SUSTAINABLE HOSPITALITY CHALLENGE

2025

2025

Finals starts in

Days
Hours
Mins
Secs

Sign up your interest for SHC 2025 now!

Ready to shape the future of sustainable hospitality? Sign up your interest for the 2025 edition of the Sustainable Hospitality Challenge now. If you are a faculty member, employee or bachelor’s or master’s student enrolled in any university program with an exciting idea or personal passion to innovate the hospitality or tourism industry, join a global community of forward-thinking minds. Submit your details below and we will reach out with more information very soon!

"*" indicates required fields

Name*
Service*

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

About SHC

The Sustainable Hospitality Challenge (SHC) is an innovative initiative founded and owned by Hotelschool The Hague, dedicated to advancing both sustainable hospitality and broader innovation in the industry. For the past decade, SHC has inspired groundbreaking solutions that drive industry-wide change.

Our mission is to drive innovation that preserves the sustainability of our world and industry. By empowering future leaders, SHC pushes the boundaries of creativity, creating value-added solutions for the hospitality sector. Recently, SHC has adopted a unique multidisciplinary approach, involving top universities from fields such as technology, design, and hospitality.

Each year, students participate in ‘Shark Tank’-style pitches, presenting investable projects ready for market integration. Supported by C-level executives and leading tourism organizations, SHC fosters collaboration and investment in sustainable solutions.

Powered by:

In collaboration with:

Words from the industry

Leading Global Student Challenge. Collaborating to make a lasting sustainable impact and creating memorable student experiences.

Past Winners

Our Champions Throughout the Years

Newsroom

Get a glimpse of our journey through the years.

Sustainable Hospitality Challenge 2024 Announces Winners at Future Hospitality Summit World in Dubai

Mews sponsors Hotelschool The Hague’s Sustainable Hospitality Challenge for greener travel

Hotelschool The Hague

The school is the proud founder of the Sustainable Hospitality Challenge. Hotelschool The Hague is one of the oldest independent hotel schools in the world, with two campuses, one in The Hague and one in Amsterdam, and more than 2850 students and 250 employees. The school offers a four-year Bachelor of Arts in Hospitality Management, a Fast-Track Bachelor of Arts in Hospitality Management, a 13-month Master of Business Administration in International Hospitality Management, a Master in Leading Hotel Transformation, and a Professional Doctorate Programme in Leisure, Tourism & Hospitality. Hotelschool The Hague has been voted the best public hotel school in The Netherlands since 2014 and ranks among the top hospitality management schools worldwide according to QS World University Rankings.

NEOM

NEOM is a new vision of what the future could be. It’s an attempt to do something that’s never been done before and it’s coming at a time when the world needs fresh thinking and new solutions. Simply put, NEOM will be a destination, a home for people who dream big and want to be part of building a new model for sustainable living, working and prospering.

The Bench

The Bench has established a legacy for delivering world-leading investment forums and conferences in Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and Latin America. The key principle behind these platforms has remained ‘dealmaking’. Transforming the way business connect, Bench has developed a reputation for creating innovative and high-impact meeting spaces for the industry.

The Future Hospitality Summit (FHS World)

is a leading global event in the hospitality industry that focuses on shaping the future of travel and tourism. It brings together industry leaders, innovators, and experts to discuss emerging technologies, sustainability, changing consumer expectations, and strategies for addressing challenges. With a focus on addressing the ever-evolving demands of the travel landscape, the summit serves as a catalyst for transformation and growth in the industry. By connecting like-minded professionals and fostering collaboration, the event plays a pivotal role in driving innovation and ensuring a sustainable and prosperous future for the global hospitality sector.

Mews

Mews is the leading platform for the new era of hospitality. Powering over 5,000 customers across more than 85 countries, Mews Hospitality Cloud is designed to streamline operations for modern hoteliers, transform the guest experience and create more profitable businesses. Customers include Generator-Freehand, The Strawberry Group, The Social Hub and Airelles. Mews was named Best PMS (2024) and listed among the Best Place to Work in Hotel Tech (2021, 2022, 2024) by Hotel Tech Report, as well as World’s Best Hotel PMS Provider (2023) and World’s Best Independent Hotel PMS Provider (2022, 2023) by World Travel Tech Awards. The company has offices in Europe, the United States and Australia.

Guest Supply

Guest Supply is an industry leader providing hospitality supplies, serving the world’s top hotel chains and independent properties for over 40 years as a full-spectrum distribution solution. A wholly owned subsidiary of Sysco Food, a $55 billion Forbes Global Fortune 200 company, their service-centric approach and robust supply chain and distribution network allow them to provide in-demand products and programs to meet their customers’ needs.

The World Sustainable Hospitality Alliance

The World Sustainable Hospitality Alliance brings together engaged hospitality companies and uses the collective power of the industry to deliver impact locally and on a global scale. They work with leading hospitality companies and strategic partners to address key challenges affecting our planet and its people, and develop free practical resources and programmes to enable the wider industry to operate responsibly and grow sustainably. Their members make up 25% of the global hotel industry by rooms and include 14 world-leading hotel companies with a combined reach of over 30,000 properties and 4.5 million rooms.

UN Tourism

UN Tourism is the United Nations specialized agency fostering tourism as a vehicle for equal, inclusive, and sustainable development. Working with its 160 Member States, international organizations and the private sector, UN Tourism promotes safe and seamless travel for all. UN Tourism also works to make tourism the foundation of trust and international cooperation and a central pillar of growth and opportunity. As part of the wider UN system, UN Tourism is at the forefront of global efforts to achieve the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, including through its ability to create decent jobs, promote equality and preserve natural and cultural heritage.

World Travel and
Tourism Council

WTTC is a membership organisation representing the leaders of the global travel and tourism industry. WTTC is a forum for global business leaders comprising presidents, chairs and CEOs of 100 of the world’s foremost companies. It is the only body representing the private sector in all parts of the Travel & Tourism industry worldwide. WTTC’s mission is to raise awareness of the full economic impact of Travel & Tourism, the world’s largest generator of wealth and employment, which accounts for 200 million jobs and over 10 per cent of global GDP. Governments are encouraged to unlock the industry’s potential by adopting policy framework for sustainable tourism development.

Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO)

The Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) is the region’s leading tourism development agency, representing the diverse interests of 24 Caribbean countries and territories. CTO promotes sustainable tourism development and fosters cooperation among member countries to enhance the region’s competitiveness in the global tourism market.