
Therefore, we work to create a more sustainable supply chain. We understand that our impact is not limited to our immediate location, but extends to the products we purchase, the operations of our suppliers, and the transportation of these products to our hotels. Each hotel also has a designated EcoLeader who helps engage fellow associates around practices and events pertaining to EarthView.

From our associates' first days at our properties, they are provided information and training on EarthView's environmental initiatives. The EarthView program is a culmination of efforts by individuals across Hersha that keep us innovative and ensure that we are leading the way in sustainable hospitality.

For this reason, we aim to offer our guests the opportunity to help us in our mission by providing them information and inviting them to participate in initiatives such as in-room recycling and towel and linen reuse programs. We recognize that our guests play an important role in creating an environmentally sustainable community and business. These initiatives range from lighting upgrades to the implementation of recycling programs to a sustainability-minded purchasing policy. This data has enabled us to focus our strategy around efficiency initiatives that are scalable across our portfolio.

Since that time, we have been able to track and monitor many factors pertaining to the environmental impact of our hotels including energy use, water use, carbon emissions, and waste sent to landfills. In 2010, we began utilizing Energy Star Portfolio Manager, an online tool created by the Environmental Protection Agency, for every hotel in the portfolio. The initiatives we implement across our portfolio aim to balance our conservation and preservation goals with our goal to reduce costs and add value for our shareholders. As a result, we have a direct interest in being able to understand and best utilize these resources –especially as our business continues to grow. They provide light in our lobbies, and air conditioning and heating in our guestrooms. Resources such as water and the fuels used to create energy are essential to every operation in a hotel.

Changes in the planet's climate have the potential to impact our business as well as the communities in which our hotels operate.
