Four Seasons Resorts Maldives Wins 2026 HICAP Sustainable Hotel Award for Biodiversity Action & Education

Four Seasons Resorts Maldives has won the 2026 Sustainable Hotel Award for Biodiversity Action & Education from the Hotel Investment Conference Asia Pacific (HICAP). The award celebrates 25 years of marine conservation, scientific research, and youth training across its two island properties: Four Seasons Resort Maldives at Kuda Huraa and Four Seasons Resort Maldives at Landaa Giraavaru.
An expert panel chose the winners based on real-world environmental work that other hotels across Asia Pacific can follow. Four Seasons was recognised for linking long-term ocean conservation with practical learning for resort guests, local school students, and young Maldivians.
Through its Reefscapers project, which started at Kuda Huraa in 2001, the team has planted more than 9,000 coral frames. This is one of the largest artificial reef restoration projects in the Indian Ocean. Over the years, the team has used AI tools and long-term data to study how corals survive. Today, corals on older frames are reproducing naturally, helping restore damaged reefs. In 2024, when ocean waters became unusually warm, teams moved 28,000 corals into deeper, cooler waters to protect them from bleaching.
The resorts' conservation work also runs through Marine Savers, based at Marine Discovery Centres on both islands. Working alongside Reefscapers and The Manta Trust, the teams also run turtle rehabilitation centres. They have cared for over 500 sea turtles—many hurt by drifting "ghost" fishing nets—and successfully released more than 280 recovered turtles back into the wild.
Beyond ocean work, Four Seasons has invested heavily in education for local youth. Its government-accredited Apprenticeship Programme has trained 1,058 Maldivians since 2001 across 14 careers, including marine conservation. In addition, a fully funded four-year course with the Maldives National University allows students to combine university study with hands-on fieldwork at both resorts on a path toward a bachelor's degree.