WASHINGTON, D.C.—The early adopters of the Global Sustainable Tourism Council’s (GSTC) new Criteria for Destinations have been announced. They are Fjord Norway; Teton County, Wyoming; Mt. Huangshan, China; and St. Kitts & Nevis. This group of destinations will be the first to test and provide feedback on the Destination Criteria, which complement the GSTC’s existing Criteria for Hotels and Tour Operators. The GSTC Criteria for Destinations describe the minimum standards that a destination must reach in order to move toward social, cultural, and environmental sustainability—maintaining the cultural and natural attractions that tourists come to see, while benefitting the local...

COLUMBIA, MD.—A high-efficiency, high-visibility solar-powered car-charging system made by a Maryland company is giving electric vehicle owners a means to refuel their vehicles with clean energy—and just as important, a way for businesses to attract and serve this new class of consumer: the EV driver.Advanced Technology & Research Corp., an engineering and manufacturing firm based in Columbia, Md., recently installed its first high-efficiency, small-footprint Sun-Tracking Solar EV Charging Station at an auto-related business, Win Kelly Chevrolet/Buick/GMC of Clarksville, which sells the Chevy Volt. A ribbon-cutting gave business owners from several different fields—including automotive, hospitality and real estate—the opportunity to...

SALT LAKE CITY—Utah’s largest rooftop solar powered electric system is now operational. The 1.65MW system atop the Calvin L. Rampton-Salt Palace Convention Center was turned on late last month by Salt Lake County and its project partners. It is one of the largest roof-top solar panel installations in the United States. The 600,000-square-foot system was assembled at the convention center and will provide 17 percent of its annual power needs. County Mayor Peter Corroon has set a goal of installing up to 10 megawatts of solar power on county-owned facilities. He is encouraging all sectors of the community to...

FRANKFURT, GERMANY—Accor unveiled its Carbon Optimizer for professional customers with an exclusive worldwide preview at the IMEX Frankfurt trade show. This tool will allow meeting and seminar organizers to know and cut their events’ carbon footprint. Accor is a leading player in meetings and seminars, with venues in roughly 2,000 hotels. The Carbon Optimizer is interactive, user-friendly and combines a comprehensive set of variables, including the number of participants, the number of nights they plan to stay, how long the seminar will last, how big the meeting rooms are and the energy mix in the host country (the proportion of...

PORTLAND, ORE.—The world’s first guide to aligning meeting and event planning practices with the scientific principles of sustainable development is now available as a free download, thanks to an innovative collaboration between The Natural Step and the Green Meeting Industry Council (GMIC).Meeting the Future was launched on the GMIC website after the two organizations pooled their knowledge to explain sustainability in a set of simple terms and clear examples for meeting organizers and suppliers.“The meetings industry has been clamoring for a practical approach to creating better events through sustainability,” said GMIC president Paul Salinger, vice-president of marketing at Oracle...

CHICAGO—The Green Meeting Industry Council (GMIC) received a warm official welcome from one of North America’s most sustainable destinations when Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel formally announced that his community would host the 2013 Sustainable Meetings Conference next April.“This is a perfect example of the City of Chicago and its tourism and convention industry working together to achieve a key goal: attracting more visitors to Chicago,” said Mayor Emanuel. “This conference is one of many that have committed to the city and will create jobs and economic opportunity for our residents.”“We are honored to host this conference and demonstrate the...

PARIS—Accor has officially launched PLANET 21, a comprehensive program covering all of the Group’s environmental, social and community investment actions and placing sustainability at the core of its business strategy worldwide. With PLANET 21, Accor is making 21 commitments and the same number of quantified goals for the year 2015, including: employees trained in disease prevention in 95 percent of hotels, 80 percent of properties promoting balanced dishes; 85 percent of hotels using eco-labeled products; a 15 percent reduction in water consumption; and 10 percent decrease in energy use at Accor’s owned and leased hotels worldwide. The name PLANET...

NEW YORK—MindClick SGM announced the participation of Van Teal Lighting in the HSP (Hospitality Sustainable Purchasing) Index. By participating in the HSP Index, Van Teal acknowledges the importance of sustainability and establishes its commitment to greening the global supply chain for hospitality.Lighting is a major investment for all hotels, brands and owners—and as a central element of design, it has a substantial impact on the guest experience and the environmental footprint of a hotel.“We are delighted to have Van Teal join the HSP Index program,” said JoAnna Abrams, CEO of MindClick. “By integrating sustainability into many aspects of how...

SAN RAFAEL, CALIF.—The California Coastal Commission has approved a final forest preservation and development plan for Pebble Beach in the Del Monte Forest of Monterey County. The compromise ends decades of conflict about how to develop the remaining Pebble Beach Company lands in the Del Monte Forest, and will permanently set aside more than 635 acres of pristine native Monterey Pine forest while allowing the development of a new 100 room hotel, expansions of the existing Lodge at Pebble Beach and the Inn at Spanish Bay, and 90 new homes in and adjacent to existing developed areas.The plan also...

TROY, OHIO—The Hobart Center for Foodservice Sustainability (HCFS) has awarded a $5,000 grant to Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens in Pittsburgh, in recognition of foodservice sustainability initiatives that educate and benefit visitors to the conservatory as well as the Pittsburgh community. This marks the fifth year for the HCFS grant, which is awarded to a business or organization judged to have the best-executed foodservice sustainability project. “It’s very encouraging to hear about sustainability projects taking place across North America in foodservice operations of K-12 schools, colleges and universities, businesses, healthcare facilities, and community and nonprofit organizations,” said Rick Cartwright, vice...