It's Time to Get Excited About Earth Day 2011

Earth Day will be celebrated on Friday, April 22 this year. I have run many news items in the past on Green Lodging News that detail Earth Day activities at inns, hotels and resorts. Enter "Earth Day" in the search box on the website and you will see what I mean. Speaking of which, how is your property planning to celebrate Earth Day this year? Given its falling on a Friday, it seems to me it would be a great opportunity to group together a series of activities. Start the weekend off with an employee volunteer activity. Clean up a local park or plant some trees. Partner with a local school to help teach kids about environmental responsibility. Invite the media, local officials and others to your property and show them what you are doing to reduce your property's environmental impact.

Follow that up with a reception and serve organic wine and local food items. Package together a special Earth Day weekend package and give your guests the opportunity to donate to a worthy cause as part of it. Some hotels have even held environmental fairs and trade shows during Earth Day—a great way to generate some new business while also helping local entrepreneurs. Extend the Earth Day weekend and make it an Earth Week. Reward guests who drive hybrids. Set up a recycling center in your parking lot. Be creative!

Get your green team together soon to brainstorm. Make sure your sales and marketing manager is present. The possibilities are endless and I want to hear about them. Properties sending me the most fun and creative suggestions for Earth Day activities will be featured in a future column posted prior to Earth Day. I can be reached at editor@greenlodgingnews.com and will look forward to hearing from you.