BOULDER, COLO.—A kid’s voice can go a long way. Just ask Milo Cress, an 11-year-old from Boulder, Colo. Two years ago, Milo noticed that restaurants were automatically giving straws to customers—straws that ended up in the trash and ultimately the landfill. That did not sit right with him. The environmentalist that he is—he developed a solar-powered popcorn machine when he was six—Milo decided something needed to be done. With the help of his family he founded the Be Straw Free Campaign, an effort to encourage foodservice businesses to either eliminate straws altogether or at least transition to an “offer...

ANAHEIM, CALIF.— Disneyland Resort recently was honored by the nonprofit organization Clean the World Foundation, Inc. for its environmental efforts to recycle partially used soap and bottled bath amenities. The nonprofit organization sanitizes, repackages and distributes the amenities—which may otherwise be discarded by the hospitality industry—to people in need around the world, helping to prevent hygiene-related illnesses. Shawn Seipler, CEO and co-founder of Clean the World, recognized the Disneyland Resort at a ceremony, acknowledging the work of all three Resort hotels and their collective donation of nearly 20,000 pounds of amenities in 2012. Combined, the Disneyland Hotel, Disney’s Paradise...

SAN JOSE, CALIF.—In partnership with City Bees, The Fairmont San Jose’s Sustainability Team have installed honey beehives on the hotel’s rooftop. Beekeeper Robert MacKimmie will establish nascent beehives, each containing approximately 35,000 bees. When the beehives mature in four to eight weeks, they will each house up to 50,000 bees.“The cultivation of honey beehives marks the latest step in The Fairmont San Jose’s legacy of environmental stewardship,” says Kelley Cosgrove, general manager. “Pollinating insects play a critical role in maintaining natural plant communities and ensuring production of seeds in most flowering plants.”“By focusing on an under-utilized architectural feature, we...

PHILADELPHIA—Students of Temple University’s School of Tourism and Hospitality Management and Fox School of Business honored local, national and international businesses with regional offices for their eco-friendly practices during the second annual Green Initiatives Awards. The event was held on the morning of April 29 at the Rittenhouse Hotel in Philadelphia. The sustainable event management students researched, evaluated and nominated businesses and secured sponsors and trade show participants under the guidance of Professor Harith Wickrema, who also serves as president of Harith Productions and is an expert at producing carbon-neutral events. The students are overseeing the event as well,...

WESTBURY, LONG ISLAND, N.Y.—The Viana Hotel and Spa announced that it has been awarded LEED Certification. The LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environment Design) rating system, developed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), is the principal program for buildings, homes and communities that are designed, constructed, maintained and operated for improved environmental and human health performance.The Viana Hotel and Spa achieved LEED certification for implementing practical and measurable strategies and solutions aimed at accomplishing high performance in sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency and indoor environmental quality.Operating Partner Alan Mindel of Samar Hospitality, the parent company to...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Best Western International recently participated in Earth Day festivities at Union Station in Washington D.C. as part of its ongoing partnership with Earth Day Network. In celebration of “Earth Month” at Union Station, Best Western representatives shared green travel tips to attendees and promoted Earth Day through its social share photo booth. Earth Day revelers were invited to have their picture taken at the event and distribute the image socially to raise awareness.“The theme of Earth Day 2013 is The Face of Climate Change, and we know that for years, Best Western hotels have been implementing climate-conscious policies...

HEREFORD, ARIZ.—March was a good month for Patrick Dome and Karl Schmitt, co-owners of the 10-room Casa de San Pedro B&B in Hereford, Ariz. The 105-panel, 34-kilowatt, solar photovoltaic array positioned on the south side of their B&B supplied 125 percent of the electricity they needed for the month. The panels typically supply about 90 percent of the B&B’s electricity. Given its Arizona location, the Casa de San Pedro B&B is ideally located to take advantage of the sun’s power; the inn also uses a simple passive solar system (black piping) to heat water for the pool. Schmitt says...

TARRYTOWN, N.Y.—More than 75 staff, associates, and managers at Castle Hotel & Spa gathered on Earth Day, April 22, and filled more than 4,000 gallons of trash into 20-gallon bio bags that included disposable bottles, debris, trash, plastic bags and general yard waste from the historic 11-acre property in Tarrytown including the one-mile hiking path and bordering streets of Benedict Avenue and Martling Avenue.General Manager Gilbert Baeriswil welcomed the 75 employees of Castle Hotel & Spa for the “first annual Earth Day Clear and Clean” and handed out commemorative tee-shirts for the all-day event and shared sponsored coffee and...

NEW ORLEANS—The first annual Farm To Table International Symposium (F2Ti), featuring the brightest thought leaders and leading practitioners in the burgeoning farm-to-table movement, will be held in New Orleans, August 2 to 4, 2013.F2Ti explores the cultivation, distribution, and consumption of food and drink sourced locally to globally. Topics include farming and aquaculture, fisheries, sustainability, social and digital interactive media, food security and safety, food law and policy, food science and GMO, artisanal and slow food and drink, and fair trade.F2Ti is produced by the New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in partnership with the SoFAB Institute. SoFAB...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—To celebrate Earth Month, the American Hotel & Lodging Assn. (AH&LA) is endorsing the Global Soap Project, a nonprofit organization launched in 2009, which has the dual mission of reducing waste while improving global health.More than 1,100 hotel properties send partially-used bars of soap to Global Soap for recycling. The group recycles up to 7,500 pounds of used soap each week to produce up to 30,000 new bars of soap. The group works with a global network of non-government organizations to distribute the reprocessed soap and provide hygiene education to refugees, disaster victims, homeless families, and people living...