The Loren Hotels is expanding its non-profit initiative tasked with “addressing the disastrous impacts of climate change” to enhance its Bermudian operation.

Roots is a climate non-profit organisation established by Stephen King, the chief executive and founder of The Loren Hotels, parent company of The Loren.

The programme, led by Leah Morrison, is dedicated to combating climate change through biodiverse reforestation and ecosystem restoration in heavily deforested areas around the world.

As Roots expands, the hotel hosted an event last week to increase awareness, partnerships and community engagement in Bermuda, with the announcement of local initiatives launching late this year and early 2026.

Ms Morrison, the managing director of the programme, said: “Roots began as a desire to give back more than what we take from the world.”

She said that it had captured three times the amount of carbon that would be produced by the hotel across a span of 30 years.

She added: “Although a huge achievement, our goals are even bigger than that.

“By 2030, we plan to reforest 7,000 acres of degraded land, planting over three million trees which will capture 1.2 million metric tonnes of carbon.

“One initiative that is making this work possible is the Loren 2 per cent for 2 degrees campaign, which invites hotel guests to contribute 2 per cent of their hotel bill to our climate work.

“The initiative has raised $1.8 million since 2022, showcasing how travel and the hospitality industry can be a catalyst for meaningful climate action.

“This initiative and our work on our first project has won awards in the travel, climate and landscape architecture spaces.”

So far, Roots has reforested 1,000 acres of wetlands in Louisiana, a global biodiversity hotspot that has suffered severely from deforestation.

Ms Morrison added: “As a result of our first project, the Louisiana black bear, which was only recently removed from the endangered species list, has been seen several times on our site, while coyotes, alligators, butterflies, wood ducks and other creatures have returned.

“Roots is not just planting trees — we’re capturing carbon and reforesting differently.

“We’re one of the first organisations implementing carbon capture in this way. Our innovative carbon accounting is blazing a new trail through the planned inclusion of radiocarbon, which will increase the accountability reliability of carbon and tree planting programmes globally.”

To achieve its goals, Roots is working with governments, academia, local foresters, biodiversity experts and members of the community.

The 2 per cent for 2 degrees campaign is launching in Bermuda and by the end of the year, The Loren and Roots will open a call for proposals for local climate projects supported through the campaign.

The Loren was one of the first hotels in Bermuda to use recycled cardboard containers and bamboo cutlery, and to eliminate single-use plastic water bottles by adding a filtration system.

Its daily operations include refillable toiletry bottles, recycling, and compost and organic farming practices.

Ali Hochberg, a sustainability consultant and responsible tourism specialist, spoke about responsible and regenerative tourism at the event held at the hotel last week.

She said: “Responsible tourism depends on a social contract, a mutual understanding between visitors and host destinations, rooted in responsibility, respect and reciprocity

“Responsible tourism is about the choices we make to create better places to live and to visit. It’s about action, not aspiration.

“When communities are meaningfully involved in the development process, including what tourism products get sold and how the profits are invested back into the economy, that’s heading towards what we call regenerative tourism.

“I’m not here to judge whether tourism is being done correctly, but I am here as a practitioner saying it can be done differently and more responsibly, in ways that better serve Bermuda’s people and protect its fragile environments.

“Do you want Bermuda to use tourism for sustainable development, or allow tourism to use Bermuda for short-term gain at the cost of its communities and environment?

“The choice is yours — the community’s — and it lies in which local and global initiatives you choose to support.”

The event also featured sustainable artist Jahbarri Wilson, who created an environmentally conscious artwork at the hotel’s farm while guests enjoyed cocktails and light bites using ingredients from the site.