CARMEL, IND.—RCI, a leader in vacation exchange and part of the Wyndham Worldwide family of brands, announced that Gold Coast (Australia) visitors can simultaneously help the environment and support local charities through a new creative green initiative introduced by RCI.
The RCI program, branded Green Fingers, encourages visiting guests to deposit unwanted, non-perishable food upon departure for donation to local charities. RCI has teamed up with Gold Coast’s Mariner Shores Resort and Nepean Country Club and Day Spa to pilot this food recycling program.
The two-pronged project aims at encouraging guests to have minimal impact on the local environment while directly benefiting charities such as The Salvation Army, Second Bite, St. Vincent de Paul and Foodbank Australia.
“Our research indicates that holiday makers, particularly those staying in self-contained resorts, have a tendency to overbuy food, which leads to wastage at the end of their break,” said Gary Fog, business development manager, RCI Pacific. “Therefore, our pilot program is about working with existing industry partners highlighting our commitment to the environment and the greater community.”
Donation Bins Part of Program
Green Fingers is complete with promotional posters, an information letter about the program placed in each resort’s compendium and a number of large Green Fingers donation bins located at various collection points at the participating resorts.
“As leaders in the holiday exchange industry, RCI and its affiliate resort partners play a pivotal role in sustaining our environment,” Fog said. “This program inspires our resort guests to have a positive impact on the environment while assisting charities.”
Brent Schafer, general manager for Mariner Shores, a participating resort, has been very happy with the response so far: “Many of our guests have enjoyed being able to donate and have praised us on this initiative,” he said. “People are much more aware of their green footprint these days and they like to make an overall difference. We get all sorts of donations from packets of chips, biscuits and canned food, through to nappies and baby wipes—basically anything that is unopened and non-perishable is accepted.”
The RCI Green Fingers initiative encompasses the overall RCI Go Green program with plans to introduce the program globally. E-mail gary.fog@rci.com for more details.
