NOTTINGHAM, PA.—Zandur, a green manufacturer dedicated to developing the world’s most environmentally sensitive flooring products, announces the launch of a new tile size in their “True Green” line of natural Cork Rubber Flooring. The 12" x 24" tile addition creates extensive opportunity for designers to discover their own unique patterns by mixing and matching square or plank cut tile in nearly limitless combination. Zandur’s high performance material is available in 48 standard colors.    Zandur’s Cork Rubber Flooring is made from more than 65 percent recycled and renewable cork and 35 percent rubber and meets the requirements of numerous...

BANGKOK—Six Senses Resorts & Spas, a globally recognized leader in the field of sustainable tourism, is to create one of the largest reforestation projects in South East Asia as part of its commitment to the fight against climate change. The company has partnered with the PATT Foundation to plant more than 200,000 trees per year in the Chiang Mai region of northern Thailand. The project represents a multimillion dollar commitment by Six Senses over the next decade and beyond. The project will mitigate an estimated 160,000 tons of CO2 annually by replanting 200 acres of forest every 12 months. Between...

NEW YORK—Sustainability consultancy MindClick SGM, founder and leader of the Hospitality Sustainable Purchasing Consortium, is working with the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) to advance the shared mission of a sustainable future for hospitality.  The rapidly growing Consortium, comprised of more than 25 global companies, is creating a scorecard rating system to measure the sustainability performance of suppliers of hotel furnishings and supplies. The scorecard, known as the Hospitality Sustainable Purchasing Index (HSP Index), measures corporate social responsibility, product, and environmental sustainability performance. Consortium members are currently evaluating the HSP Index to ensure that it meets the information and measurement...

NEW YORK—The Hospitality Sustainable Purchasing Consortium announced that Ramsey Purchasing has joined the Consortium as a Contributing Member. Ramsey’s membership furthers the Consortium’s goals of establishing the Hospitality Sustainable Purchasing Index (HSP Index) as the de facto performance measurement solution for industry suppliers. With more than 4.5 million hotel rooms in the United States, FF&E is a major investment for all hotels, brands and owners—and it has a substantial impact on the guest experience and the environmental footprint of a hotel. “The HSP Index enables us to compare the sustainability performance of suppliers and the products they sell, so we in...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The Global Sustainable Tourism Council announced the launch of two initiatives this week that reflect the organization’s efforts of the past two years: The GSTC Process and Destination Level Criteria Development.The GSTC Process for recognizing and rewarding genuine practitioners of sustainable tourism is defined in three stages: GSTC-Recognized, GSTC-Approved and GSTC-Accredited. In the initial stage, sustainable tourism standards apply to become GSTC-Recognized. Once recognized, these standards are considered equivalent to the Global Sustainable Tourism Criteria. The Global Sustainable Tourism Criteria are the worldwide minimum requirements for tourism businesses of all size to approach sustainability.In stage 2, certification programs...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The first annual NEWH Sustainable Design and Development Conference and Tradeshow will be held on December 9 at the Capitol Hilton Hotel in Washington, D.C. This tradeshow will bring together innovative, sustainable leaders, ideas, products, design and tangible business results. NEWH invites all members of the design and development community, hospitality industry, event professionals and sustainable partners who are looking to gain further insight and to promote and build strong business relationships to attend this new industry show. The trade show and conference will be a one-day event and will conclude with a cocktail reception on the show floor....

ITHACA, N.Y.—Thirty industry leaders in sustainability and a smaller group of Cornell University students met last week in Ithaca, N.Y. for Cornell University’s annual Sustainability Roundtable. The event featured six sessions covering different aspects of sustainability. Eric Ricaurte, principal, Greenview, moderated the day-long event. David Jerome, senior vice president Corporate Responsibility for InterContinental Hotels Group, led off the Roundtable by moderating a session entitled, “Managing Sustainability Across a Global Platform.” “Sustainability is new and people are going to make a lot of mistakes,” Jerome said. “Owners don’t live in this space every day. A lot of our general managers have not...

NEW YORK—The Hospitality Sustainable Purchasing Consortium (HSPC) announced that American Standard Brands has joined the Consortium as a Founding Member. A leader in creating high quality bathroom products for the hospitality industry, American Standard’s membership furthers the Consortium’s goals of establishing the Hospitality Sustainable Purchasing Index (HSP Index) as the de facto performance measurement solution for the industry.   With more than 4.5 million hotel rooms in the United States, the products that American Standard produces—including faucets, shower systems, furniture, vitreous china fixtures, kitchen sinks, bath tubs, and other plumbing products and accessories—are major investments for all hotels, brands...

TORONTO—Hunter Douglas Contract's GreenScreen Revive fabric received Cradle to Cradle Certification at the Silver level from MBDC. The high-performance roller shade fabric is made with PVC-free polyester using 89 percent recycled Repreve fibers. Each yard of GreenScreen Revive fabric uses 11 post-consumer bottles. To earn Cradle to Cradle certification, GreenScreen Revive had to possess the followingcharacteristics: • Material health: safe and healthy for humans and environment.• Material reutilization: material contains recycled and recyclable content.• Renewable energy use: commitment to use solar, wind, geothermal, or other renewablesources of energy during the manufacturing process.• Water stewardship: ensure clean water leaves the factory after...

TORONTO—In an effort to advance far-reaching strategies for energy efficiency and fossil fuel independence in new and operational buildings, the International Living Future Institute unveiled the Net Zero Energy Building Certification program. The program is linked to the Living Building Challenge, widely considered to be the world’s most stringent and progressive green building program. As with the Living Building Challenge, certification is based on actual performance rather than modeled outcomes. Buildings must be operational for at least 12 consecutive months prior to evaluation. “In the next two decades, we are looking at the disappearance of cheap oil, a scarcity of...