EDENTON, N.C.—Naturepedic, manufacturing organic mattresses in Ohio, has been awarded Gold Exemplary Recognition by the Sustainable Furnishings Council for its deep environmental commitment and exemplary implementation of a range of best practices for sustainability. The company completed the rigorous process of demonstrating compliance with SFC’s Exemplary Manufacturer Requirements, submitting audited evidence of achievements in operations, in production, and in outreach to attain recognition at the Gold level. Naturepedic is the only Gold Exemplary mattress company among the organization’s nearly 400 member companies. Barry Cik, CEO, speaking for the company said, “The Sustainable Furnishing Council knows the importance of safe guarding...

NATIONAL REPORT—It is often said that trees are the lungs of the Earth. Unfortunately, since man started chopping trees down, the Earth has lost about half of its trees. Rainforests once covered about 14 percent of the planet; now they cover only 6 percent. If not protected, rainforests could be gone in 40 years. “We often forget that deforestation has been one of the major contributors to climate change,” says Jared Carlson, Director, Innovation & Business Development, the Arbor Day Foundation. As trees rot or are burned they release carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Live, healthy trees consume carbon...

BRUSSELS—Radisson Blu announced its new partnership with the Soap for Hope program, which recycles used hotel soaps to create fresh bars for distribution in local communities with limited access to hygiene and sanitation. The Soap for Hope program works in partnership with Sealed Air, a leader in food safety and security, facility hygiene and product protection. Soap for Hope was pioneered by Sealed Air to save lives by giving free soap to communities with limited access to soap, to create local entrepreneurs and to help hotels reduce waste through recycling. Capitalizing on the success of projects in Georgia and in...

CINCINNATI—More than 100 thought leaders from the world of hospitality design, development, purchasing and architecture will share their perspectives at the Boutique Design New York (BDNY) trade fair and conference, November 13 to 14, at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. “The Next Resort: Beyond Sustainability,” an Intel session presented by NEWH Green Voice, will explore design strategies for creating healthier hotel environments for staff and guests alike. Lorraine Francis, Regional Director of Hospitality Interiors, Gensler, will moderate; panelists include Paul Scialla, Founder, CEO, Delos, and others to be announced. World-renowned designer Karim Rashid, whose remake of Temptation Resort &...

NEW YORK—GFL Skincare’s The Rerum Natura is the first bath amenity collection to achieve COSMOS Organic Certification. GFL Skincare, Europe’s premier hospitality amenity company, has long been known for its eco-certified collections. With the launch of The Rerum Natura, hoteliers now have the ability to provide guests with the highest level organic product available on the market. Named after the famed 1st century BC poem by Titus Lucretius Carus, The Rerum Natura is inspired by authentic preparations and is developed with respect for traditional apothecary formulations and ingredients. Each product is vegan friendly and 100 percent free of parabens, SLS-SLES,...

PITTSBURGH—Humanscale has just become the first manufacturer in any industry to achieve Living Product Challenge certification. The certification, which presents the most rigorous standard for sustainable manufacturing, was officially announced at the International Living Future Institute’s Living Product Expo in Pittsburgh, where Humanscale’s Sustainability Officer Jane Abernethy, a featured speaker at the event, was on hand to accept the award. As a result, two Humanscale products—the Float table, a height-adjustable desk, and the Diffrient Smart task chair—are now to be classified as “Living Products.” “The goals of the Living Product Challenge closely align with Humanscale’s core values and our goal...

KELOWNA, B.C.—The world’s largest sustainability certification program for the tourism industry will now be helping Canadian tourism businesses to reduce their environmental impacts. Through a regular dose of complimentary webinars, white papers, how-to guides and checklists, Green Tourism will help the Tourism Industry Association of Canada (TIAC) grow and develop Canada’s tourism sector in a way that helps to meet the growing traveler demand for responsible business, while working to reduce the industry’s environmental and carbon footprint. “We are thrilled to enter into this supplier partner agreement with TIAC,” says Angela Nagy, CEO of GreenStep Solutions, the delivery agent for...

OBERLIN, OHIO—Oberlin College and The Oberlin Project announce After Fossil Fuels: The Next Economy, a conference to be held October 6 to 8, 2016  in Oberlin, Ohio. Bringing together some of the most innovative and influential thinkers in the world with key elected officials who have a solid and active track record on climate change issues, After Fossil Fuels: The Next Economy will focus on the economic and political realities in the era of climate change—just one month before the most contentious presidential election in memory. “The most critical issue we face is climate change,” says David W. Orr, the...

CYPRESS, CALIF.—Earth Friendly Products, the maker of ECOS environmentally friendly cleaning products and a leader in sustainable business practices, announces that after six years of actively reducing its water usage, the company is now “water neutral.” Water neutrality is a measure of zero net water usage achieved through reducing water use and funding programs that restore water to critically depleted ecosystems. Water neutrality is part of Earth Friendly Products’ long-term commitment to minimize its environmental impacts. In addition to water neutrality, Earth Friendly Products achieved carbon neutrality in 2013 and Zero Waste Platinum certification at all its facilities in...

OTTAWA, ON.—The Green Key Eco-Rating Program, a leading lodging industry certification program, has been renovated, and version 3.0 (V3) is now available. The move to V3 is part of Green Key Global’s continuing goal of remaining a leading environmental certification body and to align itself with GSTC Recognition status.What is GSTC? The Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) establishes and manages global sustainable standards with the aim of increasing sustainable tourism knowledge and practices among public and private stakeholders. The GSTC is independent and neutral, serving the important role of managing its global baseline standards for sustainability in travel and...