CRYSTAL BEACH, TEXAS—In September 2008, Hurricane Ike leveled thousands of homes along the Texas coast. It was the third costliest Atlantic hurricane of all time. The four-room Out By the Sea Bed and Breakfast in Crystal Beach, owned by Carole Hamadey, survived the onslaught but still sustained significant damage. The next time a powerful hurricane comes knocking on Hamadey’s door, it will have a more difficult time “renovating.” Hamadey is about to add three additional guestrooms to her B&B using three steel shipping containers. That’s right, the large shipping containers one sees on ships crossing the ocean. Construction using the...

SURPRISE, ARIZ.—What to do with used hotel linens and towels? Some are kept for cleaning. Some are recycled. Most are thrown in the trash. A new nonprofit organization is encouraging hoteliers to donate used linens and towels to local animal shelters. Scott Chapman, a 20-year hospitality veteran who got his start in housekeeping and moved up the corporate ladder to senior director of training, founded Hotel Industry Partnership for Pets (H.I.P. for Pets) to help “end the unnecessary euthanasia of adoptable pets.” Chapman, now head of learning and development for PetSmart Inc., said donating used linens and towels can reduce...

SPRINGFIELD, MO.—Hilton Garden Inn announced the opening of the 125-room Hilton Garden Inn Springfield, Mo., representing an addition to the brand’s growing portfolio of more than 500 hotels worldwide. The Hilton Garden Inn Springfield is managed by O’Reilly Hospitality Management, LLC of Springfield, Mo., and is the first hotel in Missouri to be designed to meet LEED Gold standards, while being just the second Hilton Garden Inn in the country to meet these standards. Some of the sustainability features include a geothermal HVAC system in the pavilion and meeting areas, a salt water swimming pool, solar electrical system, full...

NATIONAL REPORT—The Ritz-Carlton, Charlotte in North Carolina has one. So does the Hilton San Francisco Financial District, Parc 55 Wyndham San Francisco-Union Square, and Boston’s Seaport Hotel. All Element Hotels properties have them. A TownePlace Suites by Marriott being constructed in Frederick, Md., will soon have one, as well as the Sleeping Lady Resort in Leavenworth, Wash. What these properties all have or will have is at least one electric vehicle (EV) charging station. EV charging stations are still extremely rare at lodging properties but they are beginning to pop up across the United States as an increasing number...

GLATTBRUGG, SWITZERLAND—The upcoming Mövenpick Dharamshala Resort & Spa in Northern India is poised to take the design and delivery of upscale remote properties to a whole new sustainable level. The 124-room resort, due to open in 2013, will be located 2,400 meters above sea level in the upper reaches of the Kangra Valley and surrounded by a dense forest and the Himalayan Mountains. Its key attraction will be a 2,500-square-meter Ayurvedic spa which will feature extensive preventive health programs, detox sessions, international treatments alongside Ayurvedic, meditation and yoga therapies. Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts, along with the owning group, Kamakhya Hospitality...

ITHACA, N.Y.—Cornell’s Center for Sustainable Global Enterprise at the Johnson Graduate School of Management, Gap Adventures, and Planeterra have partnered to assess the underlying costs and benefits of sustainable tourism for the country of Belize. The partnership kicks off with a project involving a team of Cornell graduate students in the Sustainable Global Enterprise Immersion program, who are working with the Belize Tourism Board to measure the social, economic, and environmental costs of tourism development. “Tourism brings large financial resources to countries around the world, but it is without a true understanding of the capital and operating costs to make...

PARSIPPANY, N.J.—Wyndham Worldwide, one of the world’s largest hospitality companies, announced that it is supporting the March 26 Earth Hour global initiative while promoting five ways the hospitality industry can reduce energy consumption today. Organized by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), Earth Hour has grown into a global movement with millions of supporters in more than 128 countries since its start in Australia in 2007. During Earth Hour, individuals, businesses, and governments around the world turn out their lights to demonstrate their commitment to environmentally sustainable action. Earth Hour 2011 will take place Saturday, March 26 at 8:30 p.m....

BANGKOK—Accor Asia Pacific, the largest hotel group in Australia, announced its ongoing commitment to improving Indigenous employment and relations at the official launch of the Accor Indigenous Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) in partnership with Reconciliation Australia—the largest and most comprehensive RAP in the Australian hospitality industry.  “With over 150 hotels in Australia, the greatest geographical spread of city and regional locations, and the relationships we have built with Indigenous employment partners, Accor is well equipped to achieve our goal of seeing 100 Indigenous employees trained and employed in Accor hotels across Australia each year,” said Simon McGrath, vice president...

CAMBRIDGE, MASS.—If you run an inn, or a hotel for that matter, and are considering greening your operations, you may want to chat with Rachael Solem, owner and general manager of the 44-room Irving House in Cambridge, Mass. Since purchasing the large house in 1990, she has taken almost every step imaginable to reduce the property’s environmental impact. She knows what works, what does not work, and she will level with you about it. Take amenity dispensers, for example, which she still uses. “I have not found a dispenser that is attractive, easy for the guests to use, and...

SHAKOPEE, MINN.—The Best Western Plus Shakopee Inn has earned the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s prestigious Energy Star, the national symbol for protecting the environment through superior energy efficiency. The 65-room property is the first hotel in Minnesota to achieve this milestone, which signifies that the building performs in the top 25 percent of similar facilities nationwide for energy efficiency. “We are excited to receive this honor,” said Haren Shroff, owner and general manager of the Best Western Plus Shakopee Inn. “It reflects our commitment to our guests and to our planet—we owe it to both to make our hotel as...