Lausanne, May 2025

A Call for Regenerative Hospitality: From Sustainability to Systemic Transformation

We live in an overshoot world, with planetary and social systems under mounting stress. Six of nine planetary boundaries have been crossed, pushing life on Earth and our humanity toward irreversible tipping points. At the same time, communities face growing pressures: loss of essential services, cultural erosion, and economic displacement, all intensified by climate change, rising social inequalities, and forced migration.

In this context, conventional sustainability practices focused on minimizing harm and sustaining profitability are no longer enough. Hospitality, as a nexus sector deeply interconnected with others ranging from food to real estate, energy, water, waste management, education, health and culture, has a key role to play towards a regenerative world. However, the industry struggles to define common and ambitious standards for impact.

Now, Regenerative Hospitality offers a necessary and transformative path for committed leaders to unite under net-positive principles towards a regenerative future.

Regenerative Hospitality is not a buzzword, but a real mindset and business orientation. It is centered on actively contributing to the health of living ecosystems and communities, putting relationships at the heart of all activities. Embracing regeneration calls for a radical shift in how we relate to ourselves, to one another, and the planet.
Yet with growing interest in regeneration comes the risk of “regenwashing,” as many adopt the language without the commitment or clarity needed. That’s why we are launching an actionable Manifesto for Regenerative Hospitality—an invitation for committed leaders to go beyond sustainability to co-create a future driven by shared responsibility, true authenticity and systemic change. We are on a mission to initiate a movement of regenerative leaders in hospitality, trailblazers, change-makers ready to start investing in this paradigm shift to metamorphose our systems.

In response to the urgent challenges facing our planet and society – and to offer a clear, common and actionable definition of the field, we offer these core principles as a compass for Regenerative Hospitality:

Shifting Mindsets
Regenerative hospitality begins with a mindset rooted in authenticity and mutual flourishing, transforming travel and business into a net-positive force for people, place and planet.

Living Systems Thinking
It embraces the interconnectedness of all actors and ecosystems, designing strategies that consider ripple effects and foster ecosystems’ vitality, and the restoration of nature’s full potential.

Place-Based and People Wisdom
Rooted in the unique identity and vocation of each place, regenerative hospitality honors local heritage, environmental stewardship, indigenous wisdom and community purpose.

Co-Creation Through Ecosystems of Collaboration
It thrives through cross-sector partnerships and shared value creation, elevating communities as co-creators and catalyzing long-term, self-sustaining impact. It seeks to mobilize philanthropic, public and private funding around a shared vision of catalyzing autonomy and self-sufficiency.