Sustainability in the Maldives – seeking purpose beyond profit

Attributed to: Sonu Shivdasani, CEO and Co-founder of Soneva

I first visited the Maldives with my wife Eva in 1987 and fell in love with the place. I had never seen anything quite like it. Eva, who had been coming to the Maldives for modelling shoots since the late 1980s, loved the untouched, simple way of life.

We decided we wanted to open a resort like no other, whilst ensuring we protect the environment. We believe that a company must have a clear purpose beyond turning a profit. It must serve and contribute to the society in which it operates and should not negatively impact the environment in which it is located.

We bought an abandoned resort on the far-flung 100-acre island of Kunfunadhoo in the Baa Atoll and set about creating our dream. After considerable effort and some good luck, our first resort, Soneva Fushi, opened in 1995 – we were the first luxury resort in the Maldives.

Both Eva and I consider ourselves guardians, not owners, of these precious environments that we are privileged to look after during our lifetimes.  We have pledged to protect the biodiversity and habitats on and around our resorts. To do so, we have always used nature as an inspiration for our innovation.

Since the beginning, sustainability has been at the heart of Soneva’s ethos, from sourcing sustainable materials and pioneering ‘waste-to-wealth’ practices, to working in partnership with our local communities. We have endeavoured to be a pioneer in the hospitality industry and are very proud to have been 100% carbon neutral since 2012. We still continually strive to pioneer initiatives that protect our natural environment and precious resources. We believe that one can make small changes to the way we do business that does not affect our profitability, but which raises considerable capital to support people well beyond our shores.

One example from recent years is Makers’ Place at Soneva Fushi. Launched in the summer of 2021, this fully carbon-neutral recycling studio transforms waste into works of art. It tackles discarded aluminium and plastics from the soft drinks industry, which sadly often wash up on the Maldives’ shores. Within its first three days of operation, the studio processed 15,000 aluminium cans alone, creating a better end life for these once-discarded, unwanted materials, and removing them from the fragile ecosystem.

Another recent example is our solar power developments at Soneva Fushi and Soneva Jani which are based on USD 10 million in funding provided by German-headquartered Aareal Bank and will boost the electricity generated from renewable energy to over 50% at both resorts.

I am committed to leading the fight against climate change within the hospitality sector. I set up the Soneva Foundation with Eva to support the environmental initiatives of Soneva and to influence on a global scale. We focus on the development of environmental projects that reduce carbon emissions at the same time as addressing deeper social and environmental challenges. The Soneva Foundation uses impact investment principles, seeking to recover outlays through carbon finance and social enterprise, which is, in turn, fed back into the project to help extend the reach and benefit to more families.

Soneva Namoona, which we launched in 2019, aims to solve a problem that has bedevilled the Maldives for a generation: how to properly dispose of waste. Presently, island communities burn their garbage in toxic, open bonfires; meanwhile, significant amounts of waste, especially single-use plastics, wash up on the beaches, litter the jungle, and smother the coral reefs. The word Namoona was a suggestion from the Dharavandhoo Council President and is a Divehi word that means exemplary or something ideal. Soneva Namoona is an initiative founded by Soneva, Maalhos Island Council, Dharavandhoo Island Council and Kihaadhoo Island Council. Our ambition is to create a blueprint for empowered zero-waste communities in the Maldives, centred around the three core components of Reduce, Recycle and Inspire, and grounded in the reality of the challenges and opportunities that are unique to local islands.

When we define ‘luxury’, Eva and I believe that true luxury is about time well spent, so we strive to make every moment memorable for our guests without losing sight of our intention to contribute to communities near and far and protect our precious planet. Luxury is something that is rare or uncommon for the consumer. It is something novel and authentic, that strikes a chord in one’s heart when it is experienced.

The last 30 to 40 years have seen a major shift in the demographics of the wealthy. They live in cities, where pollution is present in all its forms: unclean environments, noise and light. They are not as in touch with nature, they hardly have time to sit down and take a breathe, let alone spend large amounts of quality time with their family and friends.

With this in mind, the experience we have created for our guests is as far removed from an urban scenario as possible, letting them indulge in things they rarely get to do in their daily lives.

When our guests arrive, the first thing we do is ask if they would like to take off their shoes. Our ‘No News, No Shoes’ mantra helps ground our guests and lets them feel the sand between their toes. With our food and beverage offerings, we do our best to source as locally as possible, be that from our organic gardens, from the plentiful seas that surround our islands, or sourced from nearby islands and countries. Some of my favourite signature Soneva features of our resorts are the outdoor cinemas, our observatories, and the large outdoor bathrooms. We believe these are true luxuries; watching a film under the star-lit sky, exploring the wonders of space and bathing whilst surrounded by nature.