3 MW), Yukon Territory (1.5 MW) and Prince Edward Island with the lowest solar capacity made in 2021
If you are in Alberta, resources are more available, but donโt feel bad if you are in other provinces. Solar has caught on, but the incentives and the ability to access the grid can still be difficult.
Agencies such as Canadian Renewable Energy Association can help owners of homes of many sizes to access various savings and capacities for home owners who wish to utilize solar energy.
Remember, small local sources of solar energy can exist without a huge financial commitment.
Items such as:
Imagine if all of your exterior lighting cost you nothing? That after the initial commitment to the item, (you have to purchase a light fixture anyways) that you had no additional costs? That makes good sense.
Thoughts from Down Under๐ฆ๐บ
The energy we consume in our listings has the biggest impact on the climate emissions we create. Choosing to use renewable energy or generate our own power in our listing sends a strong message that we are doing all we can to reduce the emissions guests will create when they stay with us and it may save you a lot money.
In many parts of the world there are ways to generate your own clean energy from Sun, Wind, and Water. Australia has the highest uptake of rooftop solar in the world with nearly one in three homes having panels.
If you do not have a rooftop to install solar, a growing trend is to install panels on balconies. While this does not provide a lot of power it is a small contribution to the grid.
Another option available in some countries to reduce emissions is to choose to buy your power from a utility that sources renewable generated electricity. Sometimes this might cost a little extra; other times it may be roughly the same price, but will support investment in wind, solar, storage and other renewable technologies.
Another key way to reduce emissions is to improve the energy efficiency of your listing. Some ideas include:
What do we want to know from you?
Let us know! Join the conversation.
Thank you Catherine. We are very keen to share an article we wrote for the Ambassador Program. We find that hosts panic a bit when they start their listing because the costs are very front end, and at times, what motivates a host to join Airbnb is to make some extra money.
Here is the article here. Have a look.
Reducing upfront costs when setting up your listing?
โEncouraging hosts to be sustainable by repurposing, upcycling and giving new life to furniture and housewares for your Airbnb can save money and the environment at the same timeโ.
Highlights
We know that when Hosting on Airbnb you want your home to have as many amenities as possible to make your guests feel at home. This may require you needing to source out supplies that you have already purchased for your own home, and now have to purchase these items once again for your listing.
That is a tough sell when starting an Airbnb as there are many items that you will need, and the upfront cost of accessing all these items may be restrictive.
The key to being a successful host is to know what your guests may want while staying in your home. Naturally a bed and associated bedroom furniture such as a bed side table, a lamp and perhaps even a chair will help to ensure your guest feels comfortable. However there is so much more, what about some wall art, or a plant, maybe even a shelf in the bathroom for amenities.
We as hosts know that in the kitchen at the minimum you need basic dishes, cutlery, and of course a coffee maker. We also know that the list keeps piling up as you go from room to room in your listing.
This is where our community of hosts are encouraging you to reconsider the way your purchase items that would be needed for your listing.
Sustainable hosting is a critical part of being a successful Host. Not only does this make a statement to your guests that you are considering the environment as a choice, but you are also reinvigorating the economy by making your purchases more circular, in that you are keeping the item in the economy without having to buy new.
In our listings, (Link and Link) 90% percent of all furniture, appliances and dishes have been repurposed or upcycled. The savings that we experienced have made it even more possible to offer more amenities sooner to our guests right from the start of the hosting experience.
We want to share with you how this can be done:
Search for furniture that is being sold in a marketplace like Facebook Marketplace/Kijiji/Craigsklist that people are no longer using.
Consider long term how to keep your place up to date eg things do get broken and need to be replaced. Rather than ending up with mismatched crockery consider buying a basic set from your local store that can easily be topped up eg universal IKe dinner sets and cutlery or buy an extra set that you can draw down from as needed when items break.
Many people love to stay in an Airbnb because if feels like a home away from home and has more of a personality than a hotel room. Take a look at some of the great airbnb guides that are full of great suggestions for how to set your place up. Many items can be found second hand and can go on to make a great talking point with guests.
Our host community encourages sustainable hosting, however we all agree that there are a few items that host should not upcycle or re-purpose.
What type of materials should your linens be?
We recommend all cotton linens for your bedding, and to avoid microfibres. Cotton encourages your guests to better regulate their temperature when sleeping. Cotton is kinder to the environment, more natural, often organic in nature and is a familiar fabric worldwide.
As hosts we still donโt have to spend a fortune on fine linens. Consider shopping at locations where a good portion of inventory is from last year's inventory and you can purchase at a reduced price.
Hosting tip: If your towels start to get worn, donโt throw them out. Dye the fabric with a colour that matches your brand and repurpose the towels for your pool or hot tub, or even for guests to take to the beach
Travelers like knowing that they are part of an economy that cares about the environment.
Once you establish your listings, take a moment to accurately describe what items have been upcycled and what items are new. This will be important for a comfort level to know that your linens are fresh and new.. And cotton.
If you have a photo of a bed or couch that you have found that you have upcycled, share the news, and put this information on your listing.
Thoughts from Up North ๐จ๐ฆ
In Canada, pay close attention to the end and first of the month on Facebook Marketplace and Kijiji as well as your local buy and sell listings. When people move, often that King Bed cannot come or perhaps they have appliances or kitchen ware that they cannot take with them. This is where you as a host can really improve your space.
Accessing good quality furniture for a fraction of the cost is a great way to get your listing up and running without breaking the bank. You can access incredible items that will make your listing explode with great new finds.
Supporting the circular economy is a first step toward sustainability, and as a note, all of the furniture in my listing was upcycled.
Here is a copy of my listing - https://airbnb.com/h/oakbayluxury
This was very inexpensive. As my listing grew I added new items. Sometimes I made mistakes, but then would search out an item that I specifically needed, and would usually find one within a couple days and certainly within 20km of my home. Thoughts from Down Under
Furnishing your place with second hand items makes sense on so many levels. Set up costs are much more reasonable, your listing will most likely feel like home as it is full of things from a home and chances are guests will comment that they love staying in your listing as it feels like a home away from home. Key tips are to
More examples of items that have been purchased secondhand, upcycled and from local makers are
Hi Catherine,
Thank you for the kind note, I do hope that these articles stay on the CC for a while and can encourage new hosts and seasoned ones to think a little differently about their listing(s) and how they host.
The inspiration has certainly become stronger now that I have grandchildren. They are far to young to understand the decisions that adults around them make and how that will impact their future. So, I guess I started to think about what I was doing day to day and how that would impact them when they become my age.
As a host, I did not even know how important this was going to be for my guests. My listing is in an UNESCO Designated Biosphere, so for me, not showcasing the environment would be similar to listing in Niagara Falls and not mentioning the Falls itself.
Little additions, like the rain barrels and how important and fun they were for little ones, let alone my garden and my back (since I no longer had to lug buckets to water the garden). A rain barrel full of fresh clean water with a spigot can entertain easily for an hour, and the cost is small and the benefit is incredible.
The inspiration went from there, upcycling and ensuring that I kept the circular economy going with my furniture purchases, and additions, meant I could be able to afford good quality cotton sheets for the guests. I got to know friends at KOTN, and their sheets were Egyptian cotton, and their commitment to building schools for girls in Egypt with their proceeds meant the act of buying sustainable cotton sheets kept giving back.
With the boys out of the house (of which there are 6) I could spend more time getting to know and understand the benefits of plants, and the more plants I had, the less dust in the listing, and the happier the whole Airbnb felt. It was green and lush and really starting to showcase a sustainable listing.
Finally, we added in the collection of Food Waste, and Catherine, that was where we really got inspired. Guests wanted to know how many pounds they had collected, and were happy when I could tell them via a carbon calculator what they had done to reduce their emissions when travelling.
The perfect guest became a plant loving, EV vehicle driver who liked to collect food waste.
My listing started to attract them, and hosting took on a whole new perspective, of making our listing as close to NET Zero as possible. We are not there yet, but each year we are getting closer and closer.
Guests are excited, I am inspired, more bookings, kinder, greener guests, and I have made significantly more income, which has allowed me to plant more trees, make bigger gardens, yes purchase more plants, and continue to make this listing a sustainable B Corp certified Airbnb.
We also are a GSTC Gold Standard host on your platform Catherine, so now I am all about it. Inspiration, has turned to motivation, has turned to a lifestyle change.
And my granddaughter loves to visit Grama Jen's house. Not only because of the 1:1 time she gets with me, but also because we can garden and plant and learn from each other how blessed we all are. 
Thank you for your support to raise awareness of sustainability within our hosting community.
Years ago, when I was feeling anxious and concerned about the way we are changing our climate, I attended a talk given by a group who encouraged me not to give up, but rather to look at the impact I could have on my community. For me that was my childrenโs school community and my Airbnb listing.
I went on to set up a sustainability team at the school. While it took a while to get the support of other parents, the principal and teachers, it has grown to become an integral part of the school community. We have seen a wonderful ripple effect, with benefits for the school; parents changing habits; and we have inspired other schools around us to make changes.
Similarly with our Airbnb cottage, we have gone from questioning how much do we promote our efforts to reduce emissions (including getting all our renewable sources and working to electrify all our gas appliances, given its high emissions and negative health impacts), to now having guests say within the first five minutes of arriving that they are so happy to find a compost bin, or see our solar panels, and that they love all our efforts to lower emissions. We now have many repeat guests who return in part because of these efforts. Other hosts ask me what can they do, and where should they start.
Research Is showing us that there is a rise in guests who are aware of the greenhouse emissions they create when they travel, and they are willing to pay more to stay in accommodation that is taking meaningful steps to reduce emissions and waste.
My experience with guests who stay with me are, they are so happy to have found us and they make, thoughtful, friendly guests who follow our house rules, pay a premium and are loyal guests. I value their support and know that they want to go on to find other places to stay in so I must keep trying to inspire other hosts to become more sustainable.
Many people do not know where to start when it comes to finding ways to reduce emissions. Often it is just a simple conversation and suggestions that can help people make changes, and subsequently I love hearing from them about how doing so has reduced their energy bills or made them feel better about their environmental impact. Every day conversations can have an impact, and this inspires me to keep going.
I have friends comment to me that they have stayed in Airbnbโs and there has been no recycling offered and homes are fitted with inefficient lighting, and they ask me why these amenities are not offered. Perhaps these are hosts who are just not aware of the impacts these changes can make to the energy efficiency of their listings and guestsโ enjoyment when they stay?
I like to think that when guests stay with me, even if they are not used to using a refillable water bottle, coffee cup or have not before used a compost bin, they may be inspired to give it a go and then take these new habits home with them.
These days the cost of installing solar panels is coming down in many parts of the world. It can be a cost effective and empowering solution for homeowners. Around the world, many governments are now offering incentives to help make homes more energy efficient. We can raise awareness of incentives for hosts to take advantage of these opportunities.
Another interesting point for homeowners in Australia, is research on tens of thousands of sales showing that homes with solar panels or other sustainable features sell for an average of $125,000 (17%) more than homes without. Thatโs way more than the cost of implementing such changes, making the investment well worthwhile.
Airbnb is a hosting community of over six million homes. Together we can have a huge impact on the emissions and waste we create in our listings. We can also inspire guests to make changes in there every day lives. We donโt need 100 hosts reducing emissions and waste perfectly - we need millions of hosts doing good things imperfectly! Thatโs my inspiration.
Thank you for your support!
