SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, CALIF.—Less than two months remains before the West Coast Green Lodging Conference. The event will be held at the Embassy Suites Lake Tahoe Hotel & Ski Resort, South Lake Tahoe, Calif., from August 22 to 25. The conference, directed toward hotel general managers, chief engineers, innkeepers and owners, will address the reasons for going green, how to do it, the financial impact (return on investment), the public relations and marketing benefits, and the ways in which the community benefits. The event will begin on Sunday, August 22 with a welcome reception. On Monday, August 23, the day...

NEW YORK—Emirates Hotels & Resorts’ long term commitment to sustainability and the environment through its hotels and resorts portfolio was recently rewarded with one of the most prestigious global awards in the travel and tourism industry. Emirates was honored with the Conservation Award at the 2010 World Travel & Tourism Council’s (WTTC) Global Summit, held this year in Beijing. The Tourism for Tomorrow Awards are the WTTC’s highest-profile global accolade, recognizing best practices in sustainable tourism development, conservation and biodiversity protection. Within the Emirates Group, the Emirates Hotels & Resorts (EH&R) portfolio encompasses three major conservation projects spread across...

LAS VEGAS—Diamond Resorts International, a leader in the hospitality and vacation ownership industries, announced its mid-year assessment of Club Ride Commuter Services, one of its sustainability programs. The free program sponsored by the Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada helps commuters find alternative ways to get to work, thus reducing traffic congestion, and improving air quality and mobility. Diamond Resorts International team members participate in Club Ride at Diamond’s global headquarters by carpooling, taking transit, walking, or riding bikes and motorcycles when traveling to and from work. These alternative commute modes promote a healthier personal lifestyle while benefiting the environment. “We...

NATIONAL REPORT—Summer is here. And, with mild temperatures, comes the chance to assess the damage inflicted on your deck and porches by winter snow, ice and freezing temperatures. Your old finish may be worn leaving the wood unprotected and open to rotting and splitting. The ultimate test is to apply a few drops of water to the wood. If it beads, your wood should be well protected for another season, but if it soaks into the wood, it’s time for restoration. For many years, staining wood meant working with toxic solvents and harmful fumes. But, to meet growing demand for...

PORTLAND, ORE.—For the first time in the event’s history, delegates of the Ecotourism and Sustainable Tourism Conference (ESTC), held September 8 to 10 in Portland, Ore., will have the opportunity to participate in volunteer activities during field sessions. The International Ecotourism Society (TIES) and the destination hosts Travel Oregon and Travel Portland are working with the ESTC Voluntourism Partner Planeterra, a world leader in volunteer travel, to bring volunteering to the forefront this year in recognition of the increasing importance of voluntourism as a niche of sustainable tourism. This is the first time that TIES is offering hands-on volunteer activities...

CHICAGO—Hyatt Hotels & Resorts announced that it has agreed to launch the Green Key Eco-Rating Program at participating hotels and resorts in the United States, Canada, and the Caribbean. The Green Key Eco-Rating Program will provide a uniform tool to recognize the environmental performance of the operations of Hyatt’s managed full-service hotels and resorts throughout the United Staters, Canada, and the Caribbean. Green Key’s rating system will complement Hyatt’s existing Web-based tracking system, Hyatt EcoTrack, which benchmarks energy use, water consumption, waste generation, and greenhouse gas emissions for Hyatt-managed, full-service hotels globally. Together, Hyatt EcoTrack and the Green Key...

BANGKOK—Cambodia’s business conglomerate The Royal Group has unveiled its vision to create Asia’s first environmentally planned resort island pioneering high-end international tourism on the country’s idyllic coastline. With interests ranging from telecommunications and IT to banking, international schools, media and entertainment, hotels and resorts, property and infrastructure development, The Royal Group has been at the heart of Cambodia’s economic development for almost two decades. Now the corporation led by visionary tycoon Neak Oknha Kith Meng is setting its sights on transforming the country’s tourism industry, which until now has almost exclusively depended on the attraction of world famous Angkor...

MCLEAN, VA.—Hilton Worldwide announced the appointments of Michael C. Ford and Jennifer L. Silberman, who join the company as vice president, Global Diversity and vice president, Corporate Responsibility, respectively. In his new role, Ford will lead the continuing efforts to promote a culture of inclusion at Hilton Worldwide, working with corporate and divisional leadership to implement strategies that leverage diversity to grow the business across the company’s portfolio of brands. Silberman will be responsible for overseeing the development, execution and communication surrounding Hilton Worldwide’s corporate responsibility efforts, which encompass employee volunteerism, corporate philanthropy, community and stakeholder engagement, environmental sustainability and...

HARTFORD, CONN.—Do “green” buildings protect human health from environmental hazards? The answer is “not necessarily,” according to a recent report released by Environment and Human Health, Inc. (EHHI), titled “LEED Certification: Where Energy Efficiency Collides with Human Health.” EHHI is a nonprofit organization composed of doctors, public health professionals and policy experts who specialize in research that examines environmental threats to human health. The organization receives no funding from corporations or businesses. The lead author of this study is John Wargo, Ph.D., professor of Risk Analysis and Environmental Policy at Yale University. Wargo summarized the study, “Although the U.S. Green...

PHOENIX—The American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH&LA) announced the winners of the AH&LA Achievement Awards, part of the annual Stars of the Industry Awards, which honor stand-out initiatives at hotel properties. In a ceremony held during the AH&LA Summer Summit at the Arizona Biltmore, these awards, which have been awarded annually since 1966, distinguish individual hotels that have developed outstanding programs, events, and campaigns. Winners were chosen in the categories of Good Earthkeeping, Guest Relations, Community Service, Special Events, Diversity, and a new category, Technology. The winner of the Good Earthkeeping Award, small property, is the Hilton Garden Inn in...