I have a confession to make. When planning the editorial direction for Green Lodging News, I consulted with just a few people. Yes, they were industry experts, especially in regard to environmental trends, but I did not send out a survey to thousands of hoteliers to ask them what issues they would like to see covered in an environment-focused publication. I relied a lot on my own gut instinct after observing the industry for more than 12 years. To be honest, I don’t think Green Lodging News is too off track but it is time to ask for your...

The U.S. lodging industry, represented by multiple national and state level lodging certification programs, should look to its neighbor to the north—Canada—to learn how one single certification program could work. Run by the Hotel Association of Canada (HAC) with the assistance of a consultant, Canada’s Green Key Eco-Rating program has more than 400 rated hotels and motels with an additional 400-plus in the pipeline. According to Tony Pollard, HAC’s president, a total of 2,000 hotels could be Green Key rated by the end of next year. Why is Canada’s program blossoming so quickly? There are several important reasons....

It’s show time. Just about every weekend now, one state or another is holding its annual association conference and trade show. In less than two weeks, the lodging industry’s largest event—the International Hotel/Motel & Restaurant Show (IH/M&RS)—will take place at the Javits Center in New York City. I plan to attend this year’s event and will report back to you on the latest green product news and trends. I will also be attending and speaking at the Ohio Hotel & Lodging Association’s annual conference on November 20. Thank you to the organizers of that event for inviting me to...

The name of Starwood Capital Group’s new eco-friendly luxury hotel brand says it all—“1”. There is no doubt that C.E.O. Barry Sternlicht’s new brand will be No. 1 in the lodging industry in many ways. What other company can say that its luxury hotels will be built to Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards—some from the ground up? Green Lodging News applauds Starwood Capital Group’s decision to not only build to LEED standards, but to also donate 1 percent of each property’s revenue to local environmental organizations. As you can read here at Green Lodging News (see article),...

When your property is approached by a meeting planner requiring green practices, will you be ready? If you are not recycling, don’t have a towel/linen reuse program, or have not implemented other environmentally friendly measures, there is a good chance you will forfeit the opportunity to win the new business. Increasingly, meeting planners are presenting hotels with checklists that explain their minimum requirements. When you receive such a list, what documentation will you have to present in return? If the planner asks for a tour of your facility, what kind of story will you have ready to tell...

A buck sixty-nine. That is the price I paid for a gallon of gas when I last filled up. Admittedly, I got a 30-cent grocery store discount but that is still quite a drop from the $3.00+/gallon that we had all been paying earlier this past summer. You may not be as lucky but here in Ohio we typically pay some of the lowest prices in the United States for gasoline. The price of oil has been plummeting lately. There are various reasons for it—a non-eventful hurricane season, last year’s mild winter, political factors and a general supply...

Of all the measures one can take to reduce energy costs, replacing incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescents (CFLs) is certainly one of the easiest. Available for years now, they use two-thirds to three-quarters less energy than incandescent bulbs but last thousands of hours longer. Even with an initial higher cost, CFLs can easily put more money in your pocket in a short period of time. In public areas where lights are on 24 hours a day, savings can be significant, especially in terms of maintenance. Wednesday, October 4 is Energy Star Change a Light Day. If your...

Again, is your property certified green? Pardon me for starting this week’s column with the same question as last week. The thing is, I realized I had barely scratched the surface when talking about the various green certification/rating systems available in the lodging industry. Thank you to a few readers for bringing some of the other programs to my attention. In last week’s column I highlighted programs in Florida, Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Wisconsin, California and Michigan. There are numerous other programs, however, that are not state-specific. One of the oldest industry rating programs is the Green Leaf...

Is your property certified green? In at least seven states, there are programs available—some run by state government agencies, some not—that enable hotels, motels and other lodging establishments to be certified as green hotels. By participating in these programs, owners and operators can cut costs by saving energy and water, reduce waste, improve air quality, and benefit in many other ways. In Florida, the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) runs a Green Lodging Certification Program. In Maine, the DEP has a similar one. Vermont’s program is part of the Vermont Business Environmental Partnership. In New Hampshire, the Sustainable...

Selling a green image, product or service has become trendy in the past few years. At least one survey has shown that travelers are more apt to stay in properties that are environmentally friendly. That is good news for all of us. That does not mean, however, that being green is an easier sell than anything else. It still requires an investment of time and dollars to get the word out to potential customers. As publish and editor of a green publication, I get to learn about hotel companies that are doing everything they can to reduce their...