Climate Action is Core to Sustainability in the Hospitality Industry and Cultural Attractions.

Why Collaborating on Climate Impact Means More Than Ever Today.
By Andrew Fischer, Vice President of Restorative Strategies, SSA Group

There is a moment that happens every day across SSA locations that never shows up in a climate report. It’s the pause before a guest is welcomed. The smile, the eye contact, the reassurance that says you belong here.

At SSA, we call that 452 Hospitality. Across zoos, aquariums, museums, and cultural attractions, sustainability is a defining part of the guest’s hospitality experience.

452 is our shorthand for hospitality with soul. It’s how we show up for guests, partners, and each other through interactions that leave people feeling welcomed and valued, moments that leave a lasting impression. Today, more than ever, climate action belongs in that moment. Because the future of hospitality and the cultural attractions industry depends on how responsibility shows up alongside welcome. This is why collaborating on climate impact with your culinary, retail, and admissions operators matters more today than ever before.

Climate Action is Core to Premium Hospitality

Sustainability used to be treated as an enhancement. A side program or a differentiator. Today, it is a fundamental part of how institutions operate.

Across SSA, climate action is anchored in four integrated drivers: Mitigating Emissions, Restorative Purchasing, Internal Sustainability Culture, and Industry Influential Leadership. Together, these drivers are embedded into SSA 452 Hospitality.

In partnership with Verdis Group, we are advancing reductions within our direct control while addressing our broader footprint. That includes operational shifts such as expanding electric kitchens, increasing zero-waste practices, and reducing single-use materials, while never losing sight of the guest experience that defines premium service.

“Responsibility drives performance. With operations across nearly 100 attractions, SSA Group is uniquely positioned to translate sustainability into daily practice. This improves execution, strengthens consistency, and enhances the guest experience at scale. We are uniquely positioned to help our partners and our company make a difference.”
David Rosenberg, EVP of Guest Experience

Electric kitchens, for example, are not just sustainability tools for reducing emissions; they are part of operationalizing hospitality. Our teams consistently tell us they are safer, cooler, and more comfortable to work in. Across SSA, 21 accounts now operate at least one electric kitchen, a 31% year-over-year increase. When we invest in healthier spaces for staff, guests feel the difference. That is 452 Hospitality in action.

Making Food & Beverage Sustainability Impact Visible Across the Guest Experience
From Global to Local

Climate impact can feel abstract. Our responsibility is to make it visible.

At the 2025 AZA Annual Icebreaker, co-hosted with The Florida Aquarium, sustainability was central to the experience. Hosting nearly 2,800 guests, the event achieved a 96% waste diversion rate, surpassing zero-waste benchmarks and redefining what large-scale gatherings can accomplish when hospitality and climate action work together. Food rescue supported community partners, aluminum was recycled, and organics were composted without impacting the guest experience.

Nothing about that disrupted the experience. It enhanced it.

This same approach extends across SSA operations. In 2025 alone, 518,000 pounds of used cooking oil were recycled, 24 accounts actively participated in edible food rescue, and thousands of pounds of aluminum, organics, and surplus food were diverted from landfills. Many of these programs are now standard practice.

In cultural attractions, these operational decisions shape both mission impact and the guest experience.

How Vendors Influence a More Sustainable Supply Chain in Cultural Attractions
The Commercial World’s Impact and Influence

Operators do not transform industries alone. The commercial marketplace, including the vendors, manufacturers, and suppliers we choose, shapes what is possible. That is why SSA’s approach to restorative purchasing focuses on more sustainable, low-impact goods that influence demand throughout the supply chain.

Through partners like A&F Souvenir, TCHO Chocolate, Tractor Beverage, and plush manufacturers like Wild Republic, we are doing more than selecting sustainable options; we are raising expectations across the industry. Across retail programs alone, millions of plastic water bottles have been upcycled, tens of metric tons of CO2 have been avoided, and innovative circular plush models have been implemented.

“Commercial purchasing decisions send vital signals to the market. When SSA raises expectations with our partners, they respond, and it leads to meaningful movement forward for the entire industry.”
Sean McNicholas, President and CEO

These decisions shape both what guests experience and what becomes standard across the industry. Vendors are critical because they carry responsibility upstream. By aligning early, setting standards, and creating collaborative solutions, we influence what becomes normal, not just what becomes possible.

Why Culture Drives Sustainable Operations

None of these efforts work without people.

SSA embeds sustainability into daily operations through education, professional development, and hands on participation that empowers teams. In 2025, hundreds of team members participated in eduMe training, eco-challenges, zero waste initiatives, and community cleanups. Many of these were through resources tied to Earth Day, World Ocean Day, and Plastic Free July.

Generation Z, one of the largest and most frequent visitor groups, expects this alignment. Sustainability is not separate from the experience; it is part of how they choose where to go. Climate responsibility, authentic values, equity, and community impact are not optional. They are essential

“Our employees don’t just want to work for a company doing less harm; they want to visibly see that the organization embraces a net positive for the environment.”
Andrew Fischer, Vice President of Restorative Strategies

When sustainability is embedded into the culture and owned by the teams, it becomes real in experience. When Generation Z sees their ideas valued, their core efforts are ignited.

Leading Sustainability Across the Cultural Attractions Industry

SSA’s influence extends beyond our own operations.

Through partnerships with AZA, IAAPA, WAZA, ACP, and AAM, SSA helps advance sustainability, conservation, and hospitality standards across the cultural attractions industry. That includes contributing to international sustainability planning through WAZA, sharing operational insights at IAAPA, and supporting committees and sessions at AZA and ACP conferences. Our team, with detailed coordination from our partner at the Verdis Group, has developed innovative sustainability platforms for cultural attractions and their operators.

SSA also leads the industry in supporting conservation commerce and related programs while developing models that support real-world species protection.

We believe leadership means transparency and collaboration. We share what works because climate action accelerates when competitors learn from one another.

“The impact grows when we stop treating sustainability and conservation as proprietary and start treating it as collaborative.”
Allie Keating, Sustainability and Conservation Manager

Leadership in this space means raising the bar for the cultural attractions industry, together.

An Opportunity and a Responsibility

Cultural attractions and their operating partners sit at the intersection of education, experience, and commerce.

The decisions made across operations influence millions of guests, thousands of staff members, and entire supply chains. Climate action is not only a responsibility but an opportunity to reinforce trust, strengthen relevance, and deliver impactful experiences aligned with current values. When guests see responsibility modeled thoughtfully and seamlessly, it enhances their experience.

SSA’s approach demonstrates that sustainability and conservation reinforce premium service, operational excellence, and brand strength. From supporting global conservation efforts to local food rescue, to industry partnerships to frontline hospitality, the impacts are all interconnected and visible.

Looking Forward

SSA will continue working on emissions reduction, scaling restorative purchasing, strengthening culture and accountability, and extending industry leadership on our pathway to Net Zero. We do this grounded in 452 Hospitality because we believe welcome, care, and responsibility are not separate ideas. They are one commitment.

Collaborating on climate impact efforts with your operator matters more today because the stakes are higher, the expectations clearer, and the opportunity greater than ever before. And because SSA does hospitality right, we leave people and places better than before.

To learn more about SSA, our Climate Action Impact Report, and our innovative sustainability platforms for cultural attractions and their operators, please reach out to Andrew Fischer at andrewfischer@thessagroup.com.