PHOENIX—The Arizona Hotel & Lodging Assn. (AzHLA), in partnership with the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) and the Arizona Office of Tourism (AOT), has officially launched the state’s first “Certified Green Lodging” program, which streamlines the requirements for Arizona hotels to designate themselves as environmental stewards. This new program was conceptualized by AzHLA and was developed due to the demand from hotel members and visitors looking for a consistent application that could measure green hotel efforts. After conducting extensive research of other statewide green lodging programs, AzHLA selected a model that provides a workbook where hotels accumulate a certain...

LAKE BUENA VISTA, FLA.—Walt Disney World Resort recently launched its annual Toys for Tots collection drive with a little help from Duffy the Disney Bear and his pals Mickey and Minnie, creating the “Cuddliest Christmas Tree,” a 20-foot-high, 10-foot-wide Christmas tree made of 1,200 stuffed Duffy bears. Topping the Cuddliest Christmas Tree with a giant red bow at the ceremony were members of the U.S. Marine Corps, Walt Disney World ambassador Clay Shoemaker and Walt Disney World VoluntEARS. Each year, Walt Disney World VoluntEARS donate thousands of hours of service and tens of thousands of toys to Toys for Tots—all...

SAN FRANCISCO—Community Marketing, Inc. has released the results of its CMIGreen 2nd Annual Green Traveler Survey Report. A total of 2,768 adults across the United States were surveyed from July 15, 2010 through August 31, 2010. The report focuses on the 951 respondents who consider themselves to be “extremely” or “very” eco-conscious and who took at least one overnight vacation in the past year. The survey provides a wealth of information on attitudes toward green travel, green hotel practices, marketing and green meetings. The survey included questions that appeared in the first survey in 2009 as well as new...

NATIONAL REPORT—Stack all the pillows thrown away by hotels each year and you have got one mighty high mountain of cotton, polyester, down and feathers. Given the volume of pillow waste sent to landfills each year, it certainly makes sense to choose “green” pillow options when possible. What makes a pillow eco-friendly? The materials a pillow is made of certainly matters but so does where it is made, how well it is maintained throughout its life, and what happens to it at the end of its life. Vendors may argue about which materials are the most eco-friendly but the...

WESTPORT, CONN.—Solar products, trends and technologies and their role in the HVACR marketplace will take center stage at the 2011 AHR Expo in Las Vegas, January 31 to February 2. In addition to many new solar products on display, there will be more than a dozen seminars focused on solar topics, as well as demonstrations of solar technology, provided throughout the three days of the world’s largest HVACR exposition and conference. “Solar is one of the fastest-growing segments of the many sustainable technologies featured at the show,” said Clay Stevens, president of International Exposition Company, which produces and manages the...

CANCUN, MEXICO—Luxury hotelier veterans and Esencia developers Alberto Remirez, Nicolas Dominguez and Federico Carstens have joined forces to form HAMAK, a hotel group in Mexico promising to bring a new dimension of accommodations to the region. Formerly of Prohotels Management and Hotel Ikal del Mar (currently known as Tides Riviera Maya), the trio launches this new endeavor with a focus toward the creation and operation of eco-conscious hotels throughout Mexico. Together, the three hospitality professionals combine more than 50 years’ first-hand experience operating luxury boutique hotels and resorts throughout Mexico. Remirez, Dominguez and Carstens are known for incorporating local cultures...

SHANGHAI, CHINA—URBN Hotels & Resorts is collaborating with Vanke, China’s largest residential real estate developer, to construct and operate what could be the most forward-thinking, sustainably-built and green-operated hotel in Asia. The 20,000-square-meter boutique hotel is part of a larger project which will become a 200,000-square-meter commercial, retail and residential development in the Sanlin district of Pudong in Shanghai, China. URBN’s $46.7 million project will include 55 hotel rooms, 50 URBN serviced residences, and 4,500 square meters of dining, wellness and art spaces.Vanke has engaged URBN Hotels & Resorts to bring its philosophy of inspiration, sustainability and connection to...

ATLANTA—In order to move the industry forward toward more energy efficient design, ASHRAE is making it easier than ever before to access its flagship energy standard, 90.1, available as a free download for a limited time. Through a funding contract with the Department of Energy, copies of the I-P edition of ANSI/ASHRAE/IES Standard 90.1-2007, Energy Standard for Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings, are being offered as a free downloadable PDF. “Standard 90.1-2007 is widely used throughout the design community, and the download version makes it available to users at their own computers for ready and easy access,” ASHRAE president Lynn...

MCLEAN, VA.—Home2 Suites by Hilton, the newest and fastest growing brand in the history of the Hilton Worldwide portfolio of brands, announced it will build its first Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certified hotel in Lexington Park, Md. As the brand’s fifth U.S. property to break ground, this will also be the first LEED certified hotel in Southern Maryland. Scheduled for completion in Q1 2012, the 100-suite, four-story hotel will be owned by Lexington Park Hotel Partners III and managed by Cherry Cove Hospitality Management, LLC. The hotel will be constructed by Herman/Stewart Construction of Lanham, Md., one...

HALEIWA, HAWAII—Hawaiian Hospitality Group, Inc., a growing provider of sustainable land use solutions and event services, announced that its newly acquired submarine tour business will add to the company’s spectrum of green service offerings. Wholly owned Submersible Technical Services LLC will provide unique undersea adventures using quiet, electric-powered submersible vehicles with near-zero environmental impact. Hawaiian Hospitality Group operates an eco-friendly destination wedding site, has partnered with a solar distributor to provide solar energy systems, and is pursuing additional sustainable property development opportunities on Oahu’s North Shore. Hawaiian Hospitality Group’s Submersible Technical Services LLC will operate the SportSub III, a state-of-the-art...