Royal Caribbean Celebrates 30 Years of Sustainability Commitment

Royal Caribbean Group has reached 30 years of its Save the Waves initiative this month, as its first environmental initiative and the foundation for the cruise company’s decarbonization strategy, Destination Net Zero.

Since 1992, Save the Waves has helped the company achieve critical milestones over the past three decades, as the group became the first cruise company to be ISO 14001 for Environmental Management Certified.

30 Years of Save the Waves

Royal Caribbean Group is celebrating 30 years of its first environmental initiative, Save the Waves, during the month of November 2022. The program has assisted the company in achieving waste management and reduction over the past three decades, such as installing advanced wastewater purification systems across 88% of its fleet that treats wastewater.

Save the Waves has created several frameworks for the group that owns three successful cruise brands, Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises, and Silversea Cruises, and has assisted in training every crewmember upon joining with proper waste management protocols.

The Associate Vice President of Environmental Programs at Royal Caribbean Group, Nick Rose said, “Decades ago when we introduced Save the Waves, we made a commitment to continuous improvement that we live by today.”

“Throughout my 15-year career at Royal Caribbean Group, including four years as an Environmental Officer, I have been proud to be part of our continual progress in this area, which wouldn’t be possible without the dedication of thousands of crewmembers and millions of guests,” Rose added.

Royal Caribbean Save the Waves
Royal Caribbean Save the Waves

Since the initiative began in 1992, Royal Caribbean Group has introduced the industry’s first dedicated onboard Environmental Officers that ensure waste standards are met with daily monitoring and compliance controls.

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Over the last 30 years, Save the Waves has also helped the group to become the first cruise company to be ISO 14001 for Environmental Management Certified and install advanced wastewater purification systems across 88% of its fleet that treats wastewater to standards twice as stringent as U.S. federal regulations.

“Save the Waves has served as the strong foundation for what we have accomplished and the ambitious sustainability efforts we are committed to at Royal Caribbean Group,” stated Jason Liberty, President and CEO of Royal Caribbean Group.

“The program, for decades, has helped us create a culture dedicated to environmental performance and our commitment to protecting our oceans,” Liberty added.

This initiative has supported the group to provide 100% of its global fleet with state-of-the-art waste management facilities, systems, and processes to reroute waste streams from landfills, redirecting 87% of its waste through its “Green Hub” waste program that ensures waste is recycled, reused, or sent to a waste to energy facility.

About Save the Waves

For several decades, Royal Caribbean Group’s Save the Waves has helped the group create its Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) framework that strives to deliver great vacation experiences responsibly through its five goals of championing communities and the environment, providing unforgettable cruise experiences, fostering human rights and be an employer of choice, advancing net zero innovation, and governing responsibly.

Royal Caribbean Cruise Ship Departing Miami
Photo Credit: Mia2you / Shutterstock

Save the Waves is a program that focuses on protecting the ecology of the oceans, both in port and at sea, that assists communities in fostering culture and inclusive opportunities and protects the environment and ocean health for future generations.

Royal Caribbean Group’s commitment to sustainability can be attributed to its Save the Waves initiative, which has led the group to open its new state-of-the-art zero-energy cruise terminal in Galveston, Texas, the first LEED-certified, zero-energy facility in the world that receives 100% of the energy through onsite solar panels and aligns with its environmental goals such as its decarbonization strategy, Destination Net Zero.