PALMA, SPAIN—Iberostar Hotels & Resorts is a hotel chain with more than 120 four- and five-star hotels, located in the most popular holiday destinations in Europe, Africa, and America. The Iberostar hotel portfolio offers customers beachfront hotels, city hotels and heritage hotels. In addition, there is the Grand category, the highest level of luxury and excellence. Iberostar’s Wave of Change movement is an initiative based on three complementary but different action lines: eliminating the consumption of single-use plastics, promoting responsible seafood consumption and the improvement of coastal health. Leading Iberostar’s work under the Wave of Change movement is Dr....

CORK, IRELAND—Johnson Controls, a global leader for smart, healthy and sustainable buildings, announced it has joined The Climate Pledge, a commitment co-founded by Amazon and Global Optimism. Signatories of the Pledge commit to reaching net-zero carbon emissions by 2040, ten years ahead of the goal set out in the United Nations’ Paris Climate Agreement. Johnson Controls is one of 53 organizations that have now signed the Pledge, and the move comes hot on the heels of the company’s announcement of new environmental, social and governance (ESG) commitments, science-based targets, and its own net-zero carbon pledge. The pact will see Johnson...

ST. PAUL, MINN.—Ecolab Inc., a global leader in water, hygiene and infection prevention solutions and services, ranks third on Barron’s 2021 list of the Most Sustainable Companies in the U.S. The list ranks companies based on 230 performance indicators, including workplace diversity and greenhouse gas emissions, and how they performed for five key constituencies: shareholders, employees, customers, community and the planet. Ecolab has been named to Barron’s Most Sustainable Companies in the U.S. list every year since it was first released in 2018. “Sustainability is core to our purpose to make the world cleaner, safer and healthier,” said Ecolab CEO...

FAROE ISLANDS—For those of you not familiar with their location, the Faroe Islands are a North Atlantic archipelago located 200 miles north-northwest of Scotland, and about halfway between Norway and Iceland. Like Greenland, it is an autonomous territory within the Kingdom of Denmark. Last October, the 130-room Hilton Garden Inn Faroe Islands opened on the islands in Torshavn with a bundle of unique green features. Green Lodging News recently corresponded with Kate Mikesell, VP Corporate Responsibility, Hilton, and Martin Restorff, General Manager of the hotel, to learn about those green gems. For Kate Mikesell, VP Corporate Responsibility, Hilton: Q: Explain how...

ITHACA, N.Y.—As with all things 2020, the 11th annual Center for Hospitality Research Sustainability Roundtable took on a distinctively different format, a virtual webinar format. It would have been easy to “take a pass” on holding the Roundtable given the dire state of the hospitality industry and the inability to gather in person. However, even though issues surrounding sustainability may not be at the forefront for operators, brands, or owners of hotels, it is still considered an important pillar in most organizations’ corporate strategy. Therefore, the Center for Hospitality Research at the School of Hotel Administration in the SC...

NEW YORK—Wayaj welcomes its newest partnership with the Saint Lucia Hospitality and Tourism Association (SLHTA), the private sector body representing the island’s hospitality and tourism industry. The two organizations agreed to come together to strengthen the island’s strategy as they embrace sustainability as part of the future development of the industry. Wayaj, a sustainable travel platform, designed to encourage and promote earth friendly travel, has over 470 hotel members in 109 countries, of which 26 are in the Caribbean. Its membership includes independently owned properties and several major hotel brands and affiliations like Six Senses, Marriott, Hilton, Relais and Chateaux...

WEST LAFAYETTE, IND.—Concrete is not glamorous. It is the workhorse of building materials: versatile, durable, and almost universally ubiquitous, with 30 billion tons of concrete produced every year. Cement, a component of concrete, produces 8 percent of the world’s carbon footprint. Looking to lower that percentage, Purdue University engineers have discovered a way to make concrete more sustainable. Their new recipe for concrete has the potential to cut carbon emissions dramatically, creating building blocks for a better world. A team lead by Mirian Velay-Lizancos, an Assistant Professor of Civil Engineering at Purdue, proposes adding small amounts of nanoscale titanium dioxide to...

RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA—His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Crown Prince, Chairman of The Red Sea Development Company (TRSDC), has launched the Coral Bloom concept, which was created by architectural firm Foster + Partners, and designed to blend in with the island’s pristine natural environment. TRSDC, the developer behind the world’s most ambitious regenerative tourism project, has since shared the striking vision for its main hub island at the destination, Shurayrah. “We expect guests to be awed by what they see when they first arrive at The Red Sea Project, enjoying a truly immersive barefoot luxury experience. The Coral Bloom designs,...

BANGKOK—The Six Senses Botanique has joined the Six Senses portfolio. This emerald gem is located 2.5 hours from São Paulo and 3.5 hours from Rio de Janeiro. It lies at the confluence of three river valleys in the heart of the Mantiqueira Mountains, known as the “mountains that weep” due to the abundance of springs and rivers. For Six Senses Botanique, however, there is plenty to be happy about. After three months of training centered around the Six Senses brand standards and values, hosts cannot wait to showcase out-of-the-ordinary experiences and emotional hospitality, with the Six Senses integrated pillars of...

DENHAM, ENGLAND—IHG Hotels & Resorts has launched Journey to Tomorrow, a series of ambitious new commitments to make a positive difference for people, communities and planet over the next decade. Guided by IHG’s purpose to provide True Hospitality for Good, it will work side by side with those who stay, work and partner with it, to help shape the future of responsible travel—supporting people and making a positive difference to local communities, while preserving the planet’s beauty and diversity long into the future. In an open letter, IHG’s CEO, Keith Barr, said that the global response to Covid-19 has shown what can be achieved when organizations...