press release

Sectoral pioneer: ATLANTIC Hotel Sail City creates green transformation

Working together in setting the sail for more climate protection: the participation of ATLANTIC Hotel Sail City in the Germany-wide, unique greentransformation pilot project by the Bremen climate protection agency “energiekonsens”, was in keeping with this motto. The project, which is supported by the Federal Environment Ministry, was brought into being to support companies and managers throughout Germany in realising strategic climate protection goals. Two years ago, as a selected model company, ATLANTIC Hotel participated in the pilot project, which is coming to an end now. The goal is to anchor topics pertaining to climate protection and sustainability in numerous corporate divisions. First and foremost, hotel director Tim Oberdieck sees the success of greentransformation in his employees’ dedication: “Among others, in the continued education seminars of energiekonsensklima:akademie and within the framework of the pilot project, we busied ourselves with staff involvement. It was important for us to involve all employees on the path toward more climate protection. We are very happy that our efforts are paying off, and that we receive plenty of feedback and constructive ideas for climate protection measures within the hotel.”

As an important employee-involvement instrument, the hotel management introduced the so-called “Green Team” in the middle of 2014. It consists of representatives from different fields of work and serves as the central point of contact for suggestions and ideas from the workforce. That the employees have internalised the climate protection theme is demonstrated in an exemplary manner by the executive chef of the hotel restaurant. He personally researched and compared offers and energy cost plans for a new, more energy-efficient grill, which was purchased following consultation with the management board.
What is more, within the course of the hotel’s green transformation process, the “Green Service” project was born. As of the second day of stay, hotel guests can book the climate-protecting room-cleaning free of charge, where no water or chemicals are used. According to Oberdieck, this option is being selected by hotel guests with increasing frequency and perceived as a positive contribution to climate protection. For ATLANTIC Hotel Sail City, with the implementation of a new mission statement, the climate protection thought found its way into the corporate philosophy three years ago. A concrete starting point was the “Hand in Hand for Tomorrow” campaign that was carried out together with the climate protection agency, where the Bremerhaven hotel management made climate protection promises to pupils, which were verified after one year. To ensure that this theme was incorporated in the daily work to an even greater extent, the hotel management decided to participate in the greentransformation pilot project. For hotel director, Tim Oberdieck, this was the right decision: “As a model company, we gain deep insights into strategic climate protection measures. Numerous impulses from the klima:akademie and the exchange with experts and other companies were integrated into our daily work and make us a pioneer in the ATLANTIC hotel cooperation. We can pass on our experience and acquired know-how to other ATLANTIC Hotels and sharpen our profile within the branch so as to differentiate ourselves from the mass of competitors. This is why we will also continue on this path in future.”

With a photo exhibition in the adjoining conference center, the hotel would like to motivate others to follow suit. On large-sized pictures, particular attention is drawn to people who live out the sustainability thought and consistently implement it in the hotel, day by day. The exhibition is opened for visitors every day.

The pilot project of the non-profit Bremen climate protection agency energiekonsens was brought into being in 2013 within the framework of the national climate protection initiative. Its purpose is that of supporting companies and managers throughout Germany in developing and realising strategic climate protection goals. The project, which is supported by the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety, offers a mixture of knowledge transfer by energiekonsensklima:akademie, combined with the possibility of direct conferencing between companies. The national climate protection initiative supports projects on the development and implementation of climate protection measures that contribute to significant and measurable CO2 reduction.