Developing a Hospitality Social Sustainability Accreditation Framework

The Dutch hospitality industry, reflecting the wider Dutch society, is increasingly facing social sustainability
challenges for a greying population, such as increasing burnout, lifelong learning, and inclusion for those
distanced from the job market. Yet, while the past decades have seen notable progress regarding
environmental sustainability and good governance, more attention should be paid to social sustainability. This
concern is reflected by the top-sector healthcare struggles caused by mounting social welfare pressure,
leading to calls by the Dutch government for organizational improvement in social earning capacity.
Furthermore, the upcoming EU legislation on CSRD requires greater transparency regarding financial and
non-financial reporting this year. Yet, while the existing sustainability accreditation frameworks offer guidance
on environmental sustainability and good governance reporting, there must be more guidance on auditing
social sustainability. The hospitality industry, as a prominent employer in the Netherlands, thus has a societal
and legislative urgency to transition its social earning capacity. Dormben Hotel The Hague OpCo BV (Dormben) has thus sought support in transitioning its social sustainability standards to meet this call.

Hotelschool, the Hague leads the consortium, including Green Key Nederland and Dormben, by employing
participatory design to present a social sustainability accreditation framework. Initially, Dr. David Brannon and
Dr. Melinda Ratkai from Hotelschool The Hague will draft a social sustainability accreditation framework
informed by EFRAG. Subsequently, Erik van Wijk, from Green Key Nederland, the hospitality benchmark for
sustainability accreditation, and Sander de Jong, from Dormben, will pilot the framework through four
participatory workshops involving hospitality operators. Later, during a cross-industry conference, Dr. David
Brannon and Dr. Melinda Ratkai will disseminate a social sustainability toolkit across their academic and
industry networks. Finally, conference and workshop participants will be invited to form a social sustainability
learning community, discussing their social earning capacity based on the revised sustainability accreditation.