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News & Features

Whether an industry announcement, or a hotel accomplishment, Green Lodging News reports on the most up-to-date news and offers a unique perspective on trends—all with the purpose of making your company more profitable. Got news or a story idea to share? We frequently post contributed articles here. Contact Glenn Hasek, editor, at (813) 510-3868, or by e-mail at: greenlodgingnews@gmail.com.

News & Features

Home News & Features
Whether an industry announcement, or a hotel accomplishment, Green Lodging News reports on the most up-to-date news and offers a unique perspective on trends—all with the purpose of making your company more profitable. Got news or a story idea to share? We frequently post contributed articles here. Contact Glenn Hasek, editor, at (813) 510-3868, or by e-mail at: greenlodgingnews@gmail.com.

Hilton Receives Travel + Leisure’s Global Vision Award

MCLEAN, VA.—Hilton Worldwide announced that it is a recipient of a 2010 Global Vision Award from Travel + Leisure. Recognizing the outstanding efforts of individuals and organizations that are working to preserve the world’s natural and man-made treasures, Travel + Leisure honored Hilton Worldwide with the award in the Corporate Greening category for the company’s new LightStay sustainability tracking system. “We are honored to receive a Travel + Leisure 2010 Global Vision Award,” said Paul Brown, president of global brands and commercial services, Hilton Worldwide. “LightStay was developed to improve individual hotel performance while decreasing the company’s overall impact...

Ten Percent of IHMRS Exhibitors Say They Will Feature Green Products

NEW YORK—The number of exhibitors intending to feature green products at this year’s 2010 International Hotel, Motel + Restaurant Show (IHMRS) now stands at 76 out of a total of 734 (10.3 percent) according to the IHMRS website. The annual event will run Saturday, November 13 through Tuesday, November 16, at New York City’s Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. To access the list of green suppliers, go to the IHMRS site, click on the “Exhibitor Search” link, under “Product Category” choose “Hotel/Motel – Green Products” and then click “Go.” Suppliers will offer the following types of products at the trade...

Concorde Hotels & Resorts Announces CSR Program

PARIS—Concorde Hotels & Resorts has launched a new corporate social responsibility (CSR) program at its 27 four and five-star hotels around the world. The program is centered around three key pillars: environmental commitment, social commitment, and societal commitment. Environmental commitment starts with the development of carbon footprints of the hotels, in turn allowing the group to reduce energy consumption, fight pollution, better sort its waste, and develop an offering of in-season products on the menus of its restaurants. This commitment spans all areas: • Kitchens—The adaptation of pans to the size of the burners in order to limit the loss...

Massachusetts Firm Testing Viability of Using Parking Pavement for Water Heating, Cooling

ACTON, MASS.—The parking lot adjacent to your building may soon be good for more than just parking cars. If Acton, Mass.-based Novotech, Inc. is successful in the development of its new technology, the heat energy in the pavement in your lot could soon be used to heat hot water or be used in absorption chillers to provide cooling (see illustration below). According to Tracy Snelling III, vice president of business development for Novotech, the company is currently testing its technology that incorporates plastic PEX tubing that is located about an inch below the pavement. The tubing, arranged in a serpentine pattern, carries...

Living Building Institute Certifies World’s Greenest Buildings

SEATTLE—The Living Building Challenge, widely regarded as the world’s most rigorous green building performance standard, has redefined the design and construction process for more than 70 projects since its launch in 2006. The International Living Building Institute announced the results of its first third-party certification audits earlier this month, declaring that the world’s first ‘Living Buildings’ are finally a reality. The Omega Center for Sustainable Living in Rhinebeck, N.Y., and the Tyson Living Learning Center in Eureka, Mo., each earned full certification, or “Living” status. Additionally, Eco-Sense, a private residence in Victoria, B.C., earned partial program certification, “Petal Recognition,” for...

Report Details ROI of Florida Everglades Ecosystem Restoration

PALMETTO BAY, FLA.—The Everglades Foundation released the results of a comprehensive analysis of the financial return on investment generated by restoration of America’s Everglades ecosystem. The study, conducted by Mather Economics, projects that restoration will produce an increase in economic benefits of approximately $46.5 billion that could range up to $123.9 billion based on an investment of $11.5 billion. “It is clear that Everglades restoration not only produces ecological benefits, but also generates a robust economic boost to our economy,” said Kirk Fordham, CEO, Everglades Foundation. “For every dollar spent on Everglades restoration, we are getting four dollars back in...

Hampton Hotels Announces Brand’s Second LEED Hotel

MCLEAN, VA.—Hampton Hotels recently announced that the Hampton Inn and Suites in Folsom, Calif., has achieved LEED certification, as recognized by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). This is the second Hampton hotel property to earn LEED recognition for sustainable building design, construction and operations. “We are proud to add the Hampton Inn & Suites Folsom to the property list of LEED certified Hampton hotels,” said Phil Cordell, global head, Focused Service and Hampton Brand. “Sustainability is a driving force for the brand and for Hilton Worldwide.  Partnering with franchisees like Folsom Lodging keeps us at the forefront of our...

Federal Trade Commission Proposes Revisions to Green Guidance it Gives Marketers

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has proposed revisions to the guidance that it gives marketers to help them avoid making misleading environmental claims. The proposed changes are designed to update the FTC’s Green Guides and make them easier for companies to understand and use. The changes to the Green Guides include new guidance on marketers’ use of product certifications and seals of approval, “renewable energy” claims, “renewable materials” claims, and “carbon offset” claims. The FTC is seeking public comments on the proposed changes until December 10, 2010, after which it will decide which changes to make final. “In recent...

World Green Tourism Abu Dhabi Set for November 22-24

ABU DHABI, U.A.E.—A world leading expert on responsible tourism is urging key industry stakeholders to accept responsibility for advancing a sustainable agenda and is joining a growing lobby which will press the case at next month’s World Green Tourism Abu Dhabi. Professor Harold Goodwin, director of the U.K.’s International Centre for Responsible Tourism says the Abu Dhabi conference, which will run at Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC) from November 22 to 24, could be a platform for change. “For too long the major stakeholders have failed to take responsibility for their impacts and for making their businesses more economically,...

Carpet Makers Lead Push for Sustainable Manufacturing Practices, Products

NATIONAL REPORT—Carpeting is certainly one of the most significant considerations when designing a hotel’s interior—from an aesthetic, cost, maintenance, and durability perspective. Fortunately for the lodging industry, and for those who specify or purchase carpet, manufacturers of the floor covering material are making it easier to minimize one’s environmental impact without compromising any aspect of the product. Increasingly, manufacturers are taking a Cradle to Cradle approach to manufacturing—making sure that as few resources as necessary are used during manufacturing, that as much recycled content as possible is included in the carpeting and its backing, and that at the end...