ITHACA, N.Y.—An analysis of sales and rates for 9,000 hotels has demonstrated a net neutral effect for the hotel industry’s efforts to implement sustainability. The analysis was made possible by a massive database maintained by Sabre Holdings, including Travelocity. The Cornell study concluded that the hotel industry’s fears of losing business due to implementing “green” operations is unfounded. However, on average, hotels also don’t see a revenue boost from going green.The study, “Hotel Sustainability: Financial Analysis Shines a Cautious Green Light,” by Howard G. Chong and Rohit Verma, was published by the Cornell Center for Hospitality Research (CHR) and...

PARSIPPANY, N.J.—Wyndham Worldwide, one of the world’s largest hospitality companies, has received a Gold certification from the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program for its newest building on the company’s corporate headquarters campus in Parsippany, N.J. The campus previously received two Silver-level LEED designations, making it the first and only company in New Jersey to hold LEED certifications in both Commercial Interiors and Existing Building Operations and Maintenance.“A tremendous amount of thoughtful planning goes into the design, construction and operation of our buildings,” said Frank Campana, senior vice president, corporate real estate and...

GRAND CANYON NATIONAL PARK—Forever Resorts’ Grand Canyon Lodge-North Rim has received an Environmental Achievement Award from the National Park Service for Environmental Stewardship at the North Rim of Grand Canyon National Park. The award was conferred specifically for the Grand Canyon Lodge-North Rim’s waste reduction program.In 2009, the lodge embarked on a program of daily hand sorting of all solid waste. In 2012 alone, it recycled nearly 55,000 pounds of cardboard, 3,600 pounds of paper, 10,000 pounds of metal, 40,000 pounds of glass and 18,000 pounds of plastic. In addition, 103,000 pounds of food waste was converted to a...

MCLEAN, VA.—Hilton Worldwide unveiled its annual Corporate Responsibility Report, noting that it has met another companywide sustainability goal ahead of schedule as well as made progress against the company’s full range of sustainability and responsibility commitments.Through continuous improvement and corrective action among its more than 4,000 hotels, Hilton Worldwide achieved its five-year goal to reduce water consumption by 10 percent and waste output by 20 percent in 2012, one and two years ahead of schedule respectively and continues its progress toward its goal to reduce energy consumption and CO2 emissions by 20 percent by the end of 2013. Since...

NATIONAL REPORT—Getting guests to forego linen laundering is one way to reduce linen-related costs and their associated environmental footprint. Another way is to choose linen that is inherently environmentally advantageous—in other words, its reduced footprint is built into its very fibers. Still another way is to choose a supplier that not only is concerned about the product itself but also the supply chain behind it, how it is made, and what happens to it at the end of its life.When considering environmental impact, there is no perfect sheet or pillow case. Cotton, unless it is certified organic, requires a...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has finalized the first WaterSense specification for a commercial kitchen product. EPA estimates that approximately 51 billion gallons of water is used every year to rinse dishes by close to 1 million food service establishments in the country. Pre-rinse spray valves—which remove excess food waste from dishes prior to dishwashing—are now eligible to earn the WaterSense label and help food service establishments save water, energy, and money.If every U.S. commercial food service establishment installed and used a WaterSense labeled pre-rinse spray valve, the country could save more than 10 billion gallons of...

PORTLAND, ORE.—The Green Meeting Industry Council (GMIC) announced and launched a new campaign called Ask For It! in support of the APEX/ASTM standards that were completed and published in full this year.The campaign is targeted at planners, encouraging them to ask suppliers for sustainable practices. The easiest way to do this is by using the APEX/ASTM standards as a guide and resource. Once the conversation is started, the next step is to register their events and certify them at whatever level they find achievable to comply with the standards. It also is a call to action for suppliers to...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The National Restaurant Assn. announced the release of its first-ever sustainability report, which looks at environmentally stable trends and initiatives within the restaurant industry, such as food waste reduction, composting, recycling and cost-efficient energy solutions.“Sustainability and waste reduction are increasingly important issues across the restaurant and foodservice industry,” said Scott DeFife, Executive Vice President, Policy and Government Affairs, National Restaurant Association. “We have seen incorporation of eco-friendly business practices from large chains to independent operators, as well as manufacturers and other supply chain partners. The National Restaurant Association is working to ensure operators have access to the education,...

ORLANDO, FLA.—The Orange County Convention Center (OCCC) announced that it has been awarded Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED) for Existing Buildings: Operations & Maintenance Gold (EBOM) certification from The Green Building Certification Institute (GBCI), an arm of the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). OCCC’s North-South Building is the largest convention center in the world to achieve LEED EBOM Gold certification.“Central Florida is now home to the world’s largest LEED EBOM Certified convention center,” said Rick Fedrizzi, president, CEO & founding chair, U.S. Green Building Council.” “This accomplishment demonstrates unprecedented leadership from Orange County and its convention center...

CHICAGO—Kendall College School of Hospitality Management, ranked the No. 1 program in Chicago for preparing students for hospitality careers, has released its first-ever trends outlook for the hospitality industry in 2014. 1. Global Going Strong: International Knowledge in Demand According to the World Travel & Tourism Council, the travel and tourism industry is currently among the largest and fastest-growing industries worldwide, forecasted to support 328 million jobs, or 10 percent of the workforce, by 2022. A top 10 industry in the United States, travel and tourism provides one out of eight jobs, with that number increasing at an exponential rate, adding...