Regenerative Hospitality Canva: A Transformative Playbook

The hospitality industry stands at a crossroads between a series of choices that will shape its future. Traditionally, sustainability efforts have centred on minimising environmental impact. However, an innovative approach is required for hotels to become agents of positive change. This extends from the improvement and restoration of destinations to the protection of their natural and social ecosystems. Regenerative Hospitality represents a fundamental shift in mindsets. Instead of simply reducing harm, forward-thinking hospitality businesses are now creating net-positive impacts, leaving places better than they found them. This isn't just environmental stewardship; it's a complete reimagining of business purpose within the interconnected living systems.

Thanks to a series of research projects, we designed a comprehensive and structured methodology to support the transition of hospitality businesses to regeneration by designing net-positive initiatives. The ultimate goal is to arrive at a better understanding of our interconnected living systems.

Purpose and Vision of the Playbook

In today's travel industry, Regenerative Hospitality is an emerging paradigm shift that goes beyond traditional sustainability to actively improve and enhance places and communities at the destination level rather than merely reducing harm to them. Regenerative hospitality sees accommodation businesses as agents of change at the destination level (Inversini, 2024)¹ . In this vision, hospitality organizations can become the cornerstone of a revolution that nurtures an understanding of interconnected living systems through net-positive actions.

Regeneration in hospitality capitalises on the understanding that we and our businesses are not just extractive by design, but we co-exist with an intricated and interconnected set of living systems. Therefore, just as we can take from them, we can also give back.

On May 13, 2025, Prof. Alessandro Inversini hosted a webinar as part of Hospitality Booster, an initiative created by Hotelleriesuisse, EHL and Hotelfachschule Thun to promote new ideas in hospitality, during which the topic of regenerative hospitality was discussed. The webinar provided participants with a comprehensive understanding of Regenerative Hospitality and the ideologies that embody the concept.

Click here to watch and understand the core principles of Regenerative Hospitality.

Core Principles of Regenerative Hospitality

At the core of regenerative hospitality lies the concept of ‘net-positive’: while ‘net zero’ focuses on balancing emissions and minimizing harm essentially towards nature, which is one of the founding principles of sustainability, net positive goes beyond neutrality by contributing more to the environment and society than is taken, aiming to leave places better than they were found.

Additionally, regenerative hospitality promotes these five principles:

• Mindset Shift is a personal recognition/awakening to a new world. Hospitality managers recognize that they are part of an interconnected living system and will therefore design and operate their organizations differently.
  
  
• Net-positive by Design: Regenerative hospitality transcends traditional sustainability approaches. Rather than simply minimizing harm through net-zero initiatives, it actively restores and enhances the living systems that support our world, addressing the root causes of interconnected global challenges.
  
  
• Living Systems Thinking is the consequence of the mindset shift. It entails the recognition of the interdependence of the reality around us and the central role of human beings in it. Everything around us can be understood as a living system and it is possible to interact with it to generate value. This is easily understandable with the natural ecosystem; however, the social and relational ones are also considered living systems. 
  
  
• Inclusivity is the understanding that regenerative hospitality departs from the place where a business operates. It leverages what we call “The spirit of the place” and the communities therein. Without a clear, inclusive engagement and co-creation with the indigenous community, there is no regeneration. Everything departs from there.
  
  
• Authenticity is the core of regenerative hospitality, what the guest will see, perceive and retain. Authentic experiences stem from a deep engagement with the natural and the social ecosystems. This creates experiences that are meaningful, place-based and, in time, transformative for guests.
  
  
• Shared Value is the outcome of regenerative hospitality. Hotels and all hospitality organizations should see themselves as part of these interconnected living systems. Success must be redefined to include ecological and social well-being in addition to financial viability.

Let’s be clear: Regenerative Hospitality is not a nice-to-have item or one-off publicity campaign. It is a viable business orientation. Regenerative hospitality leaders run healthy and stable businesses by prioritising the principles of interconnected living systems and by respecting both their natural and social ecosystems. They proactively communicate this commitment to current and prospective guests.

What is the Regenerative Hospitality Playbook?

Some of the hoteliers we have been speaking to in the last few years were genuinely curious about the Regenerative Hospitality concept but struggled to adopt this mindset. Therefore, we created the Regenerative Hospitality Playbook, a collaborative Canva-based approach to harness the potential of Regenerative Hospitality.

The Regenerative Hospitality Playbook²  is a comprehensive guide designed to help hospitality professionals, especially hotel managers and their teams, transition from traditional sustainability practices to a regenerative model. Unlike sustainability, which often focuses on minimizing harm (net-zero), regenerative hospitality aims to create a net-positive impact on both the natural and social ecosystems. This step-by-step playbook was created to help hoteliers understand and apply regenerative hospitality in practice.

The playbook is both aspirational and practical, as it provides a structured framework and tools to help hospitality businesses:

• Reimagine their role within their ecosystems.
• Align their operations with regenerative principles.
• Foster meaningful relationships with guests, communities and the environment.

It is intended for hoteliers who are ready to challenge the status quo and embrace a deeper, more systemic responsibility in their business practices.

Tools and Applications of The Regenerative Canva

The Regenerative Canva, a collaborative tool designed to guide hospitality teams through a three-step process, forms the backbone of the playbook.

Step 1: Observe

• Take a snapshot of the current business model.
• Identify existing sustainability initiatives.
• Reflect on whether these initiatives are net-zero or net-positive.

Step 2: Reflect & Plan

• Use the concepts of Place Intelligence (natural and social ecosystems) and People Intelligence (staff-guest relationships) to assess the business’s role in its environment.
• Map stakeholders and identify opportunities for regenerative action.

Step 3: Act

• Prioritize initiatives based on impact, cost and feasibility.
• Develop a regenerative commitment that aligns with the business’s mission and vision.
• Use an impact-cost matrix to guide decision-making.

The Regenerative Hospitality Canva has been released in Creative Commons Share Alike licence to facilitate uptake. It is meant to be printed and displayed in shared spaces to encourage team engagement and continuous reflection. It is de facto a compass for regenerative businesses. 

Why Focus on Regenerative Hospitality?

At EHL, we recognise our position as one of the leading hospitality business schools in the world. Numerous hoteliers seek our expertise to enhance customer service and foster a spirit of collaboration within their communities. Based on our research and experience, Regenerative Hospitality strives to rebuild the connections and interconnectedness that were damaged by Covid-19 while enabling hoteliers to fortify their business models for the long run.

Conclusion: A Living Document for Transformation

The Regenerative Hospitality Playbook provides an inspiring vision for hotels and resorts to actively contribute to the world around them and make it better. It shifts the role of hospitality from simply delivering services to guests to nurturing the natural and social fabric of the destinations in which they operate.

We designed the playbook not as a static manual, but as a living document that evolves with the business and its ecosystem. It encourages continuous learning, reflection and adaptation. Our regenerative Hospitality Canva encourages repeated use to help align initiatives with desired outcomes. Our experience with hospitality teams has shown that there is no one-size-fits-all solution. Indeed, each workshop participant created initiatives tailored to their business environment and resources. As such, replicating another hotel’s initiatives may not yield identical results. The Regenerative Hospitality Canva will help your organization understand the concept and generate suitable initiatives. If you have questions about interpreting your ecosystem results, consult research experts or the playbook authors.

By embracing regenerative hospitality, businesses can become agents of positive change, thereby restoring ecosystems, enriching communities and offering transformative guest experiences. The principles and guidelines outlined in our playbook enable hospitality businesses to engage responsibly with their environment and community, fostering a resilient enterprise that addresses the challenges of restoring, enhancing, and regenerating its ecosystem. By adhering to these standards, businesses are positioned to achieve sustainable growth and adapt effectively to an evolving landscape.

Reference

[1] Inversini, A. (2024). Regenerative Hospitality what it is what it is not what it might be. Hotel Yearbook. https://www.hotelyearbook.com/article/122000314/regenerative-hospitality-what-it-is-what-it-is-not-what-it-might-be.htm

[2] Inversini, A., Sone, R., Schegg, R., & Keller, A. (2025). Regenerative Hospitality Canva - A Playbook to Navigate Regenerative Transformation for Hospitality Businesses (Edition 1.1. 2025). Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17021323

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