Detroit Marriott Renaissance: A Commitment to Sustainability and Excellence
Detroit Marriott Renaissance
Detroit Marriott Renaissance, part of the Marriott Renaissance collection, is the largest hotel in Michigan, offering 1,300 rooms and over 100,000 square feet of meeting space.
The Detroit Marriott Renaissance has made environmental stewardship, community leadership, and long-term operational efficiency integral to its mission.
In 2024, the property joined over 340 Marriott properties across North America participating in the Green Key Global Eco-Rating Program, receiving a 4-key rating upon certification.
Challenges
Operating a luxury hotel in the city centre while meeting the motivated brand goals set by Marriott to drastically reduce the brand’s carbon footprint presents unique challenges to Detroit Marriott Renaissance. They also wanted to induce long term operational efficiencies while trying to attract eco-conscious guests
Currently generating 12.7 million kgs of greenhouse gas emissions, Detroit Marriott Renaissance Center’s goal is to reduce this to 2.8 million kgs by 2030, demonstrating their commitment to minimizing their carbon footprint through energy efficiency and waste management initiatives.
Solutions
Detroit Marriott Renaissance Center decided to pursue Green Key Global’s Eco-Rating program because it has been approved by Marriott International. Joining the program has acted as a catalyst for the Detroit Marriott Renaissance Center to accelerate and prioritize sustainable operations. Their strategy is to focus on energy savings and managing waste. The certification process triggered a range of sustainability initiatives to address their challenges
- Building Analytics & Energy Monitoring: The hotel now uses a real-time energy consumption monitoring system and advanced building analytics to track and reduce energy usage
- Food Waste Management: They have adopted Orca Food digesters and the Winnow food waste management system, both Green Key Global Vendors, found in the Green Vendor Directory, to track and reduce food waste
- Energy Conservation Programs: Through Marriott’s MESH program, they optimize room efficiency, while energy-saving practices such as blocking rooms efficiently and using energy-efficient digital signage further support their environmental goals
- Ethical Food & Water Initiatives: The hotel features ethically sourced products for food and beverage operations, including water stations that replace individually bottled water
Results
Green Key Global certification has positioned the Detroit Marriott Renaissance as an ideal partner for guests, particularly those who place high value on sustainability. The certification offers trusted third-party validation of the property’s sustainability claims.
The Green Key Global program has also helped the property improve operational efficiency through energy savings, waste reduction, and a reduced carbon footprint.
Beyond operational efficiency, the Green Key Global Eco-Rating certification has instilled a sense of pride and awareness among the hotel staff, empowering them to adopt sustainable practices both on and off the job.
Key Takeaways
The Green Key Global certification process proved to be thorough and well-structured. It took the Detroit Marriott Renaissance approximately two months to complete the assessment, including gathering all necessary documentation and addressing any non-compliance issues to meet the required standards. Following the submission of the self-assessment, the hotel completed its audit and received its Eco-Rating certification within two weeks.
Having achieved certification has significantly enhanced the hotel’s reputation as an industry leader in sustainability, promoting its environmental efforts to a broader audience.
“Green Key Global has definitely made us a better partner to our guests,” noted Dale Reyes, Director of Event Management at Detroit Marriott Renaissance. “Especially now that more and more customers are being very selective with who they partner with vendors who are also aligned with their own sustainability practice practices”
The sustainability journey at Detroit Marriott Renaissance has been transformative, and they continue to make great strides in reducing their environmental impact.
For more information on how Green Key Global can assist your property’s sustainability journey, visit Green Key Global.
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