ALEXANDRIA, VA.—ASTA’s Green Guides for Travel Agents and Suppliers have undergone their first extensive update since the program’s launch in April 2008 to keep up with the ever evolving sustainable travel industry. Among the updated sections are those focusing on ground transportation, accommodations, green resources and marketing. As an added benefit, those who complete the Green Member program and have their Green Member applications approved now receive a customizable press release they can use in promoting their new designation to their local media and community. “There is no better time to become an ASTA Green Member,” said ASTA president...

PORTLAND, ORE.—The Green Meeting Industry Council (GMIC) announced the theme for its annual Greening the Hospitality Industry Conference scheduled for February 24 to 26, 2009 at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center in Pittsburgh. The theme is “action=sustainability.” The 2009 GMIC programs committee identified global and tactical concerns facing the meetings industry based on the audience sectors of corporate and association meeting planners, industry suppliers, government and the global meetings industry. The 2009 conference will offer tiered educational tracks for meeting planners and industry suppliers. The participants’ learning experiences will range from “Future leaders” 101 tracks, to hands-on experiential learning,...

PHILADELPHIA—Francine Cohen, a one-time corporate art consultant with a passion for protecting the environment, has launched the Philagreen Hospitality Association (PGHA) to help Philadelphia area hoteliers and restaurateurs run greener and more profitable organizations. Cohen is executive director of the association that was launched earlier this year. Her kickoff meeting in June attracted approximately 30 attendees, with 10 hotels represented. A meeting also was held in September. The next meeting will he held November 17. PGHA is run separate from the Greater Philadelphia Hotel Assn. “I have been an eco-conscious citizen for decades,” Cohen says. “I have always been interested...

THOUSAND OAKS, CALIF.—Founder/CEO of Investors Hospitality Management, (“IHM”) John Glen DiGuiseppe, has announced the launch of www.greenhotelbookings.com. “This is not a referral program nor a fee-based system but a free, actual verifiable green hotels booking engine, which, through its affiliation with bookings.com, Expedia, Orbitz, etc., provides reservations services in more than 18 languages for domestic and international visitors in quest of supporting sustainable hospitality in worldwide hotels and luxury estates,” DiGuiseppe says. The logical next step in implementation of technological tourism sustainability, DiGuiseppe states, “IHM conceived, developed and trademarked www.greenhotelbookings.com as a dual-focused site which both provides varied certification levels...

COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO.—First Affirmative Financial Network and the Social Investment Forum, hosts of the 19th annual SRI in the Rockies Conference, have designed their 2008 event to be a green meeting. This year’s conference is expected to draw a record 700 sustainable and responsible investment (SRI) industry practitioners and professionals to Whistler, British Columbia, Canada, October 26 to 28, 2008. According to the Convention Industry Council’s definition, a green meeting is “a meeting or event that incorporates environmental considerations to minimize its negative impact on the environment.” George Gay, CEO of First Affirmative, is planning for the 2008 SRI in...

BROOKFIELD, WISC.—The 2008 Wisconsin Lodging Conference & Trade Show will be held October 27 to 28 at the Hilton Madison Monona Terrace. This annual conference is the largest gathering of Wisconsin lodging owners and operators in the state. The Wisconsin Innkeepers Assn., the state’s only association representing the entire lodging industry and one of the largest state lodging associations in the country, is the host for this marquee event. The conference will feature a special panel presentation titled, “Exploring Niche Tourism Markets: Green Tourists, Geocaching & Culinary Tourism,” which will help property owners and operators attract travelers who are conscious...

PORTLAND, ORE.—Meeting Strategies Worldwide announces the launch of its latest website tool, “Best Places to MeetGreen.” The website provides two innovative resources: the Best Places to MeetGreen Scorecard and Calculator. The two were created to help meeting and event planners select the best green destination for their group. The site is free to use and is located at www.bestplacestomeetgreen.com. The Scorecard feature ranks cities according to the green programs implemented by the destination’s convention and visitor’s bureau, convention center and hotels in the city’s conference package. The practices are third-party verified by Meeting Strategies Worldwide and entered into a scoring...

TARRYTOWN, N.Y.—The Sheraton Tarrytown and its management company, New Castle Hotels & Resorts, have decided to implement the PURE allergen purification process in 10 percent of the property’s hotel rooms, including one on its club level. The process removes up to 98 percent of bacteria, viruses and other airborne particles from the average hotel room. Specially trained hotel staff use PURE Solutions purification techniques to comprehensively treat rooms to remove allergens and irritants from all surfaces, fabrics and air flow. Rooms are cleaned before and after each guest, and PURE fully re-sanitizes rooms every 90 days. Guests have welcomed the...

NEWTON, MASS.—TripAdvisor, the world’s largest travel community, announced the results of its annual travel trends survey of more than 3,000 U.S. travelers. The primary trends identified are that travelers appear to be going lean and green by visiting national parks, hiking, and engaging in adventure activities. A greater amount of Americans said they will be environmentally conscious in their travel decisions in 2009, and more plan to visit eco-friendly hotels in the coming year. TripAdvisor also unveiled its TravelCast list of emerging hotspots for 2009, and atop the list is Budoni, in Sardinia, Italy. The top emerging hotspot in...

FRANKFURT, GERMANY—Nominations are now being invited for the IMEX Green Awards 2009. The annual awards, which are presented during the international trade show’s Gala Dinner in Frankfurt, have become a strong indicator of new trends and developments amongst suppliers and buyers within the global meetings industry. The awards comprise three different environmental category prizes and one that recognizes an outstanding contribution to a local community project—the Commitment to the Community Award. The most established award, the Green Meetings Award, increasingly attracts extremely strong entries from corporations and agencies worldwide that have embraced the principles of green meetings and, as...