KENNESAW, GA.—The University System of Georgia’s Board of Regents approved the naming of the Michael A. Leven School of Culinary Sustainability and Hospitality at Kennesaw State University. Michael Leven, a veteran hospitality industry executive and President and CEO of the Georgia Aquarium, made a commitment of $5 million to name Kennesaw State University’s School of Culinary Sustainability and Hospitality. The gift represents the largest single contribution from an individual in the University’s 52-year history.In addition to naming the School, Leven’s philanthropic gift will be used to support an endowed faculty chair as well as scholarships for culinary sustainability and...

NEW YORK—W Hotels Worldwide, part of Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc., announced a new partnership with global music artist and entrepreneur will.i.am and The Coca-Cola Co. to shake up the hotel industry, one guestroom at a time. Together, they are bringing the EKOCYCLE brand to W Hotel rooms around the world, changing sheets and changing minds. W Hotels will soon begin re-making their beds with new EKOCYCLE branded sheets, which are made in part with rPET (polyester partially made using recycled plastic). Rolling out into W Hotels in North America first with global properties to follow, each king size...

BURBANK, CALIF.—Disney published its 2014 Citizenship Performance Summary. The summary focuses on Disney’s FY14 performance against its Citizenship targets. Highlights include progress against environmental stewardship commitments, including a 31 percent decrease in net emissions from 2012 levels and the first disclosure of Disney’s water usage companywide.In addition, Disney achieved 82 percent visibility into facilities producing Disney-branded products, up from 58 percent in 2013, as part of increased oversight across Disney’s global supply chain.Disney met and exceeded several targets ahead of schedule, including the donation of 18 million books as part of Disney’s long-standing tradition of storytelling and fostering imagination.Disney...

ORLANDO, FLA.—The world’s only large-scale recyclers of hotel soap have combined their operations and charitable efforts. Clean the World and Global Soap have contributed to a 30 percent reduction in pre-adolescent deaths from hygiene-related illnesses since 2009. Now consolidated under the Clean the World banner, they join forces to improve even more lives through an integrated social enterprise. The blended organization capitalizes on strengths developed separately by each group over the past six years. Under the new operating structure, Clean the World Foundation manages all soap and plastic bottle collection and recycling in North America, while Clean the World Asia...

NEW YORK—Restorative Hospitality, a subsidiary of the wellness real estate firm Delos, and Leonardo DiCaprio have announced plans to create the world’s most sustainable island resort at Blackadore Caye, Belize. Upon its completion in 2018, Blackadore Caye will be the greenest island resort ever built, the business partners say, and the world’s first “Restorative Island” project designed with sustainable building techniques that restore and regenerate the surrounding ecosystem and reverse the effects of climate change. The project is being developed by Restorative Islands, LLC, designed by McLennan Design and operated by Restorative Hospitality, which will also manage the wellness...

MIAMI—Miami based Trust Hospitality announced that the Islamorada Resort Co., comprised of Amara Cay Resort, Postcard Inn Beach Resort at Holiday Isle, Pelican Cove Resort & Marina, and La Siesta Resort, has partnered with the Coral Restoration Foundation (CRF) to raise funds for the organization. The nonprofit conservation organization is dedicated to creating offshore nurseries and restoration programs for threatened coral species. Islamorada Resort Company will help raise funds for CRF through guest donations and a matching fund.“With our recent entry into Islamorada, we wanted to find a way to give back to the local community,” said Patrick Goddard,...

MCLEAN, VA.—Hilton Worldwide announced that it will begin to eliminate the use of cages for egg-laying chickens and gestation crates for breeding pigs in its global food supply chain. The announcement was made in conjunction with the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), the nation’s largest animal protection organization.  Initially all hotels in the Hilton Hotels & Resorts, Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts, Conrad Hotels & Resorts, Canopy by Hilton and DoubleTree by Hilton brands will be required to switch all egg usage to cage-free by December 31, 2017, ensuring that chickens are not confined in cages. All...

TUMWATER, WASH.—The Hotel Carbon Measurement Initiative (HCMI) is a free methodology and calculation tool to enable hotels to measure and report on the carbon footprint of a hotel stay or meeting in a consistent way. In partnership with the Association of Green Property Owners and Managers (AGPOM), the International Tourism Partnership is offering an invitation to participate in a free webinar where one can learn, step-by-step, how to use HCMI to calculate the carbon footprint of a hotel stay or meeting in order to: •    Provide carbon footprint information your customers are increasingly requesting; •    Understand your environmental impacts and...

ITHACA, N.Y.—Certain sustainability practices are nearly universal in the lodging industry, says a Cornell University study published by the Center for Hospitality Research (CHR). Water-conserving fixtures and linen-reuse programs, for instance, are widespread, based on the study of 100 U.S. resorts. The study, “Environmental Sustainability in the Hospitality Industry: Best Practices, Guest Participation, and Customer Satisfaction,” by Alexandra Bruns-Smith, Vanessa Choy, Howard Chong, and Rohit Verma, is available at no charge from the CHR. “We found that a majority of resorts were using at least two dozen of the nearly four dozen sustainability practices that we examined,” said Verma,...

PARSIPPANY, N.J.—Wyndham Worldwide participated in the Earth Hour global initiative by turning its lights down and encouraging energy conservation. This is the fifth year that Wyndham Worldwide joined Earth Hour to raise awareness of global energy efforts.The company recognized Earth Hour at its corporate headquarters in Parsippany, N.J., by switching off its lights during the hour and encouraged associates to turn off lights, monitors and other electronics before leaving the building. Additionally, Wyndham Worldwide encouraged its global portfolio of brands to participate by turning off or dimming non-essential lighting, with some properties creating offerings for guests such as candlelight...