WASHINGTON, D.C.—GreenStep Sustainable Tourism Standards are used by GreenStep Solutions in their assessment and verification programs which provide tools, resources, and consultative support to destinations and businesses across the tourism industry. The Sustainable Tourism standards enable tourism businesses and destinations to measure their sustainability performance in several key categories; management, social, economic, natural, cultural, and environmental. The GSTC-Recognized status refers to the standard itself and means that a sustainable tourism standard or system has been reviewed by GSTC technical experts and the GSTC Assurance Panel and deemed the standard or system equivalent to the GSTC Criteria for sustainable tourism. It shows that...

AVIEMORE, SCOTLAND—The tourism industry has a significant carbon footprint—before 2020 it accounted for 8 percent of the world’s total greenhouse gas emissions. The Wilderness Group believes in the transformational power of tourism, and the truly positive impact it can have on individuals, communities, and the planet. The award-winning adventure travel group is excited to announce that all 156 itineraries across Wilderness Ireland, Wilderness Scotland, and Wilderness England, will now include Carbon Labeling, providing guests with rigorous calculations and true transparency of the carbon impact when they travel, helping adventurers make more informed decisions on where and how to travel. Through their work with the carbon consultancy eCollective,...

MACAO—Team members from Sands China Ltd. got together with volunteers from two local community groups at The Venetian Macao recently, where they built 20,000 hygiene kits for Clean the World, an international social enterprise that provides hygiene supplies essential for good health to populations in need around the globe, helping prevent the spread of disease. The hygiene kit build is an annual worldwide volunteer effort of Sands China’s parent company, Las Vegas Sands Corp. (LVS); in 2014, Sands China was the first integrated operator to launch such an event in Macao. The initiative helps Clean the World distribute emergency response hygiene kits to assist with...

LAS VEGAS—Las Vegas Sands has been recognized by global environmental nonprofit CDP on its 2021 Climate and Water A Lists, marking consecutive appearance on the Climate A List for the seventh year and the Water A List for the fourth year. Inclusion on CDP’s Climate A and Water A Lists puts Sands among 55 companies who received an “A” designation on both lists, out of the 12,000 companies that were scored in 2021. Sands was the only hospitality and gaming company recognized with an “A” designation on both lists, highlighting the company’s leadership in reducing emissions, mitigating climate risk, promoting...

CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA.—The results of a summer-long vehicle-to-everything (V2X) pilot project have recently been compiled. The first-ever customer-owned electric vehicle (EV) to support the New England electric grid has earned over $4,200 by participating in a utility demand response program. In May of 2021, climate-tech start-up Electric Frog Company provided an all-electric Nissan LEAF to the Burrillville Wastewater Treatment Facility in Rhode Island to facilitate commercial V2X operations in support of the New England utility grid. To allow charging of the EV for everyday use and discharge power on demand, Electric Frog partnered with V2X market leader Fermata Energy to install its FE-15 bidirectional charger and proprietary V2X software to...

LAS VEGAS—Las Vegas Sands and the Clean the World Foundation, a leader in global health dedicated to water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) and global sustainability, have announced the 2021 Drop by Drop Project grant recipients. The Project will fund work by The University of Saint Joseph Macao (USJ), Institute of Science and Environment to provide nature-based solutions to climate change and by Conservation International Singapore to develop a virtual learning series to engage young children on the importance of protecting the ocean and nature. Sands and Clean the World developed the Drop by Drop Project in 2019 to reinvest capital from Sands’ water stewardship savings into innovative...

PHILADELPHIA—Aramark, a global provider of hospitality, facilities, and uniform services in 19 countries, released its 2021 Be Well. Do Well. Impact Report, a significantly expanded version of its annual sustainability report that highlights the processes Aramark has in place to manage key environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues, and progress toward its sustainability goals. To enhance its reporting and disclosures, Aramark added several components to its report for the first time including: Materiality analysis, A new approach to stakeholder engagement, Supplemental details on compliance and governance, Data aligned with the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB), the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), and...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Sol Systems, LLC, a national solar energy company focused on coupling renewable energy procurement and investment with community impact, announced its first set of investments associated with its Master Power Purchase and Community Impact Agreement with Microsoft. The partnership combines a 500MW framework power purchase agreement (one of the country’s largest) with a groundbreaking strategy to invest in under-resourced communities and people disproportionately impacted by climate change. As an initial step, Sol Systems has contributed $200,000 to four community-based organizations focused on communities in Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington D.C. and one new national nonprofit focused on increasing diversity in...

The pandemic forced hotels to modify how they operate, pushing safety to the forefront of the hospitality community’s consciousness, and derailing a burgeoning industry trend to make facilities more sustainable. Yet, hoteliers would be wise to make sustainability a priority in 2022. Decreasing a hotel’s impact on the environment, no matter its size or location, attracts guests in the short term and saves money in the long term. When customers choose to spend money on a hotel room, many want to select a place to stay that is kind to the earth. And while you’d be excused for assuming sustainability...

ATLANTA—Interface, the global flooring manufacturer, has recently introduced its latest carpet tile collection, Granite Mountain. The collection, designed by David Oakey of David Oakey designs, takes inspiration from the way we collectively embraced nature during the pandemic as a source of relaxation and escape. Like nature, it strikes a balance between strength and beauty with its eight carpet tiles in warm grays and earthy accents, helping bring the outside in. Granite is one of the hardest substances in the world, but even this seemingly immovable force bends to the power of nature—with beautiful results. Visually translating this natural balance between...