Introduction
As 2025 draws to an end, we wanted to look back at our 2025 achievements. Clean the World’s Global Hospitality Recycling Program empowers hotels to divert used soap and plastic amenities from landfill, reduce carbon footprints and help vulnerable communities receive essential hygiene supplies. The past twelve months brought rapid growth, prestigious awards, high‑profile partnerships and compelling case studies. The highlights below follow the year in roughly chronological order, weaving together context and commentary to show how a single idea continues to spark global change.
2024 Sustainability Milestones Review (2 January 2025)
CLEAN THE WORLD began 2025 by looking back at its achievements in 2024. The organization added 178 000 new hotel rooms and 886 new hotel partners to its recycling program, about two hotels per day cleantheworld.org. Its portfolio now spans more than 1.4 million rooms cleantheworld.org. Participating hotels diverted 1.5 million lb (680 t) of waste from landfill, saved millions of litres of water and produced around 7 million recycled soap bars cleantheworld.org. CEO Shawn Seipler attributed this success to partner hotels and volunteers and reiterated Clean the World’s mission to deliver hygiene supplies to communities in need cleantheworld.org.
Early‑Year Momentum
Going Green Feature (22 January 2025)
Sustainability‑focused outlet Going Green profiled Clean the World’s innovation. An Instagram reel about Clean the World’s mission attracted over 1.5 million views and 46 000 comments, while a related LinkedIn post gained 3 600 likes cleantheworld.org. The feature also reminded readers that since 2009 CLEAN THE WORLD has distributed more than 100 million bars of recycled soap and kept over 13 million kg of hotel waste out of landfills cleantheworld.org.
EU CSRD Compliance Guidance (January 2025)
Anticipating new regulations, CLEAN THE WORLD published guidance on the current updates of the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD). Roughly 50 000 European companies will soon have to report non‑financial data. With large entities (more than 500 employees) having to start reporting as soon as 2025, with smaller businesses following later in the coming years cleantheworld.org. The CSRD outlines environmental, social and governance standards (ESRS E1–E5, S1–S4 and G1). Clean the World’s impact reporting, covering c02 emission savings, water savings, waste diversion savings, and resource re-use for affected communities, are a number of ways the Clean the World’s program and impact reporting system will support in-scope hotel partners meet these disclosure requirements cleantheworld.org.
Spring Achievements
Greengage Awards Shortlist (18 March 2025)
The Greengage Sustainability Awards recognised Clean the World’s efforts with 4 nominations: Best Social Enterprise, Water, Waste & Resource Project of the Year, Rising Star (Austin Eaton) and Sustainability Leader (Tommie Eaton)cleantheworld.org. The nominations signalled growing industry appreciation for Clean the World’s circular modelcleantheworld.org.
PPHE Hotel Group Partnership (25 March 2025)
PPHE Hotel Group became the latest hotel chain to embrace Clean the World’s bulk amenity recycling program. Seventeen PPHE hotels in the UK and Europe began sending used plastic toiletry bottles to CTW, where they are processed into pellets for new products. Tommie Eaton noted that the partnership allows PPHE to eliminate amenity waste without changing in‑room operations, while PPHE sustainability lead Alex Matulina emphasised that even larger dispensers can create waste and CLEAN THE WORLD offers a responsible solutioncleantheworld.org. The partnership is expected to divert around 37 tonnes of plastic from landfill each year.
Awards Season and Partner Success
Greengage Awards Victory (13 & 20 May 2025)
When the Greengage Awards were announced, CLEAN THE WORLD turned nominations into a sweep. It collected three Platinum honors—Water, Waste & Recycling Project of the Year, Best Social Enterprise and Sustainability Champion (Tommie Eaton), and a Gold award for Rising Star (Austin Eaton) cleantheworld.orgcleantheworld.org. CEO Shawn Seipler credited the team’s dedication and reinforced the idea that business success and social impact are not mutually exclusive cleantheworld.org.
Hilton Diagonal Mar Barcelona Case Study (21 May 2025)
With tourism booming in Barcelona, CLEAN THE WORLD highlighted the 433‑room Hilton Diagonal Mar Barcelona, Spain. By April 2025 the hotel had collected 265 kg of soap and 4 630 kg of plastic amenity waste, distributed 3 113 bars of soap to communities and saved 7 363 L of water cleantheworld.org. General Manager Roger Brantsma emphasised that partnerships like CLEAN THE WORLD help individual hotels advance global sustainability goals cleantheworld.org.
IMEX Frankfurt – Rebranding Sustainability (10 June 2025)
At IMEX Frankfurt, CLEAN THE WORLD ambassador Tommie Eaton, had the privilege to present on stage, and focused on the topic of “sustainability fatigue” and urged the industry to engage audiences through storytelling rather than jargon. Meaningful narratives, he argued, motivate behaviour change and embed sustainability into core business strategies cleantheworld.org. Attendee Tammy Putzer agreed, noting that stories make complex topics relatable for audiences at different levels of sustainability maturity cleantheworld.org.
Manuel Rodriguez Interview (26 June 2025)
In an interview with HMore, Clean the World’s European director Manuel Rodriguez recounted how a simple question— “what happens to discarded hotel soap?”—sparked the organization’s growth from a garage experiment to a network of thousands of hotels. He described corporate volunteer events where employees assemble hygiene kits for refugees and disaster victims, emphasising team‑building benefits. Rodriguez noted that only 2 % of European hotels currently participate in CTW, highlighting the opportunity for expansion. He also revealed that Clean the World’s logistics partner in Aalsmeer runs its fleet on HVO100 biofuel and is adding electric trucks to further reduce emissions cleantheworld.org.
Circular Economy Award Nomination (26 June 2025)
CLEAN THE WORLD made the shortlist for the Circular Economy Award at the Global Good Awards in London. The nomination recognised that CLEAN THE WORLD has diverted millions of waste items from landfill and improved public health of millions of people by turning discarded soap from hotel into new bars which are distributed to communities in need cleantheworld.org. Austin Eaton celebrated the acknowledgement from this respected awards body, which reinforced Clean the World’s leadership in circular solutions.
National Sustainability Awards Shortlist (9 July 2025)
CLEAN THE WORLD continued its awards streak, earning nominations in the Circular & Recycling Program Award and Rising Star categories at the National Sustainability Awards in the UK. Judges cited Clean the World’s diversion of over 13 million kg of hotel waste and distribution of more than 92 million soap bars cleantheworld.org.
Radisson Net‑Zero Hotel Partnership (18 July 2025)
CLEAN THE WORLD partnered with Radisson Hotel Manchester City Centre, the UK’s first verified net‑zero hotel. The property follows a 30‑year decarbonisation roadmap: measure emissions by 2025, switch to renewable electricity and offsets by 2030, deepen decarbonisation by 2035, minimise offsetting by 2040 and achieve full value‑chain net zero by 2050 cleantheworld.org. It already runs entirely on renewable electricity, eliminated fossil fuels and reduced its carbon footprint by 60 %, using Agreena carbon credits to offset the remainder cleantheworld.org. CLEAN THE WORLD manages the hotel’s amenity recycling, showing how waste reduction complements net‑zero strategies cleantheworld.org.
Hilton Munich City Case Study (24 July 2025)
Germany’s hospitality sector boasts over 12 000 hotels, and more than 496 million guest stays annually. A typical 200‑room property can generate 300 000 pieces of single‑use plastic each month cleantheworld.org. The 483‑room Hilton Munich City, an early adopter of Clean the World’s bulk amenity recycling program, collected 6 731 kg of plastic waste by July 2025—roughly the weight of five Mini Coopers cleantheworld.org. General Manager Sascha Köhler highlighted renewable electricity, carbon‑neutral meetings and other initiatives such as EV chargers, rooftop beehives and partnerships with Viva con Agua, ecoSPIRITS and BRITA cleantheworld.org. Tommie Eaton reiterated that seamlessly integrating Clean the World’s program into daily operations enables hotels to lead sustainability efforts without disruption cleantheworld.org.
Celebrating Housekeepers and Industry Engagement
Housekeeping Heroes Campaign (September & October 2025)
To recognise the unsung heroes of sustainable hospitality, CLEAN THE WORLD launched the Housekeeping Heroes campaign. A Procter & Gamble Professional study found that 78 % of guests prioritise cleanliness and that poor housekeeping would deter an equal percentage of UK travellers cleantheworld.org. Housekeeping work is demanding—nearly half of housekeepers report musculoskeletal injuries cleantheworld.org—yet these teams are essential for sorting waste, collecting used soap and plastic, and educating guests. CLEAN THE WORLD invited its 8 000 partner hotels to share stories; the submissions showed that housekeepers not only keep rooms immaculate but also serve as sustainability ambassadors.
Independent Hotel Show London (14 October 2025)
Sustainability was woven throughout the Independent Hotel Show London rather than confined to a single panel. Austin Eaton appeared on the “Profit with Purpose” stage, where panellists agreed that environmental responsibility drives guest loyalty and operational efficiency cleantheworld.org. Key takeaways included the importance of turning pledges into action, leveraging Clean the World’s services to reduce waste and collaborating across the industry to accelerate progress cleantheworld.org.
ReLondon Circular Economy Session (28 October 2025)
During Circular Economy Week, CLEAN THE WORLD joined ReLondon and Replacer to address hospitality waste. The UK hospitality sector generates nearly 3 million tonnes of solid waste every year cleantheworld.org. Austin Eaton shared Clean the World’s results—92 million soap bars distributed and 13 million kg of waste diverted from landfills—demonstrating how discarded amenities can be transformed into hygiene kits while providing team‑building opportunities for corporate partners cleantheworld.org.
Late‑Year Reflections
The Ripple Effect Podcast (14 November 2025)
Comedian Jenna Kim Jones launched her podcast The Ripple Effect and invited CLEAN THE WORLD founder Shawn Seipler as her first guest. Seipler recalled how asking a hotel receptionist about discarded soap sparked a global movement that has now recycled millions of pounds of soap, assembled hygiene kits and improved health outcomes in 127 countries cleantheworld.org. The conversation highlighted the importance of teamwork and partnerships in scaling a zero‑waste idea cleantheworld.org.
A Virtuous Cycle (17 November 2025)
The A Virtuous Cycle blog revisited Seipler’s entrepreneurial journey. As a travelling salesman he noticed new soap bars placed in his hotel room each day; when he learned they were being discarded, he set out to change that cleantheworld.org. The story underscores how curiosity can lead to innovation and global impact.
HOSPACE 2025 (19 November 2025)
At HOSPACE 2025 in London, CLEAN THE WORLD shared insights from the hospitality technology and finance conference. Artificial intelligence dominated the conversation, but speakers cautioned that AI tools must fit existing systems and be integrated thoughtfully cleantheworld.org. Sustainability emerged as a recurring topic: 88 % of travellers now factor sustainability into booking decisions, yet 58.7 % believe hotels do little to recycle toiletries and 57 % take unused amenities home due to mistrust cleantheworld.org. The article noted that refillable dispensers still rely on large plastic containers, which can create hidden waste if not managed properly cleantheworld.org. Clean the World’s program addresses this by recycling both soap and bulk amenity containers cleantheworld.org. The conclusion urged hotels to embed sustainability into core operations, noting that doing so reduces costs, ensures regulatory compliance and strengthens guest loyalty cleantheworld.org.
Housekeeping Today UK Feature
The November/December 2025 issue of Housekeeping Today UK featured an article by Shawn Seipler entitled “Housekeepers: Unsung Sustainability Heroes.” It highlighted how housekeepers sort waste, recycle soap and amenity bottles, and conserve water and energy. A 200‑room hotel can generate almost 300 000 plastic items per month, making housekeeping teams indispensable to waste reduction efforts. The feature reminded readers that CLEAN THE WORLD partners with over 8 000 hotels and has distributed 92 million soap bars across 127 countries, diverting millions of kilograms of plastic from landfill. Housekeepers reported feeling proud to turn waste into hygiene supplies for communities.
Additional Case Studies and Partner Perspectives to Acknowledge
iQ Hotel Milano (case study)
iQ Hotel Milano, a 69‑room smart hotel near Milano Centrale, joined Clean the World’s program in November 2019. Milan welcomed about 9 million visitors in 2024, and a 200‑room hotel can produce 300 000 plastic items annually. By 2025 the hotel had collected 679 kg of soap and 1 839 kg of plastic amenity waste, distributed 13 689 recycled soap bars, saved 18 866 L of water and avoided 927 kg of CO₂ emissions. The program helped the hotel align with the EU’s forthcoming Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation, which will ban single‑use plastics and require all packaging to be recyclable or reusable by 2030.
Fairmont Le Manoir Richelieu (case study)
Canada’s tourism sector generated C$59 billion between May and August 2025, with Quebec welcoming over 4 million visitors annually. Fairmont Le Manoir Richelieu, a grand resort overlooking the St. Lawrence River, joined Clean the World’s full‑bulk recycling program in March 2024. A CLEAN THE WORLD survey revealed that 88 % of travellers consider sustainability when booking, 58.7 % believe hotels do not recycle toiletries and 51 % take leftover amenities home. Since partnering with CLEAN THE WORLD the hotel has diverted 1 757 kg of waste, collected 502 kg of soap, distributed 10 111 bars, saved 3 683 gal of water and prevented 605 kg CO₂e emissions. General Manager Emmanuel Perot said the program aligns with the hotel’s core values and extends its impact beyond the property.
Conclusion
Clean the World’s 2025 highlights illustrate how one organization can accelerate the circular economy across hospitality. From record‑setting growth and major awards to groundbreaking partnerships and thought‑leadership, CLEAN THE WORLD showed that sustainability and profitability go hand‑in‑hand.
Travelers increasingly expect hotels to act responsibly, and regulations like the EU CSRD and the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation make transparency mandatory. Clean the World’s Global Hospitality Recycling Program offers hotels a practical way to divert waste, measure impact and tell meaningful stories, transforming discarded soap into a ripple of global good.
