LAS VEGAS—Thomson Reuters Foundation, the philanthropic arm of the world’s biggest news and information provider, selected MGM MACAU as a top 15 global finalist for the “Stop Slavery Award” this month. The esteemed award recognizes companies that have taken concrete steps to eradicate forced labor from their supply chains. MGM MACAU was identified for its best practices and continued leadership in combating human trafficking across the globe. “We are very proud of the selection of our MGM MACAU Affiliate as a global finalist in the movement to combat human trafficking and modern-day slavery,” said Phyllis A. James, Chief Diversity and Corporate...

I recently came across a group of hotels that are a perfect fit for Green Lodging News: Conscious Hotels. In case you are not familiar with the properties, there are three located in Amsterdam and one more in The Netherlands slated to open in 2018. Details can be found on the company’s website but here is how the hotels are described: “Conscious Hotels strive to be as green, sustainable and eco-friendly as possible. But they’re more hip than hippy. And by hip we don’t mean our staff are too cool to answer the phone. You might not even notice...

HONG KONG—Eaton Workshop is a new global brand merging hospitality with progressive social change. Launching in early 2018, it will bring to the international market a hybrid model of a hotel and co-working members club, with an extensive content and programming agenda underscoring its core advocacy values at the intersection of arts and social impact. As the first brand of its kind to serve as a gathering place for an inclusive tribe of changemakers and creatives, Eaton Workshop consists of distinct parts—Hotel, House, Media, and Wellness—that together form an ecosystem based on a pro-social, proactive ethos. A digital content platform...

LAS VEGAS—Caesars Entertainment, in collaboration with Clean the World, the largest global recycler of hotel amenities, and The Service Companies, the premier one-stop-shop for services to the gaming and hospitality industry, announced the successful distribution of soap to hundreds of families in Guadalajara, Mexico, which took place last month. “Our relationship with Clean the World is an example of our People Planet Play corporate social responsibility platform brought to life,” said Jan Jones Blackhurst, Executive Vice President, Public Policy & Corporate Responsibility. “Not only are we engaging our team members to help to reduce the spread of bacterial diseases by...

LAUSANNE, SWITZERLAND—Many of the world’s corporations engage in charitable projects. Some do so because they sincerely want to improve the world, but others create programs due to the expectations of customers, owners, and other stakeholders. A pair of studies from Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne point to a key group that pays careful attention to corporate social responsibility: employees. The studies, by EHL Professor Steffen Raub—together with Stephan Blunschi of the Swiss retailer MIGROS in one case—investigate the mechanism by which CSR increases employees’ loyalty and effectiveness. In recent years CSR has become a focus of many businesses’ corporate strategy. For example, a...

NATIONAL REPORT—The demand for sustainable businesses is stronger than ever; over one-quarter of consumers prefer to buy sustainable brands, and the majority of businesses have embraced an environmentally friendly attitude. With every year the world moves closer to the reality of a green economy, so if you are thinking about starting a lodging business, then sustainability should be one of your main priorities. Thankfully it is easy to run a sustainable lodging business—you just need to follow the right tips. Here are four tips to help you from the launch onwards. Register Your Business Before you can start to think about creating a green...

PARIS—As part of its program Plant For the Planet, AccorHotels is launching an online platform—accorhotels.purprojet.shop—enabling participants to fund agroforestry projects in countries in which the Group operates. Jointly developed with long-term partner Pur Projet, the purpose of this site is to raise as much awareness and involve as many people as possible—in addition to guests staying in its hotels—with regard to the transition towards agroecology. For the launch of the platform, five planting projects have been selected in five different countries: France, Romania, Senegal, Indonesia and Peru. Participants can choose to plant one or more trees (ash, avocado, eucalyptus, mango,...

LAS VEGAS—Caesars Entertainment Corp. announced a commitment to achieve gender equality among its leadership ranks by 2025. In support of this effort, Caesars will work with the Billie Jean King Leadership Initiative (BJKLI) as part of this enhanced commitment to ensure workplace fairness and continue to foster an environment that promotes diversity and inclusion. “Caesars is focused on being vigilant about workplace fairness and is dedicated to fostering an environment that promotes diversity and inclusion,” Caesars CEO Mark Frissora said. “While we are proud of what we’ve accomplished to date—including last week’s 100 percent score on the Human Rights Campaign 2018 Corporate...

LOS CABOS, MEXICO—Solmar Hotels & Resorts, a seven property resort collection located in Cabo San Lucas is turning the spotlight on voluntourism through The Solmar Foundation this holiday season. A nonprofit organization, the Solmar Foundation was founded in honor of the late Solmar group founder and Los Cabos tourism pioneer, Don Luis Bulnes, and offers Cabo visitors various ways to get involved with the community through a series of voluntourism programs this holiday season. Through the Solmar Foundation Solmar guests have the opportunity to volunteer, visit and sponsor over 30 charitable organizations in Baja California Sur that provide health assistance, education and...

ITHACA, N.Y.—For the fourth year in a row, Cornell’s Center for Hospitality Research (CHR) has released the latest benchmarks from an ongoing international sustainability data index for the global hotel industry. The report, “Hotel Sustainability Benchmarking Index 2017: Energy, Water, and Carbon,” in collaboration with a dozen global hotel firms, analyzes data provided for nearly 13,000 properties. Increasing the data set by 80 percent and adding further segmentation from the previous index, the report is available from the CHR at no charge. The results are presented in the CHSB2017 Index with a range of benchmarks for energy consumption, water consumption,...