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Eric Lowitt, a sustainability consultant, speaker and author, researched a number of public companies and completed an 18 month study on how Global Fortune 500 companies addressed sustainability. He shares his Five most significant findings here.

Conduct A Hotel Waste Audit To Save Money Jun 28, 2011: First steps to a waste management program is a waste audit. During a waste audit, the auditor investigates the sources, composition, weight, volume, and destinations of the waste that your hotel generates. By learning more about the trash your hotel generates, you can be better informed about the products you buy that contribute to waste and be better prepared to more efficiently dispose of it, saving money and improving your green hotel's environmental performance.

"Taking responsibility for a sustainable future". Jun 6, 2011

The enhanced version of the HA standard includes sustainability. This is in line with one the EFQM Business Excellence fundamental concepts - "Taking responsibility for a sustainable future".

How to build, operate and finance GREEN hotels now. Jun 1, 2011: This 2008 session from Hotel Lawyer on The Hotel Developers Conference™ addressed an entire conference to GREEN hotel development, construction, rehab and operation. This was a "Gen 2" conference -- moving beyond the basics and into the practical guidance and war stories from the veterans in the trenches.

The Hotel Developers Conference™ even had a great panel on the unique aspects of financing and underwriting the green hotel premium, but of course hotel finance -- green or otherwise -- is the entire subject of JMBM's industrial strength event.

The seven kinds of spas Jun 1, 2011

The seven kinds of spas. ISPA

The number of spa visitors has increased 16 percent over last year with an average of 33,000 annual visits per spa. And the message is spreading. Thirty-nine percent of spa visitors are first-time guests. Many guests are "testing the waters" for the first time, while savvy spa goers are branching out to sample greater numbers and various types of spas.

Types of spas? Don't all spas offer the same things? Far from it! The International SPA Association has categorized spas into seven types to assist spa goers in choosing the best spa experience for them.

Financial Management Secrets Of The Spa Industry May 29, 2011

Financial Management Secrets Of The Spa Industry.
Leslie Lyon

No matter whom it is you consult with however, industry leaders will tell you it’s all about the numbers and how to take them from paper, to profits. So the focus of this article will be those tricks of the trade, and how to take the information they are providing us and turn it into something tangible that will help sustain our businesses well into the future.

Unwelcomed Hotel Guest: Bed Bugs Part 2 - Green Eradication Strategies May 3, 2011: Part 1 Unwelcomed Guests: Bed Bugs editorial focused how to identify bed bugs and prevention techniques. Part 2 details how to fight back with an array of green solutions to eradicate those bed bugs giving you trouble, raising costs and tarnishing your hotel's image.

In the past, employing high doses of DDT was the preferred method of elimination. This was highly effective, however it came with a price to the indoor environment and still did not completely eradicate the pests. In fact, it can be argued that improper use of traditional chemicals and not fully understanding the pest's ability to travel has contributedto the current nationwide epidemic.

Reaching for the deadliest poison and spraying everything in the hotel is a thing of the past. Today there are a number of green pest control techniques to eliminate them completely. Often two or three of these sustainable options will be used in conjunction to increase their usefulness. Each option has its advantages and disadvantages in respect to cost, implementation and effectiveness. Finding the proper balance between environmental impacts, cost, and successful elimination is the real challenge.

Unwelcomed Hotel Guest: Bed Bugs Part 1 - Prevention Apr 22, 2011: Their numbers have continued to increase every year since 2000. They have no care for other guest’s satisfaction. They leave a trail of destruction wherever they go causing you to have to replace linens, mattresses and box springs.

They travel by planes, trains, and automobiles to come stay with you. They even make connections to their ultimate destination through some of the world’s busiest airports by hitching rides with unsuspecting travelers and luggage. Bed bugs travel and they are always looking for a hot meal and a place to stay. Unfortunately for hoteliers, these little pests are the worst kind of guest, creating tremendous amount of unwanted bad publicity and unexpected expenses.

The Challenges of Sustainable Hospitality Operations Mar 31, 2011: Cornell Research Summit Examines the Challenges of Sustainable Hospitality Operations
The fundamental contradictions of sustainability in the hospitality industry formed
a major focus of several presentations at the Cornell Hospitality Research Summit (CHRS), which aimed at improving both the industry's sustainability and profitability. The CHRS presentations on sustainability are summarized in the newly released conference sustainability proceedings, available at no charge from the Center for Hospitality Research (CHR)

Safety Implications of Greening Mar 30, 2011: Executive Summary
An important topic to business today is environmental stewardship or Greening: responsibly managing business operations to minimize their impact on the environment. The demand for corporate environmental awareness and responsibility is coming from investors and a new generation of customers. This is also receiving a great deal of attention by the media, government and the public.

Study finds that well-designed conservation efforts do not interfere with guest satisfaction Mar 22, 2011

Cornell Study Tests Hotel Energy Saving Treatments

Study finds that well-designed conservation efforts do not interfere with guest satisfaction

Green Hotels : 2011 Trends Forecast Jan 31, 2011: Among the top 10 trends for opportunity this year are travel, tourism and green.

According to the National Bureau of Economic Research, the economy’s been recovering since June 2009. , Knowing this can mean the difference between expanding bottom-line benefits versus standing in the stagnant zone another year. A recent survey by Discover Small Business Watch says the reason for the stagnation so far has been... 71 percent of the population are waiting for economic indicators to rise before they start to hire and spend.

Whether you believe hotels benefit by increasing their innovation efforts in recessionary times or not, waiting around is still ill-advised. While hotels are tightening their belts, using the recession as a chance to leapfrog competition isn’t a bad idea. Hotels just need to be thoughtful about how they approach innovation.