NATIONAL REPORT—Two years after the final standard of the nine APEX/ASTM Environmentally Sustainable Meetings Standards—the one focusing on accommodations—was published, and more than three years after the first eight standards were released, adoption of the standards has been mixed. At press time, just one accommodation—the PGA National Resort and Spa in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.—had achieved certification to standard E2772, the Specification for Evaluation and Selection of Accommodations for Environmentally Sustainable Meetings, Events, Trade Shows, and Conferences. The resort also achieved certification to the ASTM Standard pertaining to the Evaluation and Selection of Venues for Environmentally Sustainable Meetings, Events,...

NEW YORK—W Hotels Worldwide, part of Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc., announced a new partnership with global music artist and entrepreneur will.i.am and The Coca-Cola Co. to shake up the hotel industry, one guestroom at a time. Together, they are bringing the EKOCYCLE brand to W Hotel rooms around the world, changing sheets and changing minds. W Hotels will soon begin re-making their beds with new EKOCYCLE branded sheets, which are made in part with rPET (polyester partially made using recycled plastic). Rolling out into W Hotels in North America first with global properties to follow, each king size...

ATLANTA—Taking green meetings to the next level, The Westin Peachtree Plaza in Atlanta, the largest Green Seal Silver Level certified convention hotel in the Southeast, is launching the Green Tour. This new on-site specialty event for meeting attendees provides a behind-the-scenes look at the sustainability, conservation and environmental efficiency efforts in the John Portman-designed AAA Four Diamond hotel. From event serveware made of leaves to the Go Green Racing teambuilding activity and single-stream recycling system, The Westin Peachtree Plaza is redefining what it means to be green. “Environmental stewardship is increasingly important to meeting planners and attendees when selecting a...

OAKLAND, CALIF.—Green Venue Report, a leading group of event industry professionals committed to the advancement of venue sustainability, announces the launch of the second annual survey to compare sustainability practices and performance across convention and exhibition centers worldwide. Venues are invited to participate in the multi-question survey at no cost beginning April 1 at www.greenvenuereport.com.The 2015 Green Venue Report will offer these results in a comprehensive overview of convention centers around the world, building on the participation and momentum of the 2014 report. The report compares green performance over a wide range of areas, including: energy efficiency, waste management,...

SAN FRANCISCO—For the eighth consecutive year, Fairmont Hotels & Resorts of the Western U.S. and Hawaii will participate in Earth Hour, a global event organized by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF,) to raise awareness about climate change. On Saturday, March 28 at 8:30 p.m. (local time) Fairmont Hotels & Resorts around the planet will participate by turning off their lights for one hour.“Earth Hour is a unique opportunity for Fairmont colleagues and guests to participate in the world’s largest global climate change initiative,” says Thomas Klein, Regional Vice-President and General Manager, Fairmont San Francisco. “Earth Hour is on its...

TAMPA, FLA.—Hasek Communications, the Tampa, Fla.-based publisher of Green Lodging News, welcomes GreenEarth Cleaning as an advertising partner. The GreenEarth dry cleaning process uses liquid silicone in place of petrochemicals. Essentially liquified sand, silicone is non-hazardous and non-toxic to the environment. When released to the environment, it safely breaks down into the three natural elements it is made from: sand (SiO2) and trace amounts of water and carbon dioxide. Liquid silicone is chemically inert, meaning it doesn’t chemically react with fabric fibers. It just carries the detergent to clothes and gently carries away the dirt and oil. It also...

AMSTERDAM—BookDifferent has begun to publicize the carbon emission figures for 591,000 hotels. According to BookDifferent, it is the first OTA to do this. The carbon footprint of each accommodation is shown by a footprint icon containing the number of kilos CO2 emission per night stayed. Hotels with a green footprint have a low carbon footprint and are therefore a better choice than the hotels with a red one.“By showing the carbon footprint icons we give consumers a voice by enabling them to choose to stay in a hotel with a small carbon footprint,” said Lonneke de Kort, Director of...

BERLIN—More than 500 hotels and B&Bs that serve exclusively vegetarian or vegan food are now listed on the VeggieHotels web portal. VeggieHotels makes it easy to find purely vegetarian hotels, guest houses and conference centers. Over 500 accommodations in 60 countries with purely vegetarian kitchens are already listed. From the simple guest house to the five star hotel, the whole range of the hotel business is represented.More and more people are choosing the health related, ecological and ethical advantages of a vegetarian or vegan life style. Millions of vegetarian and vegan tourists constitute a significant target group and VeggieHotels...

ATLANTA—The Green Meeting Industry Council has announced the dates for its annual Sustainable Meetings Conference. This year’s event, with the theme, “Power to Change,” will be held June 17 to 19 in Atlanta at The Westin Peachtree Plaza Hotel. Registration is currently open, with special early-bird registration pricing until March 23.A featured speaker this year will include Laura Turner Seydel, Chair, Captain Planet Foundation. The Atlanta-based Foundation was founded by Ted Turner in 1991 and is now chaired by his daughter, Laura Turner Seydel. The Foundation supports high-quality, hands-on environmental stewardship projects that have enabled more than 1.1 million...

CHICAGO—United Airlines announced the launch of United Eco-Skies Vacations, a new travel program that provides United customers with vacation options that incorporate sustainability and environmental responsibility into their getaways. The airline is working with The Mark Travel Corp., exclusive tour operator for United Vacations, and long-time partner and global nonprofit organization Sustainable Travel International to launch the vacation program. The program is being piloted in Costa Rica, a destination known for its stunning beaches and breathtaking rain forests, as well as its commitment to sustainable tourism and environmental stewardship.“United understands the importance of protecting the cultural, economic and environmental...