|
Global Summit
an Eye Opener for Green Hotel Professionals
At
EcoGreenHotel, we eat, sleep and breathe green lodging.
Environmentally-friendly hospitality is all we do – and it’s all
we’ve done for years. We spend every waking moment reading up on
the latest information, studying trends, products and
technology, and talking to hoteliers, staff, vendors, guests –
heck, anybody associated with lodging – about what’s happening
in the industry. It’s a complex specialty, and we know our
stuff inside out.
But we can
always know more.
That simple
truth was brought home to us earlier this month when we
participated in the 1st Annual Global Renewable
Energy Networking
Summit at
the
Bear Creek Mountain Resort and Conference Center in Macungie,
PA.
Although
EcoGreenHotel President Scott Parisi delivered a keynote address
at the Summit, he also took time to listen to a host of
presentations. One that caught his attention was delivered by
Jason Kliwinski, Director of Sustainable Design at Spiezle
Architectural Group of Trenton, N.J. Spiezle is an
award-winning firm that has designed spaces for companies such
as Merrill Lynch, Sirius Satellite Radio and Westin.
Jason’s
presentation, entitled “Creating a Culture of Sustainability,”
focused on just that – making sustainability a way of life…
a philosophy… a custom. He spoke of using a holistic
approach to sustainability project design and implementation,
and then he said something that really stuck with us:
We
are better than
Me.
Now, we all
know that teamwork is essential to a project’s success, and
chances are very good that if you’re working on a project at
your eco hotel, you’ve got a team in place. But take a look at
that team and assess the following:
Ø
Is it
diverse?
Are all
departments and management levels represented? Think too about
other diversity markers like gender, race and socio-economic
status. Identify gaps and fill them. Diversity is key to
success – you never know who is going to have the next great
idea!
Ø
Is
communication open?
Is everybody
still in the loop or has communication trickled off lately? Ask
the team for ideas about how to establish – and maintain – the
lines of communication.
Ø
What
is the level of commitment?
Are team
members still excited about the project or have they lost
interest? Bring them together to hear an inspiring speaker
(perhaps a local environmental activist) or to watch a
compelling documentary about climate change. Pick an
easy-to-implement sustainability project so the team can
experience some instant gratification to get them back on track.
How have you
inspired your eco hotel’s green team? Drop us a line at
info@EcoGreenHotel.com
and tell us all about it. We may feature your team in an
upcoming issue of our newsletter or on our website at
www.EcoGreenHotel.com!
Back
|
