AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND—Providing unobstructed views from every direction, New Zealand’s PurePods are free-standing glass accommodations designed for up-close and uninterrupted encounters with nature. Set in an open clearing on private farm land, the four PurePods provide a singular boutique hotel experience, a one-room home that offers comfort, luxury and dramatic vistas without neighbors. Due to their setting and location, complete privacy is ensured. The PurePod stay is part of a New Zealand itinerary arranged by New Zealand travel experts New Zealand In Depth. The PurePod concept is all about the view. Constructed almost entirely from glass with no carpet, curtains...

JASPER, IND.—Furniture maker Jasper Group announced a new addition to its corporate facility. Photovoltaic solar panels now line the southwest corner of the property and will reduce the company’s carbon footprint. Jasper Group collaborated with the City of Jasper’s Net Metering Program to ensure the maximum allowed usage of the solar panels. The company plans to continue bringing solar power to its six additional facilities across Dubois and Orange counties. The solar energy project is an important step in Jasper Group’s ongoing effort to protect and preserve the environment for future generations. Since opening their doors in 1929, Jasper Group has...

BRIDGETOWN, BARBADOS—The Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) has added a new category to its 2017 Sustainable Tourism Awards. The Agro-Tourism Award was developed to reflect the CTO Year of Adventure and as part of the ongoing partnership between the CTO and the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), where collaborative efforts have been ongoing to advance the integration of agriculture and tourism. “When a tourist goes on a farm or community tour, or eats our signature foods prepared by local chefs, everyone benefits,” says Ena Harvey, IICA representative in Barbados. “Land remains in agriculture, farm incomes increase, business and employment...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Launched in 2015, the National Geographic Unique Lodges of the World is a collection of 55 world-class hotels spanning 30 countries and six continents that offer guests rare experiences with parts of the world that not many get to know. Each lodge is deeply rooted in its community and dedicated to protecting surrounding ecosystems and cultures—and harnesses their vitality to safeguard them for the future. On March 27, National Geographic released the first Sustainable Tourism Impact Report, compiled from data from each of the member lodges that measures the impact of their practices, from use of renewable energy...

PORTLAND, ORE.—MeetGreen is launching the MeetGreen Calculator 2.0 for Sustainable Events updated to align with today’s standards, track green meeting initiatives and provide state-of-the-art reporting with a newly-designed user-friendly interface. The MeetGreen Calculator 2.0 is a comprehensive tool designed to measure sustainable event management practices by assessing the environmental impact of conference activities in 14 key areas allowing event organizers to benchmark their achievements and compare against other events. Here are just a few of the upgrades: We Meet You Where You Are, Introducing Two Options: We believe everyone should be able to measure the green practices of an event and you...

MACAO—Sands China Ltd. used the month of March to shine an additional spotlight on environmental sustainability, focusing the attention of the public and its team members on two events addressing the ever-important topic of climate change—Earth Hour and an in-house Climate Week. On Saturday, March 25, the company participated in Earth Hour for the 9th consecutive year, turning off lights at all its properties. Beginning at 8:30 p.m., exterior lights and non-essential indoor lights were turned off for one hour at Sands Macao; The Venetian Macao; The Plaza Macao featuring Four Seasons; Sands Cotai Central featuring St. Regis, Conrad, Sheraton,...

NATIONAL REPORT—In the United States, sales of electric vehicles soared in 2016, showing a 70 percent year-over-year increase in monthly sales. For consumers, the choice is bigger than ever; by the end of 2016, automakers were offering about 30 electric models to choose from, such as the Tesla Model S, Chevy Volt, and Nissan Leaf. And even more are on the way, with Ford’s plans to create 13 EV models by 2020, Mercedes saying it will produce 10 by 2025, and Volkswagen, which is at work on 30 different models. What’s more, EV batteries are becoming cheaper and longer-lasting, which...

MINNEAPOLIS—On March 25, more than 350 Carlson Rezidor Hotels from Fiji to Brussels to Chicago participated in the annual worldwide Earth Hour, a worldwide movement encouraging individuals, communities, households and businesses across the globe to turn off non-essential lights for an hour to raise awareness of the need to act on climate change. The Radisson Blu, Radisson, Park Inn by Radisson, Country Inns & Suites and Park Plaza hotels practice Earth Hour—an environmental initiative supported by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF)—as an opportunity to engage with guests, employees and business partners to encourage energy savings by organizing several engaging activities...

As published on Green Lodging News, The Rezidor Hotel Group just published its Responsible Business Report 2016. For those of you not familiar with the company, Rezidor’s current core brands include Radisson Blu—the largest upper upscale brand in Europe—and Park Inn by Radisson. Radisson RED is another Rezidor brand. The report, 61 pages long, describes the most important corporate responsibility and sustainability aspects of the company’s operations. Last year was a good one for the company with it being named one of the World’s Most Ethical Companies for the eighth straight year by Ethisphere. The Rezidor Hotel Group also...

NATIONAL REPORT—Wood is a beautiful, industrious material. The logging industry has long been seen as an enemy of the environment. There is perhaps no other more iconic symbol of the green movement than a tree, so people naturally have a bad image of anything associated with destroying trees. While this characterization was largely accurate a century ago, the logging industry has changed. People involved in the industry are finding that their profits can be larger and more sustainable if they operate more like a farm than like a gold mine. That is, they can manage their operations in such a...