# How the Implementation of BREEAM in Hotels Could Help to Achieve the SDGs
## 4 Discussion  
The current study provides a number of interesting findings for hoteliers, design experts and academics. The influence that sustainable certificates have on climate change has been widely studied. Specifically for tourism, [PERSON] and [PERSON] investigated the CO\({}_{2}\) actions by environmentally certified tourism businesses [26]. Their research revealed that hoteliers and operators implemented actions in water, energy and waste reduction and were aware of the consequences of climate change for tourism. This study confirms the evident relationship between climate change and sustainable certificates. It also confirms our finding implying the significance of BREEAM on hotels with regard to SDG 13 [27].  
The study conducted by [PERSON] et al. evaluates three different building certification schemes, LEED, BREEAM and DGNB, and analyses their coverage of the main health and well-being aspects in buildings [28]. Their results show that issues such as comfort, light or air quality that affect the inhabitant are addressed in all of the certification assessments. These results provide evidence that BREEAM contributes to the SDG 3 [27]. Furthermore, [PERSON] revealed the importance of operational energy, water consumption and materials to ensure a high BREEAM rating [20]. These findings corroborate the direct relation of the assessment with SDG 6 to \"ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all\", SDG 7 to \"ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all\" and SDG 12 to \"ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns\" [27]. [PERSON] et al. also studied the potential contribution and benefits that green certificates might have on urban sustainability [29]. Their work demonstrates that when environmental certifications are applied to a high number of buildings in the city, it results in energy savings of 9.9 million MWh and enough water savings for a month and a half of water supply.  
SDG 15 states: \"protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss\" [27]. [PERSON] et al. [30] highlight the importance of urban planning tools to enhance sustainable use of land and propose a combination of geographical information systems with BREEAM-Communities as a valuable tool for urban planning. Their model confirmed the significance of land use and ecology to BREEAM. It also suggests an advanced tool that can help with the achievement of SDG 15. Their findings also provide evidence of the positive impact BREEAM might have on the city. Similarly, SDG 11 hopes to \"make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable\" [27]. Additionally, the study carried out by [PERSON] and [PERSON] [31] concluded that sustainable certificates can measure and guarantee sustainable development achievements in any region by adopting adequate strategies. Their findings are extremely useful for the 2030 Agenda, as they demonstrate that sustainable assessments, such as BREEAM or LEED, can be applied in any region of the world, and they can also be used by various groups if the right criteria and objectives are identified.  
Finally, [PERSON] and [PERSON] have studied the ecological, social and economic aspects that assessment methods take into account when evaluating the sustainability of a building [32]. Their research proved that BREEAM has the highest rank for the economic criterion of all the analyzed certificates, with 24.1% of the total score. This finding supports SDG 8, which promotes inclusive and sustainable economic growth [27].