Destination DC's Sustainability District surpasses 50 members 

WASHINGTON, DC — Destination DC (DDC), the official destination marketing organization for Washington, DC, today announced that more than 50 members have joined its Sustainability District. The initiative promotes local businesses in tourism and hospitality that have prioritized practices to become a more sustainable place to live, visit and meet.  

 

“Besides being the right thing to do for our planet, focusing on sustainability is good business, too,” said Elliott L. Ferguson, II, president and CEO, DDC. “The global community has expectations of destinations and venues they utilize for meetings and events. We are excited to create a program that easily identifies businesses excelling in sustainability.”   

 

The Sustainability District showcases DC businesses with clear initiatives, supporting the city's mission and benefiting the community. It includes six categories—hotels, attractions, transportation, venues, restaurants, and DMCs—for event planners and attendees to easily identify participating businesses.  

 

DDC’s Senior Manager of Sustainability, Shelby Luzzi, leads the Sustainability District. The program reiterates that even small efforts by businesses can create a ripple effect citywide, so large changes are not necessary to make a positive environmental impact. 

 

“We want visitors to understand how the local hospitality industry minimizes its footprint, therefore minimizing travelers’ impact,” said Luzzi. 

 
Current Sustainability District businesses are: 
 
Accommodations 

• Canopy Washington DC The Wharf 
• Eaton DC 
• Embassy Suites Washington, DC-Convention Center 
• Fairmont Washington, D.C., Georgetown 
• Grand Hyatt Washington 
• Hyatt House Washington, D.C./The Wharf 
• Hyatt Regency Crystal City at Reagan National Airport 
• Hyatt Regency Washington on Capitol Hill 
• JW Marriott Washington, DC 
• Kimpton George Hotel 
• Kimpton Hotel Monaco Washington DC 
• Marriott Marquis Washington, DC 
• Park Hyatt Washington 
• The Ritz-Carlton, Pentagon City 
• Rosewood Washington, D.C. 
• Royal Sonesta Washington DC Capitol Hill 
• Washington Hilton 
• Westin Washington, DC Downtown 
• Willard InterContinental Washington, D.C. 
• Yours Truly DC 

 

Transportation & Tours 

• Circuit 
• City Cruises 
• REI Co-Op Experiences 
• Old Town Trolley Tours 
• USA Guided Tours 
• WeVenture 

 

Eat & Drink 

• Ambar Capitol Hill 
• Ambar Shaw 
• Chopt Creative Salad Co. 
• Fava Pot 
• Fogo de Chão 
• RASA Ballpark 
• RASA Mount Vernon 
• Rocklands Barbeque and Grilling Co.  
• Shilling Canning Company 

 

Things to Do  

• The Fresh Food Factory Market 
• Jo Malone London 
• National Children's Museum 
• Swingers, The Crazy Golf Club 
• Tanger National Harbor 
• Tudor Place Historic House & Garden 

 

Venues 

• American Geophysical Union Conference Center 
• American University Conference and Guest Services 
• The Anthem 
• Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater 
• Capital Turnaround 
• The Catholic University of American Events & Conferences 
• Friends Meeting of Washington 
• Merriweather Post Pavilion 
• National Press Club 
• Walter E. Washington Convention Center 
• Washington Nationals 

 

Destination Management Companies & Housing 

• CSI DMC Washington 
• Hosts Global DC 
• Linder Global Events 
• TripZero: Housing for Sustainable Events 

 

Examples of Sustainable Practices 

• National Children’s Museum uses recycled materials for signage and features the “Climate Action Heroes” exhibit, which educates families about sustainability in an engaging, age-appropriate way. 
• Eaton DC maintains a sustainability committee, composts food waste, monitors energy usage with a blackout schedule and repurposes headboards. 
• Washington Hilton donates $100,000 worth of excess banquet food annually to local partners and composts 68,000 pounds of food waste, which is resold through the ORCA program. 
• Marriott Marquis offers a sustainability concierge. 
• Restaurants like Rocklands and Shilling Canning Company feature urban gardens and menu items like blue catfish to help remove invasive species from local waterways. 

 

Washington, DC Sustainability  

The Sustainability District builds on Washington, DC’s success in the sustainability sector. DDC’s goals align with Mayor Muriel Bowser’s forthcoming Sustainable DC 3.0 initiative, looking to make DC the “healthiest, greenest, most livable city.”  

• Washington, DC is the first LEED Platinum City in the world, housing the most LEED-certified buildings in the U.S., such as the newly named LEED Platinum Walter E. Washington Convention Center, LEED Silver Washington Nationals ballpark, and the LEED Neighborhood Development of the Wharf.  
• DC is the first city in the country to establish a Green Bank, which funds projects that expand renewable energy, reduce emissions and create green jobs. Additionally, the city has planted more than 13,470 trees as of 2021.  
• DC is the first jurisdiction in North America to launch a bike-share system and 90 percent of the Metrobus fleet consists of hybrid electric vehicles or those that use alternative fuels. 
• The Trust for Public Land released its annual ParkScore Index, which evaluated the park systems of the nation's 100 most populous cities. For the fourth consecutive year, Washington, DC is first. 

 

DDC’s sustainability mission is built on three pillars: people, purpose, and place.  

 

“Pillars reflect the social, economic and environmental factors we consider when attracting visitors and business events to the District,” said Luzzi. “‘People’ highlights DC’s culture and includes workforce development. ‘Purpose’ focuses on equitable distribution of tourism dollars, and ‘place’ addresses the role of travel in climate change and the impact on our destination.” 

 

For the fourth consecutive year, Washington, DC ranks first in the U.S. and among the top 10 in North America in the 2024 Global Destination Sustainability Index (GDS-I), which measures 77 indicators across environmental, social, supplier and DMO categories. 

 

DDC’s supplier and DMO scores improved by 120% and 31%, thanks to the Sustainability District and new Sustainability Policy. In partnership with the Department of Energy and Environment, DDC’s annual GDS-I participation highlights its leadership and transparency in sustainability efforts. 
 

The GDS-I has over 110 international members. In 2021 and 2022, DC was the only U.S. destination to participate in this program, but Tucson, Arizona and Rapid City, South Dakota joined the initiative in 2023.  
 

Additionally, DDC sustainability initiatives include the DEI Business Fellows program that was recognized with the Innovation Award by the Global Destination Sustainability-Movement (2023). The program, alongside DDC's DEI programming, leads the 100 destinations participating in the Index.  

 

About Destination DC: Destination DC, the official destination marketing organization for the nation’s capital, is a private, non-profit membership organization committed to marketing the area as a premier global convention, tourism and special events destination with a special emphasis on the arts, cultural and historic communities. 

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