Original subtitles

Narrator: Welcome to "tomorrow's world today,"

a show dedicated to the discovery of innovation

and cutting-edge technology.

We showcase the latest developments

from the greatest companies and smartest people in the world.

Tomorrow's ideas are out there.

And through our journey of inspiration,

we will uncover the technology of the future.

This is inventionland world headquarters.

Here now is George davison.

Hey, everybody. Welcome to "tomorrow's world today."

I'm your host, George davison.

Ever thought about all the millions

of plastic shampoo and conditioner bottles

at the thousands of hotels in the world?

Well, I've been thinking about it,

and I've been wondering where all those bottles end up.

I've also been thinking about how hotel chains

are managing food waste,

what roles new technologies and artificial intelligence

are playing.

Well, that led me to some interesting history

in the lodging industry.

In the beginning,

this was the first hotel to ever franchise,

and it got its name from a movie.

It was called "the holiday inn."

And it was from an innovator in the 1950s

named kemmons Wilson.

And today, the holiday inn,

along with 15 other hotel brands,

is part of the intercontinental hotels group,

or ihg hotels and resorts,

with around 400,000 employees.

Well, as an inventor, I'm always intrigued by people

who want to make things better.

I want to look into the future of what ihg is up to,

and that's why I'm going to send Jackie halfway around the world.

♪♪

Long: Well, here I am in warm and sunny Dubai

on the quest to uncover how ihg is creating brands

that have sustainability at their heart.

George has asked me to delve deep

and find out exactly what makes them so innovative

in the world of managing waste,

including tackling single-use plastic,

using recycled products, and supporting talent

in their industry for the future.

So come with me here into the voco hotel

in Dubai's trade center district.

Let's see if we can find someone to help us out.

♪♪

Hi, Pascal.

Hello, Jackie.

Pleasure to meet you.

Welcome to the voco in Dubai.

Thank you for having me.

So, I want to jump right in.

Tell me about how a large hotel group, like ihg,

provides its guests with wonderful stays,

but also keeps sustainability at the forefront.

Let me show you. Perfect.

♪♪

In the world of today,

the environment and the sustainability

is absolutely critical

for our guests and for our colleagues.

Ihg is one of the largest hotel company in the world

with 5,800 hotels

operating truly globally in more than 100 countries.

I know that voco is new.

Is sustainability new for you, as well,

or has that been part of your history?

In the DNA of ihg,

we always have been at the front of innovation.

If I take the example of this region,

the majority of our guests in the middle east

and colleagues, in fact, are less than 25 years old.

So it's really critical to ensure

that we offer them an environment

where sustainability is at the heart of

everything we do.

It's not only the obvious things

of sustainability.

It's also creativity and innovation,

like the duvet that we made

of recycled plastic bottles

and many other things.

Oh, great, I can't wait to see inside.

Let's look at the bathroom amenities now.

I'm sure you know about these miniatures.

Yes, absolutely.

We are replacing the small amenities

by bulk amenities.

We're going to save 200 million bottles a year.

I'm sorry,

200 million of these tiny little plastic bottles,

across all of your brands?

Absolutely.

Wow, that is a ton of plastic!

And that's the obvious,

Claire is going to show you the duvet

in the next room.

And of course, I want you to go to

six senses zighy bay in Oman,

to see there the big picture.

Oh, I'm so looking forward to that.

Alright. Well, I'll hand this back to you

and go meet up with Claire.

Thank you very much, Jackie.

Thank you, Pascal. Enjoy your trip.

So nice to meet you. Nice to meet you, as well.

Gauvin: Every region can have a different challenge,

in terms of sustainability.

It will be different from location to location,

depends on the priority of the region where we operate.

That's why we have business unit at the front

that understand what is the environment

and what do we need to address.

This is a very sensitive subject

and we have a lot to do about it.

Claire, hi.

Hello, Jackie.

So tell me all about it.

Ok, we're going to tell you how we take plastic bottles,

like this, and we turn them into luxury duvets and pillows

for the hotel.

So what we do, first of all,

we're going to chip up these bottles.

Where do you collect the plastic?

So after you finish your drink,

you throw it in the recycling,

and the factory will take the recycled bottles

and they'll turn it into plastic chip like this.

Oh, interesting.

First of all, we've got to remove any impurities

that might be in there, any dirt.

So then you get the clean chips. There you go.

Ok. Ok, great.

Can't really imagine sleeping on this.

Nope, bit hard, bit uncomfortable.

So we melt all that down,

and we take it through a machine, we extrude it.

So if you imagine spaghetti coming out of a machine,

it's a bit like that.

And we put a curl into the fiber, as well.

Oh, yeah. It's soft.

It's so much softer,

and it's, like, fleecy, almost.

Yeah, but it's got no air in it,

and we really need the air to keep you warm.

So in our factory,

we spin it all into balls, like this.

Can you see those?

Oh, wow, it's so silky and soft and light, amazing.

Yeah, and we do that all in our eco factory

with 100% renewable energy

and then we put it into the duvet and pillowcases,

and you get a really cozy night's sleep.

So have a feel.

Oh, it's so soft and cushy.

And really, really light, as well.

So it's really comfortable.

And what kind of cotton do you use?

It's all sustainably-sourced cotton.

Of course it is.

Is there any chance that you could send some of that

home with me, for George? Sure, sure.

Here's some filling, and we'll send you a pillow.

Thank you so much.

It was so nice to meet you.

Yes, and you, thanks. Thanks, Claire.

♪♪

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[ Both speaking arabic ]

[ Sniffs ]

Mmm.

Oh, it smells so good.

Oh, wow. Thank you. Welcome.

[ Sighs ] Well, this is the pièce de résistance

of sustainable hotels.

I've made it to Oman, at the six senses zighy bay,

per Pascal's recommendation,

and I'm meeting up with nachi.

But it appears that I have a little hike ahead of me.

♪♪

Wow! [ Laughing ] Oh, my goodness.

Hi, nachi.

Very nice to meet you. I'm Jackie.

So nice to meet you. Nice to meet you.

Look at this place!

Worth the hike?

Yes, oh, a thousand times.

Tell me everything.

So, my name is nachi,

I'm the sustainability manager here at the resort.

So we like to say that we're not

a hotel company that is sustainable,

we're actually a sustainability company

that also sells rooms and food.

That's the way we like to put it.

I like it. So let's talk shop.

We'll talk all about sustainability today,

and I'd like to show you a couple of things.

The thing that I'm most proud of is the water storing.

We have a complete closed loop.

We don't truck in any water at all.

We don't truck in any plastic bottles, no carbon footprint.

We make our own water. It actually comes from the sea.

We have an unlimited, abundant supply of water,

and we turn the saltwater into potable water.

We recycle 100% of our glass,

100% of the organic waste onsite,

80% of our total waste is managed onsite.

80%. That's right.

So, do you want to take a walk with me today?

Yes.

Let's do that. Ok.

Tuteja: Most of the six senses properties,

we operate in far-flung, offshore, pristine locations,

and it's in our best interest

to preserve the environment around us

in order to continue our business here.

♪♪

Welcome to earth lab.

Wow, it smells amazing in here! Doesn't it?

What is this place?

So this space is called earth lab,

and earth lab is not actually just a physical space,

it's a philosophy, it's a concept that we follow here.

Anything upycled at the resort is earth lab.

So, this little corner here

is our glass-recycling center.

We recycle 100% of the glass in-house.

100%. Correct.

So we crush the glass bottles down,

which looks something like this.

That's a couple of wine bottles.

And then we use a sifter, there,

which has screens of different micron sizes,

which comes out like this.

That's a mix of green and brown bottles,

and that's white bottles.

You can use it as cement aggregate,

you can use it for construction,

and then we have these different molds here

and we bake it in this kiln,

and we make all these fun ornaments

that you can see around here.

So we're making gifts for our guests

literally from trash.

And the guests love it, it's a great story.

So good!

Then, we do a lot of soap-making, also.

We have botanicals from the garden,

and we make all-organic soaps,

things like bath bombs,

bath scrubs, deodorants,

and that's where we're headed.

I love it.

Ok, so where can I get my hands dirty?

Would you like to crush some bottles?

It's a good stress-buster.

Absolutely! Let's do that.

Let's follow me outside.

[ Motor whirring ]

Here you go.

[ Glass shattering ]

♪♪

Tuteja: At six senses zighy bay --

In fact, at all six senses properties --

We want to grow our own food,

because that's the freshest available option for our guests,

instead of importing it from Europe

or any other part of the world.

It has a low carbon footprint. There's no spoilage on the way.

And we have the freshest possible thing.

So we literally grow it at the resort,

and within a matter of minutes, it can be on someone's plate.

Tuteja: So we're here at the garden now.

It's a miniature version

of showing what we're doing down at the farm,

which is in the township of dibba.

At the farm, we have cows,

goats, chickens, honeybees,

and we have the first artisanal cheese factory in Oman.

Wow, that's really impressive.

That's very impressive.

So that's a small, miniature version

to show what we're doing down there.

And, you remember this morning,

we were talking about how we recycle

80% of our waste in-house?

Yes, I was really impressed by that number.

So, a big part of that is organic waste.

At the property, we have a compost machine.

So, traditionally, it'll take 6 to 12 months.

This machine lets us do it within 24 to 48 hours.

So this was literally rice and chicken bones two days back,

and we have fresh compost to put in the garden.

I love it.

So, before this was all here,

this was just desert sand.

Yes, it was really Sandy and rocky,

and we had to kind of come up with a recipe

to make our own soil,

so that this land could be cultivatable.

So we noticed, ever since we've started

doing these efforts over the last two years,

we've created a kind of an ecosystem around here.

We're really proud of that. You should be.

Would you like to take a walk through the garden,

see some more stuff? Oh, I'd love to.

All right, let's go.

So as you can see around you,

it's primarily a herb garden.

We have lots of herbs,

and we have the chefs coming in,

plucking the fresh herbs,

we have the spa guys coming and taking

some of the aloe Vera,

and the trees that you see around you

are actually date trees.

We did 15 tons of dates last summer.

That's how much dates we have around.

Wow! We have lots of fruits,

chikoos, guavas, bananas,

so in two months from now,

when you're walking around the resort,

you can literally pluck anything and eat it --

Oh, I love it. ...It's an edible landscape.

I'll come back for that.

Absolutely. [ Laughs ]

So, have you seen our beach yet?

Believe it or not,

I haven't even seen the beach yet.

Now, you have to check out our beach,

so Adam, our general manager,

he will meet you at the beach.

Thank you so much for having me.

It's my pleasure.

♪♪

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♪♪

Long: Well, this has been quite the day.

I'm so happy to meet you here on the beach.

How do you keep your beaches so clean?

It's an amazing beach, really,

and we're just so lucky, in the first instance,

that it is just such a beautiful, natural,

pristine beach environment.

But, also, to look after our beach,

every morning, we're out and we do a sweep of the beach,

which works very well,

and our guests see that happen,

and they see us taking care of the beach environment.

Yes, I'm sure.

I'm sure they sometimes want to get involved, as well.

Absolutely. As I would.

Sure, absolutely. Happens often.

We get guests coming down and helping with the cleanup.

So. I love it.

At zighy bay, we share this beautiful property

with a traditional Omani fishing village,

and this village has been here

for as long as anyone can remember,

and so we have a very close relationship

with the villagers.

We also engage with olive Ridley,

which is a non-government organization

that works with us, really, to help train villagers

with sustainable fishing practices.

We work with them to pull out

some of the fishing nets and ghost nets and so on

that come onto the reefs here.

And also, the turtles nesting on the beach are amazing,

and so we help train the villagers

on how to take care of the turtle nests.

I think, one of the things

that's impressed me the most so far today

has just been what a closed loop

you guys have really created here.

I'm so impressed by that.

It's amazing, really,

and I think, you know,

what's important to us is the fact that we have

a full-time, engaged sustainability manager

on the property.

And I think you've met nachi already.

Yes.

And so, to that end, we have, really,

a very heavy activation of sustainability,

of looking after our community

as part of those efforts.

And so, I think that's really part of our secret,

really, is having that heavy activation.

Well, this really is a magical setting,

and I've loved getting to know all about it today,

but I am dying to go jump in that saltwater pool,

so I'm going to have to say goodbye to you here.

Fantastic. Enjoy your swim.

Thank you so much. Ok, pleasure. Bye now.

♪♪

♪♪

George, looks like I'm going to be extending my trip

by a couple days.

♪♪

♪♪

I'm back in Dubai,

at the intercontinental Dubai festival city hotel.

I hear there's some amazing technology

that has been a huge game-changer

when it comes to reducing food waste.

Now this I must see.

♪♪

Long: You must be Paul.

Hi, Jackie, great to meet you.

Hi, so good to see you in person.

So, Paul, tell me more about this winnow system

and how it actually works.

Winnow is an a.I. Technology that we use to categorize

and weigh wastage of our food.

Ok, so by waste,

do you mean what's coming back to the kitchen,

or like a surplus?

It's the surplus of items left over on the buffet

after we've finished our lunch and dinner service.

I imagine there'd be a lot of that.

It really lets us know what the people are eating,

and if they're preparing something

that they might not like,

but we can understand that,

and we can change the item for that.

Wonderful. Well, shall we go see it in action?

Absolutely. Great.

Ah, so here she is.

Absolutely, this is our winnow system,

it's a very intelligent machine,

and every time we finish an item

from the buffet that might be leftover,

we bring it here, we put it in the bin,

it has a camera underneath.

Currently, it's learning our menu,

it's learning our produce,

so, as you can see,

I could put some bread rolls in,

which are left over from lunch,

the machine has recognized

there's something on the weighing scales,

it's popped up with a selection for us,

and we'll hit assorted bread loaves,

and here it's telling us

the weight of the items in the bin,

the cost of the items in the bin,

the cost per week, and the cost per year.

That's a fancy trash can, Paul.

Certainly, there's no fooling it.

[ Laughs ]

So you hungry, Jackie? Oh, I'm always hungry.

Well, let me show you a dish that we've

been able to create by the winnow system.

Ok, but it's not coming from the bin.

No, of course not. [ Laughs ] Ok, let's go.

This dish is a direct result of our winnow system.

It has taught us that the guests were not eating

pumpkin ravioli.

So we added some spinach to it.

We added some pumpkin seeds and some organic olive oil.

And now, it's a guest favorite.

Wow! Please try.

Yes, I can't wait.

[ Laughs ]

I'll dive in.

Thank you.

You'd never know that this came from surplus.

It really helps us understand

if our guests like our recipes,

or if we need to alter them,

and it really tailors the offering

to our guests' changing tastes.

I'm so glad that I finally got to taste

the fruits of the labor of having the winnow system

right here at this hotel.

Quite delicious.

♪♪

People are the bread and butter of the hospitality industry.

Nurturing the next generation of staff

is one of the most important things for any hotel group

to continue its growth in a sustainable way.

I'm here at the crowne Plaza Dubai - festival city,

and I'm going inside to meet up with Chantal,

where I get to be the judge for the early careers program.

♪♪

♪♪

Kramer: This morning, what we've actually done

is we've introduced these students to understanding

what hospitality is all about and what the world of hotels

looks like behind the scenes, internally,

and getting them to really be innovative

and think about the future of sustainability, being green.

So what's happening is the students

are actually sitting down in four different little groups

and they're preparing what innovation

would look like in the future of hotels.

So I'm first going to take you over to team "a."

Hi, team "a." Hello.

So can you tell us a little bit about

what you're up to here?

But don't tell me too much,

because I need to remain an impartial judge. [ Laughs ]

We're finding a method to depend on electricity

in a more sustainable way.

So tell me a little bit more about why it's so important

to involve the local community.

For us, it's about inspiring the future

and being able to ensure that students like these

could potentially be the future leaders of hotels

and in hotel sectors.

It's important that they understand

that it's not just the traditional roles

that you would get --

It's not just the front line,

you get things such as marketing, sales.

So being able to expose them to something like this,

and the competitions that they're doing, as well,

it gets them really inspired and motivated

and potentially will encourage one or two of them,

or even more of them,

to come and join a sector such as ours,

which is really exciting.

Drum roll, please.

And the winner is...

Pets hotel!

[ Applause ]

Congratulations! Thank you!

You did a great job. Congratulations.

Congratulations.

♪♪

Well, that was a great trip there, Jackie.

Isn't it amazing to see how one person's innovative idea

has led to an organization of thousands of innovators

leading the way in the lodging industry?

Ihg is giving guests

a relaxing, beautiful place to stay,

as well as doing their best to make the world better.

Filtering seawater for drinking,

using artificial intelligence to minimize food waste --

That's all great conservation.

And what I find impressive is that they're eliminating

over 200 million of these little plastic bottles

from our landfills

and inventing a more sustainable hotel for the future.

Well, have a great day, everybody.

♪♪

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