A number of companies in our industry issued press releases this past week highlighting their being recognized by the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) as one of the “Best Places to Work for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Equality.” Each company touted the fact that it had earned a perfect score of 100 on the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index (CEI). I saw releases from Wyndham Worldwide, IHG, Hilton, Caesars Entertainment, Marriott, Wynn Las Vegas and Encore, and Expedia. Other companies may have issued press releases that I just did not see. How does a company earn a...

Several years ago I wrote about the efforts of an 11-year-old boy to eliminate the use of plastic straws in restaurants. One of his goals was to make the giving of straws an “upon request” deal rather than an automatic reflex. We all know the majority of straws end up in the landfill—somewhere in the neighborhood of 500 million a day. According to Sarah Kollar, Project and Outreach Specialist for Ocean Conservancy in Washington, D.C., “Straws are one of the top ten items collected during cleanups thanks to the volunteers who collect data during the annual International Coastal Cleanup.”...

In last week’s Publisher’s Point of View column I summarized the results of the 2016 Lodging Survey—a production of the American Hotel & Lodging Assn. and STR. The survey was funded by the American Hotel & Lodging Educational Foundation. Unique to the survey is how it breaks out its results—by chain scale, location, price segment and room range. I have read through the results of the past several surveys and have always been intrigued by the fact that economy types of properties seem to struggle a bit or lag behind when it comes to sustainability initiatives. Is it all...

As the only nationally-recognized day dedicated to promoting and celebrating recycling in the United States, America Recycles Day (ARD), which is an initiative of Keep America Beautiful, helps communities spotlight recycling on a local level by educating community members on how and what to recycle. But what makes this year different? In 2016, Keep America Beautiful is encouraging everyone  to #BeRecycled in every aspect of their lives. Specifically, we are inviting you to take the #BeRecycled pledge. Available online at http://AmericaRecyclesDay.org, the #BeRecycled Pledge is a promise to actively choose to live a recycled lifestyle by committing to “Reduce. Reuse. Recycle.”...

The American Hotel & Lodging Association just launched its new website at www.ahla.com. The site looks great. When I learned about the site’s relaunch, I was curious to know where on the site I might find something to do with sustainability. As it turns out, finding that information on the site is not so easy. First, there is no link to anything green from the home page. If you go to the menu in the upper right and click there, you get taken to a page where there is also no obvious sustainability related link. I took a chance...

I will be moderating a panel discussion at HX: The Hotel Experience on Sunday, November 13 from 11:45 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. that is entitled, “Greenwashing or Nothing But the Truth—The Untold Story of the Greening of Amenities.” I am excited about the session because I have a great group of panelists: Ian Wallace, President of Dispenser Amenities; Guido Bonadonna, CEO, GFL SA; and Ray Burger, President, Pineapple Hospitality. Interestingly, I had a number of suppliers who will be exhibiting at HX decline participation. Maybe it was the “greenwashing” part of my session title that scared them away? I...

If you have not yet figured out a way to appeal to the growing global wellness movement, you had better start. It could mean a big boost to your business. A couple of days ago, the Global Wellness Institute (GWI) released research showing that the global wellness industry recently grew 10.6 percent, from a $3.36 trillion market in 2013 to $3.72 trillion in 2015. One of the 10 wellness markets analyzed was Wellness Tourism. It was the fourth fastest growing wellness market and grew 14 percent from 2013 to 2015. Other wellness markets include Preventative/Personalized Medicine & Public Health,...

Today’s announcement by TripAdvisor that it will change its policy on selling tickets to animal attractions is just one in a series of steps the world’s largest travel site has made to positively impact travel industry purchasing practices. In its announcement, TripAdvisor said it and its Viator brand will discontinue selling tickets for specific tourism experiences where travelers come into physical contact with captive wild animals or endangered species, including but not limited to elephant rides, petting tigers, and swim with dolphin attractions. While some attractions will cease booking through TripAdvisor immediately, the company plans to have policy changes...

The National Restaurant Assn. (NRA) has 11 Executive Study Groups. One is focused on Supply Chain Management. Another’s focus is nutrition. The Sustainability Executive Study Group will be meeting at the NRA’s Washington, D.C. office from October 18 to 19. The fee is $299 for NRA members and $499 for non-members. The meeting will kick off with a reception on the 18th. On the 19th, Arlin Wasserman, Founder and Partner, Changing Tastes, will speak on Trends in Food and Restaurant Sustainability. In a session entitled, “How Energy and Water are Shaping the Environmental Landscape,” Richard Young, Director of Education,...

In my publisher’s column last week I wrote about San Francisco’s steps to require owners of new buildings 10 stories or less to put in solar panels and/or green roofing atop the new buildings. Since writing that column, I came across an example of one property in Thailand that has gone way beyond solar and/or green roofing atop its resort. According to Greenroofs.com, the Anantara Riverside Bangkok Resort has a 2,800 square-meter rooftop hydroponic farm on its roof. The farm is on the third floor overlooking the Chao Phraya River. The resort partnered with Bangsai Agricultural Centre to offer...