Our list of solar powered lodging establishments is by no means complete but it keeps getting longer. See the list by clicking here. The list consists primarily of U.S. hotels but there are many listed from outside the U.S. as well. As of today, a total of about 275 lodging establishments are listed. I just added Calabash Luxury Boutique Hotel in Grenada, Hotel Terrestre in Mexico, and Nayara Bocas del Toro in Panama. As far as I know, this is the most comprehensive list of solar-powered lodging establishments in the world. A bit about the last three additions: At Calabash Luxury...

LA VERNE, CALIF.—Sunflare is light, thin, rugged solar and can be installed on existing parking structures. Sunflare modules are lighter than silicon, so they can go where other solar cannot. That means there’s no need for heavy steel replacement, which is required with traditional solar. This also means there’s no dusty structure demolition and removal. The net result is minimal disruption or displacement of tenants, customers, and employees. The additional benefit of not having to construct a new parking structure is that there’s no potential hassle with new code compliance—which sometimes requires changes to parking lots—an additional project that can...

NORWOOD, MASS.—Leading travel industry nonprofit Tourism Cares will celebrate its 20th anniversary this year, marking two decades of impact programming in the sustainable tourism space. Tourism Cares was formed when USTOA’s Travelers Conservation Foundation and NTA’s National Tour Foundation merged and became an independent nonprofit in 2003. This was marked with the launch of Tourism Cares for America give back project on Ellis Island in New York City and the event was the first of its kind, bringing more than 300 travel and tourism professionals from across the industry together in volunteerism, uniting competitors, and collaborators alike. “In the beginning, Tourism Cares was...

RUEIL-MALMAISON, FRANCE—Schneider Electric, a leader in the digital transformation of energy management and automation, recognized as a leading sustainability practitioner by independent Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) ratings, announced strong annual sustainability impact results alongside its 2022 financial performance. “Despite increased geopolitical and economic uncertainty, in 2022, we remained focused on accelerating the transition to a cleaner and fairer world,” says Gwenaëlle Avice-Huet, Schneider Electric’s Chief Strategy & Sustainability Officer. “The close integration of corporate strategy, quality and sustainability is a factor of success to provide digitization, electrification, efficiency and sustainability solutions that tackle today’s energy, climate and cost of...

CHICAGO—The Mitchell Group introduces three new Sta-Kleen Silicone Digital Print upholstery fabrics. The digital print collection offers the same environmental, performance, and cleaning qualities as the award-winning Sta-Kleen Silicone fabrics, says Bill Fisch, president. The three new patterns: Bloom, Fleur, and Song have been designed for the healthcare, hospitality, contract, and other commercial markets. The Sta-Kleen Silicone collection now consists of 10 digital print patterns and three solid patterns. “Sta-Kleen Silicone is produced in a new state-of-the-art manufacturing facility. It was conceived, planned, and constructed under the direction of an environmentally driven team that’s trained in and remains dedicated to fuel...

PALMA, SPAIN—Meliá Hotels International has achieved the highest rating in the global travel industry in the latest S&P Global Corporate Sustainability Assessment (CSA), an assessment of the performance in sustainability of companies in 2022. S&P Global’s CSA is the world’s most comprehensive annual assessment of the sustainability performance of companies across all industries, focusing on economic, governance, social and environmental criteria, as well as on industry-specific criteria. Meliá has taken part since 2018, a year in which it was ranked third in the industry. From 2019 t0 2021 the company achieved the top position in the ranking in Spain and...

RALEIGH, N.C.—Paneltech, manufacturer of PaperStone recycled paper composite panels for countertops and cladding, recently invested in the creation of an Environmental Product Declaration (EPD). The EPD process requires full transparency into the product’s life cycle to determine environmental impacts. The analysis covers a “Cradle-to-Grave” scope of the product, meaning that environmental impacts are assessed from the extraction and processing of the raw materials used to manufacture the panels to the end of the panels’ life. Products covered by the EPD are PaperStone Solid and Designer Collection Countertop Panels in colors Charcoal, Graphite, Gunmetal, Pewter, Sand, and Slate. The document is...

MORGAN HILL, CALIF.—Enteligent Inc., developer of solar power optimization and electric vehicle (EV) solar charging technologies that delivers more of the clean solar energy you generate and dramatically reduces cost, is unveiling the world’s first DC-to-DC solar hybrid bi-directional EV charger this week at Intersolar NA 2023 in Booth 2460. Powered directly from the sun, Enteligent’s solar EV charger can supply 25 kW of fast DC charging—three times faster than AC Level 2 EV chargers—while also supporting vehicle-to-home (V2H) and vehicle-to-grid (V2G) home energy resilience and providing significant energy savings. Currently, EV owners plug their cars into home chargers which...

INTERNATIONAL REPORT—The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the urgency for companies and individuals to act to protect the wellbeing of the planet, their communities, their employees, and in the case of hotels, their guests. As such, environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiatives have accelerated. The hotel industry’s commitment to ESG initiatives, while somewhat nascent, is increasing. Rising energy costs, which have increased electricity costs by 10 percent since May 2021, are likely to accelerate the industry’s focus on sustainability, particularly given the shift in traveler preferences toward more sustainable tourism and green accommodations and the growing demand for disclosure around climate risk....

HALLANDALE, FLA.—Reducing the impact on the environment is a strong challenge hospitality players must face. As a leading international amenities provider, Groupe GM continuously strives to become the most environmentally aware it can be. In 2018 the Group developed a complete eco-responsible program, Care About Earth, to help hoteliers answer these challenges while welcoming their guests. Bathrooms should be a clean and safe space for guests as should be the soap dispensers provided for guest use. When opening dispensers and filling them, germs, bacteria and even viruses can enter and settle on top of the product. The bacteria can also...