LAS VEGAS—A leading publication that monitors corporate responsibility has included the chairman and CEO of MGM Resorts International among the 30 finalists for its 5th Annual Responsible Chief Executive Officer of the Year recognition. Jim Murren, chairman & CEO of MGM Resorts International, was noted in the annual compilation by CR Magazine, the voice of the corporate responsibility profession.“Corporate responsibility begins at the top and Jim Murren’s leadership has materially advanced MGM Resorts’ sustainability results,” said Richard Crespin, executive director of the Corporate Responsibility Officer Assn. and chairman of the COMMIT!Forum. “Jim, together with all of this year’s finalists,...

SAN FRANCISCO—San Francisco Mayor Edwin M. Lee announced that Moscone Center has received LEED Gold certification, the first convention center on the West Coast to attain the green building honor. The LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) rating system was developed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC).“Moscone Center is a vital hub for our convention and tourism economy, and we are very proud to have the first convention center on the West Coast to earn LEED Gold for an existing building,” said Mayor Lee. “This is now our City’s largest municipally-owned green building. Receiving LEED Gold on...

DALLAS—The MPI Foundation has completed the third and final phase of its benchmark Thought Leadership research study on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), the results of which were presented at IMEX America 2012 in Las Vegas. For meetings and event professionals, the findings will enhance their understanding of CSR and demonstrate ways the policy can be put into practice ahead of consumer demand.The research is based on more than 2,300 surveys representing businesses and delegates from more than 150 countries and 90 interviews.Among the findings: •    80 percent of industry professionals feel that customer expectations for CSR will increase in the...

MCLEAN, VA.—On World Food Day, October 16, Hilton Worldwide announced multi-year partnerships with Feeding America and The Global FoodBanking Network to secure food and reduce hunger in communities where it operates around the globe. The collaborations will enable Hilton Worldwide hotels to collect safe, surplus food from conferences and daily food and beverage operations that would otherwise be thrown away and make it available to those in need.Feeding America and The Global FoodBanking Network will each connect Hilton Worldwide hotels with local food banks and their networks of local community agencies to facilitate food delivery to school feeding programs,...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The National Restaurant Association (NRA) and the Foodservice Packaging Institute (FPI) announced their alliance to help raise awareness of foodservice packaging recovery among restaurant operators and consumers. As part of this new effort, the groups are hosting a first-of-its-kind, industrywide Foodservice Packaging Recovery Summit November 7 to 8 in Austin, Texas, that will bring stakeholders together to collaborate on industry-driven solutions that increase the recovery of valuable resources and landfill diversion.At the inaugural summit, NRA and FPI members and invited guests will share expertise to gain a better understanding of how the industry is working to increase recovery...

NATIONAL REPORT—Lodging owners are increasingly turning to service companies to handle the cleaning and maintenance of their packaged terminal air conditioners (PTACs). Benefits include increased air flow and energy efficiency, improved indoor air quality within the guestroom, elimination of unpleasant odors, fewer breakdowns, the extension of the life of the PTACs by as much as three to five years, cost savings, and peace of mind knowing that the job has indeed been done. A few of the companies that now offer cleaning and maintenance services throughout the United States include Cintas Corp., Dream Green Services, LLC, and Fibercare. These...

GALAPAGOS ISLANDS—The pioneering Finch Bay Eco Hotel in the Galapagos Islands recently won a travel industry “Oscar,” a World Travel Award, for its commitment to the environment of the Ecuadorian archipelago. The hotel has implemented many measures to make it more eco-friendly.On the isolated Galapagos Islands in the Pacific Ocean that inspired Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution, creating a green hotel is a challenge for everyone involved: it’s about taking an integral approach to crafting an establishment that is sustainable for the future while generating secure jobs and a healthy working environment for the present. With this concept in mind,...

DENVER—Walking the halls in the new TownePlace Suites by Marriott at Gateway Park (Denver), you’d be hard pressed to find a difference between these and the corridors in almost any other prototypical TownePlace Suites across the country. To the guest there is no difference. To the owner, there is a huge one. Although just as bright, these corridors contain special fitted LED lighting fixtures. Lights may not seem like a big deal, but these use far less electricity and will make a big impact on the energy that the hotel consumes. Less electricity equals less operating costs, which equals...

DOHA, QATAR—Qatar Green Building Council (QGBC) is encouraging Qatar’s rapidly expanding hospitality sector to adopt best environmental practices in preparation for the coming United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Conference of the Parties (CoP 18) by launching its Green Hotel Interest Group (GHIG).The CoP18/CMP8 UNFCCC Conference will take place in Doha beginning November 26, and attract thousands of delegates from all over the world. The GHIG launch, which took place last month at the Wyndham Grand Regency Hotel, Doha, saw leading hotels, organizations and individuals come together to create a forum that will support and advance greater...

LAUSANNE, SWITZERLAND—The International Golf Federation (IGF), which includes member organizations representing more than 150 countries, agreed to a policy that will make sustainability a core priority within the sport through a number of initiatives aimed at conserving water, reducing impact on land and increasing awareness. The IGF outlined eight sustainability measures, including a commitment to expand awareness among golfers and golf facilities; help golf facilities to incorporate sustainable principles and practices into daily business decisions; conduct high profile golf events in an environmentally responsible manner; and embrace measurement, target setting, transparency and verification. The IGF also said it would continue to...