🍃‌Get involved in the Community Center’s Festival of Sustainability 2024🍃‌

[Rebecca]

We’re thrilled to share some exciting news with you! Back in January, we asked for your input on the topics you’d like to see more of this year, and we were absolutely delighted to see that ‘sustainability’ was top of the list!

Sustainability is such a crucial concept when it comes to protecting our environment and ensuring that we coexist harmoniously with all living creatures on our beautiful blue planet, minimising our impact and living in a way that respects and preserves the world around us.

We’ve been inspired by the amazing efforts of some of our Hosts who have already made significant changes to their Hosting practices in the name of sustainability, and we’re equally excited to support and encourage those who are just starting out on this journey.

That’s why we’re thrilled to announce our upcoming third annual Festival of Sustainability, from April 22nd to April 26th! This is our chance to once again come together as a community and celebrate the progress we’ve made and the changes we’re making for the future. The festival is entirely online, full of great topics and fun conversation. You can revisit last year's festival by having a look here: Festival of Sustainability 2023.

We’re on a mission to spread the word about sustainable practices and empower individuals to make a positive impact in their daily lives and we’d love for you to be a part of this exciting journey. Will you join us?

Here are two ways you can take part:

1. Community Photo Collage: 📸

Share a photo of yourself somewhere “green”. It could be in your garden, a local beach cleanup, in the jungle or at the park. We will stitch all the images together to make our very own community collage that we will share as a featured post at the end of the festival. We’re a diverse community from all corners of the world and we’re surrounded by amazing outdoor spaces and scenery; from mountains to coastlines, from deserts and rainforests; even the spaces around our hometowns offer an opportunity to grab a picture! 

How this works: 

• Take a selfie of yourself somewhere “green”
• Landscape or portrait
• Clear, quality photos using your smartphone (or other device if you prefer)
• Ideal image formats: JPEG or PNG 
• Send your submissions to airbnb-cc@airbnb.com to be included in the grand reveal at the end of the festival or post it below.

2. Create a detailed topic all about sustainability: 🖋️

Whether your impact is big or small, we want to hear about it! Some topics to consider are renewable energy sources, recycling, planet friendly products. We’ve got some other topics up our sleeves too, so feel free to reach out if you’d like some ideas/inspiration!

We are asking for a maximum of 750 words (if you can!)

If you’d like to create a topic to be included in the week, please comment below or contact me via direct message and we can brainstorm together!

We’re really looking forward to this year's stories and photo submissions. Together, we can explore practical solutions and inspire others to join us in creating a more sustainable future.

**Deadline for article submissions is Apr 14, 2024

 **Deadline for photo submissions is Apr 28, 2024

*Disclaimer 

By submitting your image to the email address above, you authorise Airbnb to use your media, your first name, profile photo, and city and country of residence in marketing materials to promote Airbnb.

[Lisa925]

Hi @Bettye6 , I love my Brita water dispenser likewise. 

I found my guests seem to enjoy the bottled water we leave, & we use glass so as it can be easily recycled. 

I have always wondered about leaving open products, as sometimes my guests comment negatively. Do you leave your incoming guests a little note when you leave the opened products? However when we leave behind ice creams to pay it forward & reduce waste they are especially happy 🙂 in the summer time!

Thanks for sharing, this is really inspirational. 

Warmest Lisa

[Avril73]

Hi Rebecca

I've been hosting for a number of years already, but never posted anything in this forum. 

I love the Festival of Sustainability idea, and would love to submit an article.

Here is a picture I took a few days ago on a mountain near me.  I'm an experienced hiking guide and took a guest with me on this trip.

Avril.Halfway up Helderber Mountain - West Peak.

[Quincy]

Hiya @Avril73, this is a beautiful photo! Do you organise a lot of hiking trips? I've sent you a message just now with more information!

[Pilar631]

I would like to add a topic, I wrote an article on  “Sustainable decoration: Beauty and the Best (-ness) 

I share our experience with 3 listings in Lima Peru with the intention of inspiring others on how we compete for increasing occupancy by differentiating our product instead of reducing nightly price and still in a sustainable way. 
Please let me know how to submit or add the subject to the festival.  Due day is tomorrow! 

[Rebecca]

Thank you so much @Pilar631 🌿

We can't wait to see what you have to share with us! 

[Pilar631]

I sent the article in Spanish following the instructions given by Paula and I requested confirmation that she received it.  Could you please check if she got it?

thank you,

[Paula]

Hello @Pilar631, I apologize for the late message 🙏. I wanted to confirm that we have received your article, and we will be posting it in our Spanish Community during the Festival of Sustainability.

I will make sure to update you via DM with the exact day of posting as soon as we finalize the schedule 💚

[Pilar631]

Thank you Paula 

[Felicity11]

ooh I can't wait to see the conversations we will have this year.  

Thank you CC team for your support on this important topic!

Felicity

[Leila415]

 Leia Monassa

anfitriã do Rio de Janeiro. Foto da Baia da Guanabara e Pão de Açúcar, Cidade Maravilhosa

[Paula]

Olá @Leila415, que foto linda, a natureza está incrível 🍃! Muito obrigado por compartilhar. Essa região tem muitas atividades ao ar livre? Tipo caminhadas e ciclismo de montanha?

Um abraço.

----

Hi @Leila415, what a beautiful photo, nature looks amazing 🍃! Thanks so much for sharing. Are there many outdoor activities in this area? Like hiking and mountain biking?

Regards.

[Nagaraja2]

@Rebecca 

Thanks and appreciate you and the community efforts  towards sustainability—much appreciated!

I’m currently working on a solution that specifically adds value for short-term rental properties, addressing the uncertainty around guest behavior. Here are a few key highlights:

1. Monitor utility usage per guest stay and encourage mindful consumption through positive feedback or discounts or gamification—this helps hosts recognize and appreciate guests who are conscious about their usage.

       2. Have a tech assistant manage energy settings  (heating and cooling etc.) when there’s no booking,  or if guest forget to adjust settings at  checkout.

       3. Save costs, Save water  & prevent water damage with proactive water leak detection.

Goal is to help you cut down waste, reduce expenses, and make your rental more sustainable.

please let me know your thoughts on this 

Thanks 

[Rebecca]

Thank you so much for sharing @Nagaraja2 - it's great to hear about your efforts towards sustainability in the short-term rental space.

Those solutions you've outlined sound really innovative, especially the idea of encouraging mindful consumption among guests. How do you plan to monitor energy usage? 

[Nagaraja2]

@Rebecca 

Thank you for your feedback — really appreciate it!

We’re using sensors to collect live energy consumption data, which gets mapped to each guest based on their check-in and check-out times. This data will be visible on a specific dashboard, allowing guest to monitor their usage in real time.

The goal is to encourage mindful consumption through

• Gamification,
• Discounts, or
• Positive feedback (like a "green rating" badge).

Additionally, for hosts who are interested, there will be an option to offload utility costs using a "pay-as-you-consume" model, ensuring fairness for both sides.

This solution is still in its early development phase, and we’re actively seeking feedback from hosts to ensure it’s practical, fair, and beneficial for hosts, guests, and the environment.

If you have any suggestions or would like to know more details, I’d be happy to schedule a quick online meeting to walk you through it.

Thanks again!

[Rebecca]

Thank you @Nagaraja2 - we prefer to keep all communication and support here in the Community Center as it's the perfect space for hosts to share and advise each other. 

To keep our community a warm and welcoming space for all, I wanted to remind you that advertising content of any kind is not allowed. I truly appreciate your understanding and support in making this a positive and engaging environment for everyone.

Thank you for being such a wonderful part of our community!