SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, CALIF.—Plans for the second annual West Coast Green Lodging Conference are coming together with a little more than one month to go before the August 21 to 23 event. Meanwhile, initial plans for the Third Annual Green Lodging & Hospitality Conference and next year’s Sustainable Meetings Conference also have been announced.
The West Coast Green Lodging Conference will be held at the Embassy Suites Lake Tahoe Hotel & Ski Resort. In addition to a full slate of educational sessions, the agenda will include a “Green Partners” exhibit area for vendors and a back-of-the-house tour highlighting the Embassy Suites’ green initiatives. The keynote speaker will be Douglas Rath, director of Energy & Environment for Marriott International. His focus in his presentation: “Encouraging Green Behavior Among the Staff.”
The conference will kick off on Sunday, August 21 with a welcome reception in the exhibit area. On Monday, August 22, the schedule will include the following: welcome from David Hansen, chief engineer at the resort; opening session with Douglas Rath; summary of EPA programs available for hoteliers with Wendi Shafir, LEED AP, Green Lodging and Hospitality Lead Pollution Prevention Coordinator, US Environmental Protection Agency, Region 9; a LEED Gold success story entitled, “LEED Gold Property—InterContinental San Francisco—What it Takes to Get the Gold,” with Harry Hobbs, director of engineering at the InterContinental San Francisco; a LEED Silver success story entitled, “A Passion Driven Approach to Sustainability; How to Create a Hotel with a Green Conscience, Not a Green Hotel” with Michael Pace, general manager of the W San Francisco; and a summary of the Green Key program by Roxanna Lopez, operations manager, U.S. region, Green Key Global.
On Tuesday, August 23, Jack Eichhorn, Global Meeting Services, Oracle, will speak on “Why Companies Choose Green Hotels.” Eichhorn will be followed by Dean Parker, executive facilities director of the Peppermill Resort Spa Casino, who will discuss his property’s extensive geothermal system. Geothermal energy is used to heat all mechanical hydronic HVAC systems, domestic water heat, swimming pools, and Jacuzzis at the resort. A Q&A panel session with green hotel executives will follow, as well as a panel discussion on composting and recycling. The conference will conclude with a dinner featuring local and organic foods.
The Third Annual Green Lodging & Hospitality Conference will be held November 7 to 9 at the Doubletree Hotel at the entrance to Universal Studios in Orlando, Fla. The conference committee is currently putting together a speaker lineup. The host for the event is the TREEO Center, University of Florida. The Green Meeting Industry Council 2012 Sustainable Meetings Conference will be held in late April in Montreal. Specific dates and location will be announced in late July.
