Hotels Make Strides

Hotels have made changes at both the local and chain level to reduce their environmental impact. But there's a way to go, notes Krystala Kalil, who is managing her fifth SRI in the Rockies as conference coordinator. “It's become a bottom-line issue. Hotels can save a lot of money,” she says. “Now you see them changing to compact fluorescent light bulbs, using smart on/off switches in guest rooms and rest rooms. There is much more awareness of electricity use. So we're definitely moving forward. But there is huge room for improvement. Energy wastage in the hotel business is unbelievable.”

Not that she and Gay aren't sympathetic to the binds many hotels find themselves in. Take the 2007 program at the Hyatt Regency Tamaya outside of Albuquerque. Gay and Kalil were impressed by the hotel's sustainability efforts and also attracted by the fact that it is a Native American-owned property. SRI in the Rockies is always held at locations that offer a unique experience, something extra, and at Tamaya, it was the Native American connection that infused the entire resort. But in one environmental area, it fell short. “Even though Tamaya is interested in recycling, there is no viable program in Albuquerque, so their hands are tied,” Kalil explains.

Another problem arises with five-star resorts. “One big issue is the rating system,” Gay notes. “In order to remain a five-star resort, they are going to wash your sheets every day and deliver newspapers to your room. So until rating standards incorporate green practices, some hotels will say, ‘We can't.’”

Michael Ciapciak, senior man-ager, ratings and inspections, at Mobil Travel Guide Inc., says the guide “is developing Green Standards that give credit to those properties that are taking a proactive stance with these issues. We have seen the challenges hotels face with trying to become ‘green’ while maintaining a sense of luxury.”

Meanwhile, some high-end hotels are way ahead of the curve: The Fairmont Whistler, for example, site of this November's SRI in the Rockies, has recycling bins in all guest rooms. “In Canada, you ask about recycling and they say, ‘Of course.’ In the U.S., you get excuses,” Gay says. “In Whistler, the whole village has a sustainability plan.” And yet even Whistler is not a perfect environmental choice because it's a two-hour drive from the airport — too far to comply with conference guidelines. The solution: SRI in the Rockies will provide bus transfers for all 700-plus attendees, and the bus company will offset its carbon emissions.

Stick With It

When you're on site, Gay says, consider a saying he learned in the Army: “‘People do best what the boss checks.’ Well, hotels do best what the conference planner checks. Get on it at the beginning.” Don't wait to see if the recycling bins will appear, if housekeeping will leave your towel alone the next day, or if the banquet staff will remember not to pre-pour iced tea the next time. Chase them all down immediately.

And consider Gay's unique way of paying for some of the green efforts: sponsorships. The conference's recycling sponsor and its carbon-offsets sponsor are in the high-level category, with benefits including four minutes during a meal function to address the conference, one free registration, a display ad at the conference Web site, and signage (such as on recycling bins) at the event.

In Boriin's view, the key is to keep going. “Once you start doing these things, they become routine,” he says. “They become part of your standard pre-con discussion. And people get it — clients, guests, hosts. They see it and they appreciate it. The tide is quickly turning.”

Need a Checklist? Take Your Pick

How to Host a Green Event

Find it: www.sustainabletravelinternational.com

Use it: for background on why you should reduce your eco-footprint, for green meetings suggestions, and to create a custom carbon emissions calculator

Unique idea: Track problems encountered by event staff regarding greening the event as well as feedback received from participants.

National Recycling Coalition's Green Meetings Policy

Find it: www.nrc-recycle.org/greenmeetingsp.aspx

Use it: as a complete guide to green meetings, right through to questions to ask in evaluating the meeting's success on “green” terms. At NRC's Web site you can find links to help you determine the recycling capabilities of your meeting destination.

Unique idea: Do a prize drawing from recycled name badges.

10 Easy Tips

Find it: www.bluegreenmeetings.org

Use it: to jump-start your green meetings planning

Unique idea: Write an environmental statement for your meeting and share it with suppliers, speakers, and delegates. Sample: “Company X commits to minimizing the environmental impact of X Conference through …” Add your list of initiatives, small or large. Just seeing something in writing will encourage people to pitch in.

Venue Selection Questionnaire

Find it: www.bluegreenmeetings.org

Use it: to send to hotels before your RFP process

Unique idea: Limited to 8 questions that allow a planner to get a general idea of a property's efforts and attitude toward sustainability

Fairmont Eco-Meet Checklist

Find it: www.fairmont.com/environment

Use it: to get an overview of Fairmont's eco-initiatives and also as a guideline for evaluating other properties

Unique idea: Donate leftover meeting supplies such as paper and pens to a local school or shelter.

Vertigo: Plan to Meet Green

(A project of the Canadian chapters of Meeting Professionals International)

Find it: www.mpiweb.org

Use it: as a comprehensive guide to green meetings and an environmental policy primer. Included are numerous sample corporate environmental statements

Unique idea: Make giveaways edible or reusable.

Green Hotels Association Meeting Planner's Questionnaire

Find it: www.greenhotels.com

Use it: in concert with your RFPs, to gauge the extent of a hotel's sustainability efforts

Unique idea: Provides real specificity: The questionnaire asks if there is a recycling program, if there is a recycling program in which guests can participate, if the hotel will provide recycling bins in meeting rooms, and if the hotel will commit to seeing that the items collected are actually recycled!

Simple Steps to Green Meetings

Find it: www.meetingstrategiesworldwide.com

Use it: Attend this seminar, given by green meetings pioneers Nancy Wilson, CMP, and Amy Spatrisano, CMP. Get upcoming dates by e-mailing operations@meetingstrategiesworldwide.com.

Unique idea: Sessions include mock site inspection.

The Convention Industry Council Green Meetings Report

Find it: www.conventionindustry.org

Use it: to find minimum best practices for event organizers and suppliers

Unique idea: Save generic signs for reuse; use local talent and products.

Be a Green Traveler

Find it: www.greenhotels.com

Use it: to e-mail to attendees, giving them suggestions for things to do before they leave home and during their hotel stay

Unique idea: Pick up one piece of litter every day.

Offsets, Credits, Tags, Truth: Due Diligence in a New Realm

An increasingly popular way for corporations to demonstrate their environmental stewardship is through carbon offsets. Essentially, companies acknowledge their carbon footprint — the total tonnage of greenhouse gases emitted into the atmosphere by their activities, including travel — and then buy “offsets” or “verified emission reductions” (VERs) to bring them to carbon “neutrality” or “balance.” One “offset” reduces one ton of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere when your offset purchase price funds a project such as tree planting (trees absorb CO₂).

But let's back up. Environ-mentalists would call offsets the third step. First, reduce emissions as much as possible. Second, get some or all of your electricity from renewable energy sources. Then consider offsets.

Sustainable Travel International estimates that offsetting the carbon emissions of an event can cost $250 to $2,000, depending on the event's size. Including offsets for attendee hotel stays and air travel adds $25 to $50 per person.

But questions arise. Who calculates your footprint? Who sells you the offsets? Who verifies that your money goes to a viable project? What about “double counting”? (That is, are you being sold the same offsets that someone else is buying?) Do your offsets meet the “additionality” test? (That is, are you buying emissions reductions that were going to happen anyway, even without your investment?)

The following organizations certify or vet carbon providers, offering a starting point for companies wanting to purchase offsets.

www.cleanair-coolplanet.org CA-CP commissioned the first report vetting 30 carbon- offset providers. Because the marketplace of offset providers has expanded since the research was done, CA-CP considers the specific vendor assessments in the report outdated. Still relevant and available, however, is CA-CP's comprehensive review methodology, which companies could use to assess their own potential vendors.

www.fightglobalwarming.org A Web site created by the Environmental Defense Fund. Recommends four providers selling offsets for $4 to $8 per ton of CO₂

www.cdmgoldstandard.org The Gold Standard certification, developed by several international nonprofits, is given only to renewable energy and energy efficiency projects — in other words, those that seek to reduce emissions in the first place.

www.green-e.org certifies renewable energy credits. A word of warning: Some organizations consider RECs, which are most often used to buy wind power and “add it to the grid,” problematic. That's because of the challenge of meeting the “additionality” test — the test of whether this renewable energy would have been produced anyway, in the absence of the RECs.

www.ghgprotocol.org offers the Greenhouse Gas Protocol Corporate Standard, which helps companies prepare a GHG inventory that represents a true account of their emissions.

Offset Providers

www.conservation.org Helps companies create sustainability plans

www.nativeenergy.com Offsets help build Native American-owned renewable energy projects.

www.drivinggreen.com Offsets support projects to reduce methane and nitrous oxide in agriculture.

www.atmosclear.org Offsets support collecting landfill gas from a facility outside Chicago and using it as fuel for generating electricity.

www.atmosfair.com Offsets support projects in developing countries.

www.carbonneutral.com Read the CarbonNeutral Protocol, an exhaustive guide to evaluating projects.

www.carbonfund.org You can choose your project.

www.terrapass.com Projects happen the same year you buy your offsets.

www.climatecare.org Read project case studies.

www.climatetrust.com Wide variety of projects

www.ebluehorizons.net Offshoot of The Conservation Fund; focus on reforestation

www.sustainabletravel.com In addition to earning certifications such as the CDM Gold Standard, projects meet internal standards for respecting local culture and generating positive side benefits for the community.