The Ethisphere Institute has just released its list of the 2019 World’s Most Ethical Companies. This year marks the 13th year for the list. The 128 honorees span 21 countries and 50 industries and includes 16 first-time honorees and eight companies that have been named to the list every year since 2007. Only two hotel companies made this year’s list: Hilton and Wyndham Hotels & Resorts. To determine its list, the Ethisphere Institute evaluated a company’s Ethics and Compliance Program, Culture of Ethics, Corporate Citizenship and Responsibility, Governance, and Leadership and Reputation. Each category is evaluated through a combination...

Almost a year ago, Green Lodging News published a blog post detailing the efforts of several companies in Hawaii to urge guests to use reef-safe sunscreens. A recent study by Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU) strengthens the case for using these types of sunscreens. The study detected an extensive amount of sunscreen chemicals in seawater that could pose a risk to human health. The study found the chemicals can cause abnormalities in and kill the offspring of zebrafish by entering the food chain. As the genetic structure of zebrafish resembles that of humans, the results imply that these contaminants...

As reported today on Green Lodging News, Greenview has just released its Green Lodging Trends Report 2018. The Report highlights and summarizes responses to 115 survey questions in these categories: Energy Management, Waste Management, Water Conservation, Health & Wellness, Back of House, Communications, Staff Involvement, Community Involvement, and Climate Action & Certification. I highly recommend reading through the report. There is a wealth of information in it and I will be writing about it again in my upcoming Publisher’s Point of View column. The Trends Report is by far the leading global lodging report on sustainability. One of the strengths...

Two Earth holidays are coming up soon. First, Earth Hour is planned for Saturday, March 30 at 8:30 p.m. local time. Second, Earth Day will be held on Monday, April 22. What is your property or company planning for these two occasions? They are perfect opportunities to showcase your sustainability initiatives and to volunteer to help a local school or other organization. You may even want to have an Earth festival, as some properties have done in the past. Or, extend the celebration over a week’s time. Earth Hour is more conducive to a turning out the lights, lighting...

Microplastics, commonly found in our oceans, are less than 5 millimeters in length and are a hazard to marine life. Microplastics (and microbeads) have gotten a lot of publicity in recent years but did you know that microsynthetic fibers can be hazardous as well? Microsynthetic fibers are small plastic particles within the category of microplastics that are fibrous in shape. If your laundry is used to wash anything made from synthetic fibers like polyester, you are releasing microfibers down the drain—fibers that can make their way past treatment plants and into the water that animal and sea life consume. If...

Fortune just released the its annual “World’s Most Admired Companies” list. Six companies were listed in the “Hotels, Casinos, and Resorts” category. Topping the list in that category is Marriott International, followed by Hilton Worldwide Holdings, Hyatt Hotels, Las Vegas Sands, MGM Resorts International and Wynn Resorts. As of this morning, three companies had issued press releases about their achievements: Las Vegas Sands, MGM Resorts International and Wynn Resorts. To develop the “World’s Most Admired Companies” list, Fortune collaborated with partner Korn Ferry Hay Group on the survey of corporate reputation. They began with 1,500 candidates, which included the 1,000...

As I am writing this, the U.S. federal government is in its 26th day of shutdown—the longest on record in U.S. history. If you have been following the news, you know that personnel essential to the smooth flow of tourists to and within the U.S. have been impacted greatly. Last week, Brian Crawford, AHLA Executive Vice President of Government Affairs, urged the Congress and the Administration to re-open the federal government and move forward on important issues of the day. The shutdown is of course not good for anyone in our industry. I visited the EPA ENERGY STAR website this...

As posted on Green Lodging News earlier this week, Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc., the nation’s largest lodging real estate investment trust, released a Corporate Responsibility (CR) Highlights report for the very first time. The 2018 report provides a summary of results and progress over the last reporting year along with future commitments. I read through the report and this is what I found most compelling: Host achieved 2020 environmental targets three years ahead of schedule, including a greenhouse gas target verified by the Science Based Targets initiative. Host says it is the first hospitality company to have its...

A day after Congress passed the Frederick Douglass Trafficking Victims Prevention and Protection Reauthorization Act of 2017, (see article—The new U.S. anti-trafficking law, passed in Congress on December 17, says when federal employees travel they should choose travel and hospitality companies that follow the six points of the ECPAT Code of Conduct), Polaris reported that the number of cases of human trafficking reported to the National Human Trafficking Hotline are projected to jump at least 25 percent in 2018 compared to 2017. This is based on early numbers released by Polaris, which has been operating the National Hotline for...

To determine its 2019 Just 100 list, Forbes partnered with Just Capital, which asked 81,000 Americans about what they most want to see from the nation’s biggest businesses. The most popular answers? Pay workers fairly; treat customers well and protect their privacy; produce quality products; minimize their environmental impact; give back to the communities they operate in; commit to ethical and diverse leadership; and create abundant job opportunities. With those seven priorities in mind, Forbes ranked 890 of America’s largest publicly-traded companies to determine which are the best corporate actors. The result of this data-crunching: the 2019 Just 100. These...