Rooftop Bees
Since 2012, we’ve “checked in” and housed thousands of honeybees on our rooftop. Fairmont Copley Plaza currently hosts six hives in partnership with Best Bees, a local company with a mission to improve pollinator health and biodiversity—their data is even used by institutions such as MIT and Harvard. Our honey harvest is primarily sourced by the hotel’s restaurant, OAK Long Bar + Kitchen. Both our bar and culinary teams infuse the honey into delicacies, for example our famous Bee’s Knees cocktail and honey-infused butter and labneh.
Single-Use Plastic Free
Fairmont Copley Plaza is proud to offer guests an environment free of single-use plastics. The goal to eliminate plastic from the hotel has been years of hard work in the making, and a #1 priority for our sustainability committee to implement in all areas of our operation. Most noticeably we removed all plastic water bottles, replaced single-use mini Le Labo toiletries with large format bottles in guest room showers, debuted compostable straws in food & beverage outlets, and discarded outstanding items like plastic cups, condiments and wrapped snack foods.
Everybody Water
Fairmont Copley Plaza was the first Boston hotel to formalize a distribution partnership with Everybody Water, a locally headquartered business on the south shore of Massachusetts that is women-owned. We are delighted to serve this sustainable product in-room and at the front desk to hydrate guests. The cartons are 100% recyclable and the caps are made from sugarcane, a plant-based renewable material. Plus, Everybody Water donates 3% of their annual gross revenue to support clean water and sanitation infrastructure projects that bring running water directly into homes for the first time.
Too Good To Go
For a centurion hotel, Fairmont Copley Plaza strives to embrace technology and think innovatively to make impactful eco-friendly policies. We are a member of the Too Good To Go mobile app to sell surplus unsold and uneaten food at a discount to cut our food waste (FYI: 40% of food is wasted in the U.S.) Our teams pack leftover food from Fairmont Gold’s breakfast service and OAK Long Bar + Kitchen’s dinner service—like croissants, yogurt parfaits, roasted chicken, clam chowder, and side salads—selling meals at 1/3rd of the retail value for our community to purchase.
Low-Carbon Energy Future
Fairmont Copley Plaza actively participates in the Boston Building Reduction & Disclosure Ordinance program (BERDO) to decrease air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions generated by our building over time. In line with Accor’s commitment, we will reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. High efficiency LED lightbulbs and smart thermostats are installed in all 383 guest rooms to conserve energy resources and for ultimate comfort. The hotel’s central plant for heating, cooling and hot water production is controlled by an automation system to achieve maximum efficiency for daily operations.
Green Crabs
Did you know that green crabs are an invasive species globally, and have the potential to destroy some of the world’s most vulnerable ecosystems? Along the coast of New England, they can be found anywhere: from tide pools, to salt-marshes, to scuttling across the beach. OAK Long Bar + Kitchen works with Green Crab Org on their “problem to plate” mission that encourages green crab consumption to mitigate their invasive impact. In support, our chefs have deliberately introduced menu items using this pesky crustacean, like a Maine Lobster Pappardelle with green crab sauce.
Farmers Market
Fairmont Copley Plaza is fortunate to have Boston’s biggest farmers market outside its doors when in season. The Copley Square Farmers Market hosts dozens of Massachusetts farmers and makers that sell a vibrant array of produce, proteins, dairy and other goods. Our culinary team sources farm bounty for rotating weekly specials, including pizzas with garden-fresh toppings and a farm-to-bar program that steeps ingredients (like beets, lemon verbena and apple cider) into handcrafted cocktails. We buy direct from farm neighbors to help strengthen our community and local economy.
Food Waste Management
Newly installed: an automated Obrisk device that uses computer vision and AI to help our culinarians track and prevent food waste. How it works? A smart camera sits on top of a waste bin, connected to a scale, and we simply present food to be thrown away up to the device’s LED light. It automatically registers the waste for analysis—even up to the ingredient level—and then “feeds” us practical insights and real-time data in a personalized dashboard, helping our hotel make decisions to use resources better and be sustainable in the kitchen.