TravTalk Middle East Online Magazine
Glenn Mandziuk, CEO, World Sustainable Hospitality Alliance, in an interview with TRAVTALK on the sidelines of Future Hospitality Summit in Riyadh, lauded the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for the efforts being made in sustainable hospitality and said that he was ‘impressed by the leadership and vision being demonstrated at Red Sea Global’ in terms of sustainability.
Glenn Mandziuk, CEO, World Sustainable Hospitality Alliance, praised Saudi Arabia’s progress and growing commitment to sustainable development, particularly during his visit to the Red Sea Global project. “Dramatic progress has been made in sustainability—from hotel operations to community integration. I was truly impressed by the leadership and vision being demonstrated at Red Sea Global,” Mandziuk said.
A regional push for global standards
The alliance, representing over 8 million rooms — nearly 50 per cent of the global hospitality industry — has been at the forefront of establishing measurable sustainability standards. Mandziuk emphasised that during COP29 in Baku, industry stakeholders formally agreed for the first time on universal metrics for carbon, water, waste and energy. “This is a major milestone. We are finally comparing apples to apples when it comes to sustainability data, and Saudi Arabia is already playing a role in this transformation,” he said.
Building talent: The World Academy
A major highlight of the alliance’s efforts is the launch of the World Academy for Sustainable Hospitality, a first-of-its-kind training platform designed for every level of the hospitality workforce — from front-of-house staff to general managers. “The academy is created by the industry, for the industry. It provides practical, job-based training to embed sustainability in day-to-day operations. We are already working with several organisations in Saudi Arabia, and there will be some exciting announcements coming out of this summit,” Mandziuk said.
Driving change through investment
The alliance is also launching a Global Impact Fund — a venture capital initiative to accelerate sustainable innovation in energy, food systems and nature-positive solutions.
A future with passion & purpose
Reflecting on his time in Saudi Arabia, Mandziuk expressed genuine excitement about the direction of hospitality in the region. “What I witnessed at Red Sea Global—the passion, the commitment, the readiness—is remarkable,” he said.
