Describe to us who Lucia Loposova is?
I’m originally from Slovakia. I’ve been in Asia for over 12 years, and I started GREEN Hospitality.
Why did you decide to start up GREEN Hospitality? How does your expertise fit into GREEN Hospitality?
I hold a university degree in sustainable tourism and have had the opportunity to work across various industries, including real estate, marketing, and events, in different countries.
When I came to Hong Kong in 2018, I was given the chance to lead a project called GREEN Hospitality. This role allowed me to integrate my studies in sustainability with my passion for travel and sustainable development. We held our first conference in 2019 and quickly realised that there was no platform dedicated to convening the hospitality industry in Hong Kong, which is how GREEN Hospitality was born. The industry expressed a strong desire to come together to address challenges and share knowledge. Since then, I have capitalised on my previous experiences in my day-to-day life and work at GREEN Hospitality.
What are your aspirations for GREEN Hospitality as an organisation/Where do you see GREEN Hospitality going in the future?
I hope that GREEN Hospitality can make an impact beyond Hong Kong. While we have primarily focused on Hong Kong and Macau, as that’s where we’re based, I have noticed interest from individuals in other areas of Asia who are seeking a similar platform for their communities, which is currently unavailable. I believe that GREEN Hospitality has the potential to serve as that platform, extending our reach across Asia. Our industry is inherently global and interconnected, and I am excited about the possibility of fostering collaboration and knowledge-sharing on a broader scale.
What do you do on a regular basis to contribute to a more sustainable future?
I compost my food scraps that are mostly not edible, I try to repurpose any food scraps such as potato peels into nutritious snacks, and I freeze some of my food trimmings to create vegetable stock, to name just a few things that I do to reduce my food waste, which I believe can contribute greatly to the reduction of carbon emissions and acceleration of sustainable development. Reusable water bottles, cutlery, and coffee cups are part of my daily ‘armour’. I buy most of my things secondhand, such as the majority of my furniture, kitchen appliances, and even art supplies or sports equipment. While my life is not perfect, there are many little things I am trying to do regularly to contribute to sustainability.
What are your thoughts on the role that women empowerment/gender equity plays in driving sustainability endeavours?
I am a strong believer in female leadership and have observed a growing interest among women in community and social work, particularly in areas rooted in sustainability. My opportunity to work at The University of Hong Kong has further reinforced this belief; I have noticed that the majority of students who join the Impact Lab Course and whom I have taught in social innovation and sustainability, tend to be women.
It’s inspiring to see the drive within the female population to engage in sustainable development and their willingness to put in the necessary work. I firmly believe that women should occupy leading positions in this global movement to transform how we operate businesses and govern societies, and they deserve an equitable representation in these discussions. Since almost 50% of the global population is female, I believe that at least 50% of women must be included in decision-making roles when it comes to leading sustainability movements.
What is your take on effective leadership in accelerating sustainability endeavours? What types of leaders do we need to mobilise a bigger mass to expedite sustainability initiatives?
We need leaders with integrity and transparency who understand that moving our world into a sustainable modus operandi means an entire paradigm shift. We need leaders who have a vision for the world as it could be and who will not conform to the established norms and rusty systems. We need ambition and bold goals, and we need to think much more long-term than we currently do, especially in business. We need leaders willing to take risks to challenge the status quo and leverage the fantastic innovations and scientific discoveries available to us to solve many of the sustainability issues. And finally, we need leaders in all aspects of our society - business, academia, government, nonprofit, and in our communities, be it among youth, minorities or the elderly - to work together as partners to make this transformation happen while leaving no one behind.