Green Lodging News has posted numerous articles highlighting the degree of consumer interest in sustainable travel. New research from Phocuswright shows those consumers are not walking their talk. According to Phocuswright’s travel research report Sustainability Dissonance: What Travelers Say vs. What They Do (and What to Do About It), travelers often have good intentions, but they lack an understanding of how to travel sustainably, and sustainability considerations rarely impact their trip decisions. Knowledge of travelers’ awareness of the issues, motivations to travel sustainably, travel behaviors and how much responsibility they are willing to take for the health of the destinations they...

Expect Green Key Global’s just announced partnership with BWH Hotels to be one of at least several with the hotel certifier in the months ahead thanks to the September news that the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) and the Hotel Association of Canada (HAC) have signed a Letter of Intent to form a joint venture company that will own and operate the Green Key Global certification program in the United States and Canada. My take is that AHLA and HAC would not have pursued the joint venture without the support of at least some of the major brands. Green Key...

Do you vet the natural attractions you send your guests to? Not long after I moved to Florida my family visited a local animal “sanctuary”. I was quite surprised by the living conditions the animals had to endure—especially the very small areas they had to run around in. I remember they allowed folks to take pictures or selfies with some of the animals. The facility was later shut down. According to World Animal Protection, it is long past time to end all attractions that force animals to suffer by allowing them to be ridden, touched, or posed for selfies. “The...

This month is a special one for Davidson Hospitality Group. As part of “Davidson Day of Service,” each participating property has developed a thoughtful, meaningful engagement to make a positive impact on its community. A total of 83 individual hotels and resorts within the portfolio are participating. Activities range from supporting food banks and assisting homeless shelters to contributing goods and equipment to local schools to trail clean-ups. “Leading with heart and giving back are both intrinsic to Davidson culture and ladder up to two of my favorite company core values: ‘Be passionate about what you do; serve others with love’...

With its LEED Green Building Program, the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has certainly changed the way developers and architects approach hotel design and operations. Walking its talk, USGBC has made its new headquarters in Washington, D.C. a standing example of what to strive for. In fact, USGBC just announced that its headquarters has been awarded a prestigious triple Platinum certification in LEED, TRUE, and WELL. This trio of certifications reflects USGBC’s commitment to healthy, productive, sustainable, and responsible work environments. The headquarters, which also houses Green Business Certification, Inc. (GBCI), reflects the changing office landscape, with a clear emphasis on decarbonization, indoor environmental...

Boutique Design New York BDNY is less than two weeks away. It will be held November 12 to 13 at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. The list of hundreds of exhibitors can be accessed by clicking here. Expect to find many products with a sustainability story. For example, this week I heard from Greenington, maker of fine bamboo furniture, and the sustainable, artisan-made kitchen & bath brand Native Trails. BDNY will also feature a slate of conference sessions focused on some aspect of green design. Those sessions include: Sunday, November 12 Making of a Designed Space: Designed by Nature NEWH Green...

How do Americans currently feel about tipping at hotels? A new survey by Forbes Advisor revealed that 22 percent of Americans do not think they should have to tip hotel employees. That is just one of the findings about tipping from the survey of 2,000 Americans by market research company OnePoll. Some additional findings: Sit-down restaurants is where people tip the most (58 percent). For hotel services: 24 percent. A vast majority of respondents (64 percent) reported leaving a tip at least 11 percent higher when they tip digitally compared with tipping in cash. It’s possible that buyers don’t feel the...

While high levels of tourism are welcomed by governing bodies of most nations due to the revenue it generates, local residents in tourist hotspots aren't so thrilled to have millions of globetrotters on their doorstep. In fact, some countries have had just enough that fines, taxes and bans have been put in place in a bid to discourage visitors. In a new study by MoneyTransfers.com, the most visited cities and countries in the world were compared with the resident population in each to find out where in the world residents are most outnumbered by tourists. The Most Over-Touristed Cities in the U.S. The United States boasts...

Is there a connection between ESG commitment and financial performance? A new study by Kroll, a leading independent provider of global risk and financial advisory solutions, says yes. The ESG and Global Investor Returns Study analyzed data on over 13,000 companies across a variety of industries around the globe and found that companies with better ESG ratings outperformed their peers with lower ratings. “The future of ESG and sustainability investing will depend on investor confidence in the reliability of ESG ratings and ESG disclosures, and their relevance as an indicator of public company performance,” says Carla Nunes, Managing Director and Global Leader of the Valuation...

It is not something that is common where I live in Florida but yesterday there was an air quality alert due to a cloud of Canadian wildfire smoke that drifted down my way. The smoke originated in British Columbia and Alberta. It traveled thousands of miles to Eastern Canada by circulating winds and then was dragged southward by the remnants of Ophelia, as the storm petered out in the Atlantic Ocean. Wildfire smoke is just one of many environmental factors that impact outdoor air quality, and indoor air quality (IAQ) as well. IAQ was on my mind recently when the Asthma...