PARIS—Accor announced that it is a signatory of the Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs). This program, an initiative of UN Women and the United Nations Global Compact, defines seven principles that foster the empowerment of women in the workplace, the marketplace and the community. •    Principle 1: Establish high-level corporate leadership for gender equality.•    Principle 2: Treat all women and men fairly at work—respect and support human rights and non-discrimination.•    Principle 3: Ensure the health, safety and well-being of all women and men workers.•    Principle 4: Promote education, training and professional development for women.•    Principle 5: Implement enterprise development, supply chain...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that Energy Star certified clothes dryers are now available nationwide through major retailers. At least 45 models of dryers earning the Energy Star label, including Whirlpool, Maytag, Kenmore, LG, and Safemate, are at least 20 percent more efficient and now available at prices comparable to standard dryers.“Dryers are one of the most common household appliances and the biggest energy users,” said U.S. EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy. “EPA’s Energy Star certified clothes dryers offer Americans an opportunity to save energy and do their part to combat climate change. By working with industry,...

SALT LAKE CITY—Textile Exchange (TE) announced the addition of Adidas, Black Diamond, Kathmandu (NZ), NAU, and Timberland to a growing roster of global brands committed to its Responsible Down Standard (RDS). On January 19 the organization also celebrated the release of RDS v2 for public comment.Officially launched in January 2014, the RDS is the most comprehensive, global, third-party certified animal welfare and traceability standard for down and feathers available for use by any company. The RDS, released in January 2014 with the first certificate issued in June 2014, is now working with more than 350 farms, raising more than...

BERLIN—More than 500 hotels and B&Bs that serve exclusively vegetarian or vegan food are now listed on the VeggieHotels web portal. VeggieHotels makes it easy to find purely vegetarian hotels, guest houses and conference centers. Over 500 accommodations in 60 countries with purely vegetarian kitchens are already listed. From the simple guest house to the five star hotel, the whole range of the hotel business is represented.More and more people are choosing the health related, ecological and ethical advantages of a vegetarian or vegan life style. Millions of vegetarian and vegan tourists constitute a significant target group and VeggieHotels...

PARSIPPANY, N.J.—Wyndham Worldwide announced that RobecoSAM, an investment asset management firm, has recognized the company as a 2015 Gold Class Sustainability Leader in its annual Sustainability Yearbook. This is the second consecutive year the company has been included in the Sustainability Yearbook, receiving the Silver Class rating last year.The Sustainability Yearbook lists the world’s most sustainable companies in each industry and provides thought-provoking snapshots of the main trends, challenges and opportunities with the aim to bridge the gap between corporate sustainability and sustainability investing. In addition to being within the top 15 percent of their industry, companies needed to...

CHICAGO—When Virgin Group opened its first hotel last month—the 250-room Virgin Hotels Chicago—what was not talked about much in the media was the green story behind the renovated historic Old Dearborn Bank Building at 203 N. Wabash Ave. Richard Branson, Virgin Group founder, and member of the B Team leaders who recently called for a global commitment to net-zero greenhouse-gas emissions by 2050, established a hotel brand with the goal of LEED Silver for each hotel. Virgin Hotels Chicago’s green story begins with its site selection. Rather than building new, Virgin Hotels chose a historic bank building and kept...

SAN FRANCISCO—In a landmark decision, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) has approved the “Green Tariff Shared Renewables Program,” a measure that will give millions of California residents and businesses the chance to participate in a utility clean energy program for the first time. The decision, which benefits the majority of the state’s businesses and over 38 million residents, directs the three largest investor-owned utilities—Pacific Gas and Electric Co., Southern California Edison Co., and San Diego Gas and Electric Co., which together cover nearly 80 percent of the state—to offer a Green-e Energy certified 100 percent renewable energy option...

OAKLAND, CALIF.—The world’s biggest companies are addressing their environmental impacts, but it isn’t making much of a difference, according to State of Green Business 2015, a report from GreenBiz Group and Trucost. The eighth annual edition of the report, which measures the global progress of large, publicly traded companies around the world in addressing a myriad of environmental challenges, echoes the previous year’s report, which showed corporate progress leveling off or declining.“This year’s report offers a sobering reality,” said Joel Makower, GreenBiz Group Executive Editor and the report’s principal author. “For all the impressive work that companies are doing...

NATIONAL REPORT—Green walls, also known as vertical gardens or living walls, increasingly are being used in interior and exterior areas of hotels to make a green design statement. Aside from being aesthetic symbols of a property’s commitment to sustainability—perhaps even a means to earn LEED credits—green walls offer many other benefits. They can help deaden sound in large spaces, absorb and clean toxins from the air, reduce carbon dioxide levels, keep air temperatures down, improve employee alertness and energy levels, increase humidity, reduce airborne dust levels, and even help increase the property values of commercial buildings. According to Ambius,...

ATLANTA—The Green Meeting Industry Council has announced the dates for its annual Sustainable Meetings Conference. This year’s event, with the theme, “Power to Change,” will be held June 17 to 19 in Atlanta at The Westin Peachtree Plaza Hotel. Registration is currently open, with special early-bird registration pricing until March 23.A featured speaker this year will include Laura Turner Seydel, Chair, Captain Planet Foundation. The Atlanta-based Foundation was founded by Ted Turner in 1991 and is now chaired by his daughter, Laura Turner Seydel. The Foundation supports high-quality, hands-on environmental stewardship projects that have enabled more than 1.1 million...