Home Green Design NEWH Sustainability Leadership Forum Identified Top Green Design Trends

NEWH Sustainability Leadership Forum Identified Top Green Design Trends

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NEW YORK—The Network of Executive Women in Hospitality, Inc. (NEWH), a nonprofit network providing scholarships, education, and leadership opportunities for individuals in the hospitality industry, recently gathered leaders from across the hospitality industry to discuss and debate the top trends in green and sustainable design in its second leadership forum. The Sustainable Hospitality Leadership Forum was designed to spark creative ideas and strategies for how hospitality and design experts can incorporate environmentally-sensitive practices, while maintaining a luxury experience for guests.

Moderated by Jeanne Varney, vice president, Host Hotels and Resorts, forum participants included some of the hospitality industry’s biggest names— Marriott International, Starwood Hotels and Resorts, and the U.S. Green Building Council—that identified several emerging trends in sustainable hospitality. The sustainable hospitality trends identified as the industry’s most pertinent issues included the following:

• Small steps make a big difference. As many of the industry’s major players focus on ways to incorporate green practices in their building and design plans, small changes were noted to be as important as large-scale improvements. For example, sourcing environmentally-responsible fabrics for carpeting, identifying energy-efficient lighting options, and utilizing responsibly-sourced wood for flooring were all discussed as often-overlooked practices that actually have a significant positive environmental impact when implemented.

• It’s never too late to “Go Green.”: Hospitality “greening” can be incorporated in newly-built properties, as well as existing properties. Small changes, such as those noted above, can be implemented in existing properties to contribute to positive environmental impact.

• Build sustainability from within the organization.: Another major trend revealed at the forum included the creation of sustainable hospitality departments at both large and small firms. As environmentally-responsible practices take hold of the industry, more and more organizations are creating task forces, teams, or entire departments dedicated to auditing the “sustainability” of a property. From there, recommendations are made on ways to improve and strengthen the property’s focus on the use of environmentally-responsible materials and sustainable design. Metrics, included those suggested by the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED program, are also used to measure the effectiveness of an organization’s green initiatives.

“Through the Sustainable Hospitality Leadership forum, our participants were able to tackle one of the most challenging issues facing hospitality leaders today—how to create a luxury experience for our guests in a responsible and sustainable way,” explained Anita Degen, president of NEWH.

In addition to identifying major trends, other topics discussed during the forum included the basics and importance of green design, LEED principles, as well as obstacles that builders and designers face when incorporating green practices into projects.

Cliff Tuttle, ASID, LEED AP, director of NEWH Sustainable Hospitality, and one of the forum’s organizers, was tapped to help shape the day’s discussion. “Through our discussion we came away with innovative new ideas on how the emerging trends in sustainable building and design will help shape our guests’ experiences in the future,” Tuttle says.

Go to NEWH.

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