We wanted to share an update from Green Century’s progressive work on reducing plastic usage. Green Century is the only mutual fund company in the U.S. wholly owned by environmental and public health non-profits. Blue Summit uses Green Century Funds in our model portfolios.
Green Century and Hilton Worldwide Holdings reached a multi-year agreement for the major hotel chain to release an assessment of its single-use plastic by 2025 and set a plastic reduction goal by 2026.
The announcement comes after competitors Marriott and Choice Hotels also agreed to measure and reduce single-use plastics. We often see this in the shareholder advocacy world, where companies are spurred to action when competitors set the bar higher. Consider the scale of Hilton, with 7,500 properties worldwide equaling 1.2 million rooms, small changes have a meaningful impact.
“Neither Hilton nor its investors want to be stuck holding the bill for the environmental and health impacts of single-use plastic,” said Leslie Samuelrich, president of Green Century Funds. “We applaud Hilton for committing to reduce its contribution to the plastic pollution crisis.”
Plastic pollution has been doubling every six years. Plastics don’t degrade, but break into small pieces called microplastics, which impact oceans, soil, the atmosphere, and human health. According to a recent study, seventy-five percent of Americans want to see the private-sector offer plastic free options, and 72% agree that companies should stop producing and using so much single-use plastic.
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Blue Summit does not directly engage with companies listed above. Many, but not all clients, are invested in funds that perform this advocacy.