SUSTAINABILITY

Laurance S. Rockefeller was a passionate conservationist.  Honoring his legacy, we are dedicated to honor, celebrate, and malama (care for) our island.

Embracing Sustainability

Our sustainability mission is to share a timeless experience for generations, serving our guests, families, the community, and environment. In 2017, we published a comprehensive sustainability case study, through an independent third party, showing transparency in operations related to the environment, community, and economy. The study incorporated the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) framework to show local and global impacts which protect the planet, promote peace, and encourage prosperity.

To view the full study, click here.

Bee Hive

Mauna Kea Resort Honey

Beehives have a significant positive impact on the local environment. By establishing honeybees in the area, we help provide pollination for local farming, flowers, and native plant production.

In 2015, we celebrated our 50th anniversary with “50 Acts of Aloha” contributing more than 700 volunteer hours and raising more than $500,000 in cash and in-kind for the community and charitable causes; since then we have instituted 15 annual acts of aloha, including our Legacy Dinner Series of farm-to-table fundraising dinners highlighting local Hawai’i suppliers and supporting local scholarships. We partner with local schools through the ClimbHI partnership LEI program to educate youth and encourage career development in food and beverage, hospitality, engineering, and administration.

Each year employees participate in the Annual Visitor Industry Charity Walk hosted by the Hawai’i Lodging & Tourism Association; the Charity Walk occurs on Hawai’i Island, Kauai, Lanai, Maui, Molokai and Oahu on the same day in May; on average more than $2 million is raised annually benefiting approximately 400 local charities.

We are proud to have engaged employees participate in our cross-departmental Green Team to implement and champion sustainability initiatives resort-wide. We partner with the National Park Service to provide upkeep on a portion of the Ala Kahalai National Historic Trail, a 175-mile trail that traverses our property; our team helps keep this culturally significant route clean, safe, and beautiful, with access for all. We also work with the Nature Conservancy and University of Hawaii, Hilo to conduct ongoing studies to establish baselines, collect data, protect coral reefs and to keep pollutants from entering the ocean.

Our Mauna Kea Beach Hotel Green Program encourages guests to support environmental efforts through the reuse of towels to conserve water and energy. Throughout the property we use LED lighting and occupancy sensors, energy efficient appliances, hardware, boilers and steam plate heat exchangers, in addition to hybrid equipment at the golf course. Our course operates using 25 percent recycled water for irrigation.

Shovel in sand

We have a 51 percent waste diversion rate, signifying waste diverted from landfills. Efforts include composting green waste and recycling; we also partner with All One Ocean by donating used foil coffee bags for reuse to gather trash during shoreline cleaning projects.

Efforts to support native wildlife and flora are ongoing. Our onsite population of Nene Geese, an endangered species and Hawaii’s state bird, has increased by 300 percent over the last three years through protection and education efforts. We are increasing plant growth native to Hawai’I through implementing natural solutions to pesticide reduction such as the use of beneficial insects to attack pests on ornamental plants, which also reduces pesticides and lowers water inputs.

Pool

We are proud to support the local economy through sourcing 95 percent of our fish and dairy, 85 percent of produce, and beef locally. Our suppliers are asked to adhere to our Supplier Code of Conduct to ensure fair labor treatment, safety, ethical operations, and environmental responsibility. Environmental and local supplier criteria are incorporated into our supply chain vetting process. Examples of responsible sourcing include the elimination of sun care products containing Oxybenzone to protect coral reefs, eliminating plastic straws to protect marine life and reduce non-biodegradable waste, plus using salt systems and natural products in our pools.