PORTLAND, ORE.—The Doubletree Hotel & Executive Meeting Center Portland-Lloyd Center announced that the property has been recognized by the City of Portland’s Office of Sustainable Development for its commitment to sustainability. The BEST Award is the latest acknowledgement of the Doubletree’s efforts to bring sustainability into the hospitality industry. The 476-room Doubletree is the first lodging property in Oregon to be certified with a Green Seal “green hotel” designation, and they have been honored by the U.S. EPA and by the national Doubletree organization for their green programs. The Doubletree was recently included on the “100 Best Companies...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The American Hotel & Lodging Assn. (AH&LA) has teamed up with the London-based International Tourism Partnership, which is a program of The Prince of Wales International Business Leaders Forum, to launch its Going Green initiative. Going Green offers guidelines for hotels to set minimum standards to improve sustainability and achieve goals for better environmental management. A set of six defined standards have been established to assist hotel managers in designing a framework for making choices that are good for the environment and the bottom line. These standards involve hotel policy; staff training; environmental management; purchasing; communities; and...

PARIS—Gilles Pélisson, director and CEO of Accor, and Michèle Pappalardo, president of France’s Agency for Environment and Energy Management (ADEME), signed a third framework agreement to expand their joint programs in six areas: renewable energy development, energy management, waste prevention/management, international cooperation, communication and eco-design. The new three-year agreement will allow the partners to build on existing projects, with the long-term goal of stimulating other initiatives in the hotel business. With ADEME’s backing, 100 new Accor hotels will be fitted with solar panels, bringing the number of Accor establishments equipped worldwide to 200 by 2010. Under a broad...

BEVERLY HILLS, CALIF.—Doubletree Hotels announced the early completion of its Pledge to Plant Challenge following a strong public response. The proposed month-long campaign with The National Arbor Day Foundation, aimed at raising awareness about the importance of trees, struck an environmental chord with America as Doubletree was forced to close its website to further entries after receiving 35,000 entries and nearly 100,000 website hits in less than two weeks. As a result of the outpouring of support for both the campaign and the environment, Doubletree will honor additional pledges by tripling its original tree planting contribution to nearly...

LEXINGTON, KY.—Griffin Gate Golf Club, at the newly renovated Kentucky resort, the Griffin Gate Marriott Resort & Spa, has received certification in Environmental Planning from the Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program (ACSP). The ACSP is an international program administered by Audubon International designed to help landowners preserve and enhance the environmental quality of their property. The plan at the Lexington hotel was developed by Scott Bender, director of grounds, who is also recognized for his effort to plan for environmental stewardship. The ACSP for Golf Courses provides advisory service to help existing golf courses develop effective conservation and...

HONOLULU, HAWAII—The Hilton Hawaiian Village Beach Resort & Spa has won its second Green Business Award from the State of Hawaii. The award is sponsored by the following: State Department of Health; Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism; and the Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii. The award is given to companies that employ innovative green practices and do their part to ensure that residents and visitors continue to enjoy a healthy environment. The Hilton property has a long history in Hawaii. With close to 3,000 rooms, it is one of the Hilton Hotels Corporation’s (100 percent) flagship...

LOS ANGELES—Next year’s Hotel Developers Conference, organized by Los Angeles-based Jeffer, Mangels, Butler & Marmaro (JMBM), will emphasize green hotel development, according to Jim Butler, chairman, Global Hospitality Group, JMBM. The event will be held March 12 to 13 at Green Valley Ranch in Las Vegas. The specific title for the conference has not been finalized but Butler suggested the following working theme: “Isn’t it really time we started building green hotels? What does it mean? Who’s doing it now? Where are the challenges and the opportunities? How others have succeeded and failed. What you need to know...

JUPITER, FLA.—Each year, from March 1 through October 30, guests of the Jupiter Beach Resort & Spa are exclusive witnesses to one of Nature’s miracles: the annual migration of endangered sea turtles to the beaches of Palm Beach County, Fla. “Florida’s east coast beaches provide nesting habitat for the world’s largest remaining population of threatened loggerhead turtles, as well as globally important populations of endangered green and leatherback turtles,” says David Godfrey, executive director of the Caribbean Conservation Corporation & The Sea Turtle Survival League. “For these species to survive, Florida must protect its sea turtle nesting beaches.”...

CHICAGO—Yes, there was a Green Restaurant Products Pavilion and an Organic & Natural Pavilion but finding other green exhibitors among the more than 2,100 vendors at the National Restaurant Assn. Restaurant Hotel-Motel Show last weekend was more of a challenge. They most definitely were there but one had to look closely to find them. The good news is that those green vendors that were there had some exciting new products to talk about. Here is a list of some of them: EATware International introduced its line of 100 percent biodegradable disposable tableware. Their compostable products are made from corn starches...

SAINT CHARLES, MO.—It’s now easier than ever for travelers to click and book smoke-free hotel reservations, simply by visiting the completely redesigned FreshStay online directory and integrated booking process for more than 3,500 nonsmoking lodging facilities. With an increasing number of hotels discovering the many benefits that come with fresher guestrooms and nonsmoking environments, the new FreshStay lists hundreds of additional smoke-free lodging facilities. The FreshStay site also has greatly improved search capabilities, making it simple for site surfers to find the rooms they want, where and when they want them. Even more valuable, FreshStay now features...