CHICAGO—The National Restaurant Assn. (NRA) recently previewed its revamped Zero Waste Zones program in Atlanta, saying it is excited to help the city’s restaurateurs, foodservice businesses and retailers become more sustainable.The NRA, which acquired the initiative late last year, reintroduced an expanded version of the program October 23 at an official reception at Ted’s Montana Grill in downtown Atlanta. The revamped program will follow the rules of the NRA’s Conserve Sustainability Education Program.“Our members have a strong and growing interest in energy efficiency, recycling and sustainability in general,” said Scott DeFife, the NRA’s executive vice president of policy and...

NEW YORK—Designtex announced that Susan Lyons, president of Designtex, will be honored as a Legacy Innovator at the Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute’s inaugural Innovation Celebration event, which will be held in New York on November 15 to recognize leaders in product design innovation as they create better products for our world.This award recognizes Lyons’s pioneering role as a passionate but practically minded advocate for environmental sustainability in textile design. In 1993, Lyons, then Creative Director of Designtex, began to research the possibility of developing a collection of ecological fabrics. But at that time no one knew exactly...

MIAMI—Coverings ETC announces the newest addition to its Bio-Glass collection: “Topaz Blue.” This new color is made from 100 percent upcycled bottles. Topaz Blue rounds out a roster of six colors including White Diamond, Oriental Jade, Fossil Amber, Malachite, and Emerald Forest.Merging subtle elegance with durability, Red Dot Design award winner Bio-Glass is stain proof and scratch resistant, making it ideal for kitchen countertops, back-splashes, vanities, and wall coverings. It is available in sheet sizes measuring 110" x 49" x ¾" thick. Bio-Glass is suitable for partitions, facades, and other decorative surfaces. They’re as durable as granite and, being...

NEW YORK—Hastings Tile & Bath, importers and distributors of contemporary bathroom products, has announced additions to VOLA’s award-winning Round Series of in-wall accessories for residential and hospitality bathrooms. The new electronic soap dispenser and cistern flush are built-in and aligned to the wall. They are also completely contact-free, using the latest technology to provide a clean experience.The Round Series for the luxury washroom already features the built-in waste bin and the built-in tissue dispenser. Together with the classic VOLA hands-free tap (now available in a vertical configuration) and electronic cistern flush, the new soap dispenser takes the outer circle...

AUSTIN, TEXAS—Hotels for Hope, the Austin, Texas-based hotel brokerage company, announced its partnership with Clean the World, the social enterprise that distributes recycled soap and hygiene products from hospitality partners to children and families in countries suffering from high death rates due to the top two killers of children—acute respiratory infection and diarrheal diseases.Clean the World joins Hotels for Hope’s current list of charitable partner organizations that focus on humanitarian aid. Through the partnership, Clean the World will benefit from Hotels for Hope’s model for giving, which contributes $2 for every roomnight stay to charitable partner organizations that seek...

GRAND CANYON NATIONAL PARK—Forever Resorts’ Grand Canyon Lodge-North Rim has received an Environmental Achievement Award from the National Park Service for Environmental Stewardship at the North Rim of Grand Canyon National Park. The award was conferred specifically for the Grand Canyon Lodge-North Rim’s waste reduction program.In 2009, the lodge embarked on a program of daily hand sorting of all solid waste. In 2012 alone, it recycled nearly 55,000 pounds of cardboard, 3,600 pounds of paper, 10,000 pounds of metal, 40,000 pounds of glass and 18,000 pounds of plastic. In addition, 103,000 pounds of food waste was converted to a...

CLEVELAND, OHIO—Hasek Communications, the Cleveland, Ohio-based publisher of Green Lodging News, welcomes Preserve as a Green Product & Service Directory partner. Made with recycled yogurt cups, Preserve’s toothbrushes and razors are a colorful, eco-friendly choice for guests. All of the company’s products are made in the United States from 100 percent recycled plastic, and recyclable through municipal recycling where #5 plastic is accepted or through Preserve’s Gimme 5 retail-based and mail-in recycling program. Learn more by going to www.preserveproducts.com, or contacting sales@preserveproducts.com or (781) 893-2204, ext. 109.

SAN JOSE, CALIF.—Neon Technologies introduces Concierge, a guest-facing hotel concierge service with the ability to dramatically decrease hotels’ negative environmental effects. By logging requests digitally, and reducing consumption of high-turnover hotel amenities, NEON provides a software solution that saves hotels money, and reduces degradation of the environment.“Growing up in Oberlin, Ohio, I cultivated an eye for sustainability and improvement of the environment,” said co-founder Nick Chmura. “When I traveled across Europe, and later the United States, I was shocked at the lack of sophistication in hotels regarding waste. I always had too many of the wrong towels, or when...

LONDON—Marriott International has launched a limited edition tote bag with an exclusive print by British luxury accessories brand, Lily and Lionel. The print is featured on a SleepingBags tote bag made in England from 100 percent recycled bed linen provided by U.K. Marriott hotels. This first of its kind bag is available to purchase with Marriott donating a portion from the sale of every bag to The Prince’s Trust.Marriott is the first major hotel company to partner with pioneering British social enterprise, SleepingBags, to transform retired hotel bed linen into items that can be put back into hotels as...

ATLANTA—The Acuity Brands, Inc. Carlisle, Penn. manufacturing and distribution center has achieved zero landfill status, as certified by Link International, a California-based full-service waste and recyclable commodities company. This is the second Acuity Brands manufacturing and distribution site to operate as a zero landfill plant. Waste generated by the Carlisle plant is now recycled or composted.“We are thrilled to implement the zero landfill process at a second site within our plant facilities network,” said Derek Nelson, Vice President, Northeast Operations at Acuity Brands Lighting. “As a manufacturer of products that help reduce energy waste, it is important to us...