The Evolution of Hotel Sustainability Data

Alex Nichols-Vinueza supports the World Wildlife Fund’s U.S. Food Waste team’s portfolio of projects, including work with the agricultural, grocery retail, hospitality, and food service sectors. This encompasses the Global Farm Loss Tool, the Food Waste Warrior program (which empowers students and teachers to learn about the food system by measuring and reducing their school food waste), the Zero Food Waste Coalition (in its work to advance common-sense policies at the state and federal levels to develop a more circular food economy and mitigate climate change), and the U.S. Food Waste Pact (a national voluntary agreement to accelerate leading food businesses’ progress toward their waste reduction targets).

Mr. Nichols-Vinueza brings over 15 years of project and partnership management experience across tech, government, and sustainability consulting in the U.S. and Latin America. Bilingual in Spanish and English, he holds a B.A. from the University of Michigan and an MEM from Duke’s Nicholas School of the Environment.

Mr. Nichols-Vinueza hails from Traverse City in northern Michigan, where he grew up camping, spending summers in the area’s many parks and lakes, and working on local farms.

In 2008, Eric Ricaurte founded Greenview, an international consultancy catalyzing innovation and best practices in sustainability and ESG, providing services for strategy, programs, data management, benchmarking, and reporting. Greenview’s clients include most of the largest hotel companies as well as hotel owners and developers, event organizers, cruise lines, NGOs, DMOs, OTAs, and industry organizations including the WTTC, UNWTO, and AHLA.

With 25 years of hands-on experience, Mr. Ricaurte is a frequent speaker, convener, and researcher on the topic of sustainability. His notable industry work includes launching the Cornell Hotel Sustainability Benchmarking Index, Green Lodging Trends Report, Destination Water Risk Index, Hotel Global Decarbonisation Report, Hotel Owners for Tomorrow Coalition, and Net-Zero Methodology for the Hotel Industry. Mr. Ricaurte is a member of the UFI Committee on Sustainable Development and the International Standards Committee of the Global Sustainable Tourism Council. Prior to founding Greenview, he specialized in the operations and development of nature-based lodges, theme parks, and attractions in Costa Rica, Mexico, and Brazil.

Mr. Ricaurte earned a Bachelor of Science degree from the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration as well as a Master of Science degree in Tourism and Travel Management from New York University. He has held a research fellowship at the Cornell University Center for Hospitality Research and been an adjunct instructor at New York University.

Gizem Kilic is the Director of Industry Research at Government Affairs for the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA). She began her Master of Science degree and later transferred to the Ph.D. program at the Nolan School of Hotel Administration, SC Johnson College of Business, Cornell University, expecting to graduate in 2024. Ms. Kilic’s research primarily focuses on sustainability, food waste reduction, and food recovery policies across the United States. 

Prior to pursuing graduate degrees, Ms. Kilic served as the Events Team Leader at Grand Hyatt Istanbul and as a Corporate Leadership Trainee at Hyatt EMEA. She worked in food and beverage and sales for major brands such as Four Seasons, W Hotels, and Kempinski in Istanbul before joining Hyatt. Ms. Kilic holds dual degrees in Tourism and Hospitality Management, and Gastronomy and Culinary Arts from Yeditepe University in Istanbul, Turkey.

Jeanne Varney serves as the Arthur Adler ’78 & Karen Adler ’78 Director of the Center for Real Estate and Finance and is a Senior Lecturer at the Peter and Stephanie Nolan School of Hotel Administration, Cornell University. Jeanne is based in the Properties Development and Management department, where she is responsible for the curriculum in Fundamentals of Hotel Development and Management, Hospitality Asset Management, Sustainable Development, and Introduction to Sustainable Tourism.

Jeanne has chaired/co-chaired multiple industry roundtables, chairs several Nolan internal committees, and has led multiple student industry competitions. She is a current member of the Hospitality Asset Manager Association (HAMA) Education Committee and an International Past President for NEWH, Inc.

Jeanne holds an MBA from The George Washington University and a B.S. in Hotel Administration from Cornell University.