More than 500 articles on the Green Lodging News website reference the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) green building certification system. According to the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), LEED is the most widely used green building rating system in the world. Many hotel companies have embraced LEED and for good reason. The system provides a framework to create healthy, highly efficient and cost-saving green buildings. Also, according to USGBC, LEED buildings have a higher resale value than non-LEED buildings. LEED-certified buildings are a solid asset for investors, occupiers, and communities. LEED is available for every project: Building Design...

When Marriott speaks, the entire industry listens, and so it will with the company’s 2024 Serve 360 Report highlighting the company’s global Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) efforts and progress toward its 2025 Sustainability and Social Impact Goals. The Report reflects data for the calendar year ended December 31, 2023. The Report can be accessed here. Marriott now consists of more than 30 brands, and more than 8,700 properties in 139 countries and territories. In its report, Marriott separates its 2025 Sustainability and Social Impact goals into four areas: Nurture Our World, Sustain Responsible Operations, Empower Through Opportunity, and Welcome All and...

Many of you use PTAC units to heat and cool guestrooms and other spaces in your hotel. When those PTACs have reached the “end of life,” what do you do with them? I recently spoke with Mylien Collins, Vice President of Digital Marketing at RoomOne Solutions, to get her company’s take on the lifecycle of the PTAC. RoomOne Solutions’ PTAC4Less takes used PTACs and renovates them for resale back into the hotel market—contributing to a more circular economy. Any PTACs that cannot be revitalized are scrapped. “Every single piece gets recycled properly,” Mylien told me. Any refrigerant that needs...

Pay attention to several stories posted on the Green Lodging News website this past week. First, the Asian American Hotel Owners Association (AAHOA) shared news of the tragic murder of Hemant Mistry (59), a respected AAHOA Member and veteran hotel owner/operator from Oklahoma City, Okla. According to police reports, a 41-year-old suspect was arrested and is now in custody following an altercation on Saturday, June 22, during which he punched Mistry, who died Sunday, June 23 from the impact. Local sources indicate that Mistry had asked the suspect to leave the property. This incident bears a heartbreaking resemblance to the murder of Pravin R. Patel,...

Over the years I have written about various alternatives to plastic bottled water. Some are as simple as water filtration/dispensing systems. These systems have become quite common in our industry. Other systems are rarer and more complex. For example, last year Accor announced that it is partnering with SOURCE Global, PBC to bring reusable glass bottled drinking water—water from the air—to key hotels in Singapore. Unique to this water is that it is made by SOURCE Hydropanels—a ground-breaking solar-powered technology that harvests the pure, endlessly renewable water vapor in the air and transforms it into premium drinking water. In April I reported on...

This month is World Oceans Month, a time to recognize the current state of our oceans and, if possible, do something about it. One way to help our oceans is to reduce the amount of plastic waste generated at your property. Did you know that 60 to 80 percent of the pollution in our ocean comes from plastic and an estimated 100,000 marine mammals and up to 1 million sea birds die each year after ingesting or being tangled in plastic marine litter? I heard from several people this month regarding World Oceans Month. First, the Belize Tourism Board (BTB) announced...

Green Lodging News has just turned 18 years old. A big thank you to all the companies and other organizations that have supported this publication with advertising all these years. Green Lodging News would not be where it is without them. Be sure to support those companies that advertise and tell them that you found them here at Green Lodging News—whether on the website or in an e-blast that you receive each week. By doing that, you will help keep Green Lodging News sustainable for years to come. And, if you represent a company looking to reach an audience...

Food waste reduction and donation were top of mind this past week for several reasons. First, MGM Resorts International announced that it has donated five million meals into the community since 2016, marking the achievement of a 2025 social impact and sustainability goal well ahead of schedule. In 2023 alone, the company donated more than 1.2 million meals to feed food insecure people in local communities. The five million meals were donated through the MGM Resorts Feeding Forward program. Many were the result of grants to organizations that focus on hunger relief and funded meals donated to local nonprofit organizations. Other...

With 7,530 properties under its watch, 6,587 of which are franchised, Hilton’s impact on the environment is significant. Hilton’s progress toward reducing that impact was just reported in its 2023 Hilton Travel with Purpose Report. In 2018, Hilton set its Travel with Purpose 2030 goals. The goals closely align with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and include emissions-reduction targets validated by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) and aligned with the Paris Climate Agreement. LightStay, Hilton’s ESG management system, helps track, analyze, and report environmental and social impact at each of its hotels and corporate offices, as well as...

As reported here on Green Lodging News, WTTC, UN Tourism and the Sustainable Hospitality Alliance (now World Sustainable Hospitality Alliance) released a report on Earth Day entitled, “Nature Positive Travel & Tourism in Action.” The report lays out the organizations’ joint plan to help halt and reverse biodiversity loss. To what degree does your property or company take into consideration biodiversity loss as a result of running your business? Developed in collaboration with specialist consultancy ANIMONDIAL, the report is the sector’s pledge to support the implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF), the UN’s Biodiversity Plan. The report presents more than 30 case studies of...