Sofitel Sydney Darling Harbour has incorporated the Soap Aid Hotel to Hands program into its sustainability actions since 2018 as part of a multifaceted sustainability charter that delivers on a variety of levels.
Soap Aid is a not-for-profit social enterprise committed to saving children’s lives through improved hygiene while positively impacting the environment. Through Soap Aid’s Hotel to Hands Program, waste soap from accommodation providers, manufacturers and distributors in Australia and New Zealand is diverted from landfill and re-processed. The brand-new, hygienic soap bars are then distributed free of charge, alongside hygiene education materials to vulnerable communities in Australia and around the world.
Since joining the Soap Aid Hotel to Hands soap recycling program Sofitel Darling Harbour has :
- Diverted 2,914kg of waste soap from landfill, which has been recycled into 29,140 brand new bars of soap
- Supplied 2,428 children with a 12-month supply of soap
- Saved 1,068 lives through improved hygiene (44% reduction in fatalities from preventable, hygiene-related diarrheal and respiratory diseases)
- Prevented 4.24 tCO2e from entering the atmosphere.
The scheme’s success is due in large part to Sofitel’s Executive Housekeeper, Karolina Sadalska, who leads this sustainability initiative within the hotel.
“We have been proud partners with Soap Aid for the past six years, with only a brief interruption during the pandemic,” said Karolina. “Over the years, our team has remained deeply committed to promoting sustainability and environmental responsibility”.
“As part of the Accor group we believe it is our role to help shape a more sustainable future”, said Robert Gauer, Acting General Manager Sofitel Sydney Darling Harbour. “As one of Sydney’s most iconic landmarks and a leader in the luxury tourism sector, we believe it is essential that we take a lead in this area. Soap Aid is just one element of our program to deliver a better future.
