Bienvenidos a Puerto Rico! Puerto Rico lo Hace Mejor!

Welcome to Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico does it better! Aloha, or should I say, hola from Puerto Rico, where I've been lucky enough to been staying the past week thanks to my friend Yahayra Rosario Cora (whose doing her project on Urban Sustainable Farms and education with the Laura Mercado School in Rosario, PR... her mission?...

Use Small Urban/Suburban Farms to educate and enable low-income communities in Puerto Rico to reduce the high dependence on government economic assistance; and produce, promote and market local food products in order to improve the local economy and meet the nutritional needs of the community.

read more about it at her blog http://switchfoodchainpuertorico.tumblr.com/).

On another note, as part of this trip, I've made my way over to the San Juan Marriott Resort and Stellaris Casino to check out what this property is doing on the "green" front. Here are just some "undercover" (ethnographic research) pictures, I'll fill you in on exactly what the property's doing after my conversation with the engineering department.

view of the front desk, rest of the lobby is being renovated

as you can see here! (hope they're using local materials :)

construction...

view from the steps leading to the pool... ahh puerto rico!

view of the pool

looks like the property's upscale dining outlet... everybody loves Italian!

pool bar where we enjoyed some cocktails... all part of the research of course!

yay sustainability! a public recycling bin

nicely renovated and maintained room hallways, good use of fluorescent bulbs

I might have to fly back to see this "sensational" new lobby someday!

Making sustainability memorable

Memorable guest experiences = the epitome of great service + personalization + a dream come true for the PR department. Every employee, service item, sequence of service... every single aspect of a hospitality operation contributes to the goal of providing the ultimate guest experience. But what about a sustainable guest experience? Kal Wellman at the USGBC was kind enough to introduce me to USGBC's Green Destination Challenge, which got me thinking of the opportunity to provide a memorably sustainable guest experience. Especially since the goal of the Challenge's Pilot Program in Orlando is "a total sustainable EXPERIENCE - from the moment a visitor steps off the plane in Orlando, to the transportation to their hotel, to their stay at local lodging, to daily activities, and all the way back to the airport." Orlando's mission is to become the most sustainable tourism and convention destination in North America. 

Great service has the power to bring guests back, the power to gain positive reviews and comments of "Best Vacation Ever!" on facebook and twitter.... but what exactly is a memorable guest experience and how can we translate that into a sustainable guest experience?

Can a view or destination make a memorable experience?



What about great amenities that let you spend quality time with your family and friends?



Or a unforgettably delicious meal?

 

delicious drinks?

or a celebrity sighting? I mean who doesn't love Magic Johnson?!



...or great service from an award winning bartender (Fred Sconfienza)



Truthfully, all of these contribute their part to a unforgettable vacation. If sustainability was inherent in all of these aspects and services, guests could go home with at least a sense of the hospitality of sustainability. A guest-driven, sustainability-driven service model would also build guest loyalty, enhance brand value, and increase positive word of mouth.  So I look forward to the outcomes of USGBC's  Green Destination Challenge and am moving forward in this project to see how I can inject sustainability into brand culture and the service DNA inherent in hospitality.

(Photos courtesy of The Westin Maui Resort and Spa)

F&B ops - deliciously green

Here's a few tips I put together for another project earlier this year. The project was Whitemarsh Plaza (Green the great American strip mall). Seeing as how the plaza housed such delicious restaurants as Kainan and Thrive, it was great to focus our efforts on specific tenant needs. Just like in a hotel, every department has its own unique operating needs.

It is what it is... OR is it?

"It is what it is..." has to be one of the phrases I dislike the most. Whenever one of my servers would say that in response to a bad service experience or mistake it would make me two times angrier than if they would have just admitted to messing up. As a "gift" to me today, riding the ferry in Savannah over to the Westin, "it is what it is" is the response I got after remarking to a tourist the disgusting amount of plastic floating in the water around the boat... plastic cups, plastic bags, plastic forks, plastic wrappers... and OH, finally something organic/plastic, a package of croutons wrapped in plastic...

As I replied back... "yeah, it is what it is...
..EXCEPT when it isn't!"

This is especially true of the sustainability hospitality movement -- a movement that is of course motivated in part by cost savings and market share, but a movement nonetheless. One that addresses the triple bottom line of people, planet, and profit. One that addresses the growing issues of our changing world. As I watch CNN and hear the story of a 4 year old girl, Sarah, in Africa dying of starvation because of the drought and hear stories of the growing number of climate refugees around the world I realize that sure, it is what it is... EXCEPT when you do something about it.

Engagement: A big fat key to sustainable operations

Refining a subject as big as Sustainable Hospitality is not so easy. So many players, so many pieces of the puzzle, so many obstacles -- but one defining factor of successful hotel environmental programs is employee engagement.

You can make big shiny graphics, catchy slogans, photos of your GM shaking hands with various non profit organizations, and paper hangers that tell your guests to reuse their towels -- all of this doesn't make a success environmental operation program -- if not implemented correctly, all of this lead to nothing more than pure and simple greenwashing.

This seems to be the ultimate challenge, getting associates on board and truly engaged in new sustainable programs. Back in the days when the towel reuse program was in its beginning stages one of the biggest complaints from guests was that the program wasn't being fulfilled by hotel employees. Green-minded guests would hang up their towels only to come back to a new towel. This lack of associate interest and adoption of new practices almost led to the end of the towel reuse program entirely.

So, this is the ultimate question -- how to create a program that "entices" employees to adopt sustainable practices, not only in the workplace, but at home. Let's face it, what really makes a great hospitality experience is the people and service from the heart.

My goal: find a way to integrate sustainable practices in a hotel's SOPs and core brand values so associates can live sustainability the same way they live and breathe great service and brand culture. Got any ideas? I'd love em!

Talking Stories: Conversations with the Industry

Been a busy week -- had the amazing opportunity to meet Dartmouth's big green bus crew. What a great program, can't think of anything better than travelling the country in a biodiesel bus, spreading awareness and meeting quite a few interesting people along the way. A big Mahalo to all of them for visiting!

It's always fantastic to get new ideas and inputs from other sustainability gurus.

Here's a rundown of a few of the individuals I've been lucky enough to talk to in the past few weeks and a piece of wisdom each of them offers for greening the hotel industry.

Suganthi Simon -- EPA Pollution Prevention Coordinator, Region 4 (Atlanta).
Wisdom: Standardization and measurement tools are important parts of any industry's sustainability initiatives. Read more about EPA's green initiatives in the lodging industry here.

Pat Maher -- AH&LA's green guru himself. A key player in the creation of AH&LA's Green Task Force.
Wisdom: Establishing a green committee at a property is a key part of successfully executing environmental goals.

Peter Goren -- AGLHA President (American Green Lodging and Hospitality Association).
Wisdom: Sustainability isn't easy, you have to be constantly vigilant about associates, suppliers, and partners upholding their promises. In addition to energy and water savings, waste management is also a huge cost for hotels and a huge opportunity to be green and save green.

Neel Inamdar: Fund Manager, Verde Ventures, Conservation International.
Wisdom: Implementing green programs isn't rocket science, it takes good management practices. In making the shift towards sustainability you have to look at your supply chain and make the shift towards sustainability go all the way down the line.

Marriott Associates -- thank you to the Marriott properties I've talked to -- as I've learned, committment to people is the key to sustainability and great service.

Going forward, a lot more people to meet and talk to, and a lot of knowledge to be gained and give. Thanks everyone!

Sustainable Hospitality... utopia or reality?

Just spent my walk to the local grocery store having a refreshing conversation with one of Savannah's local basket weavers on what tourism has done for the area and the pluses and minuses of drunk and not-so-drunk crowds during major holidays. Major plus -- revenue for his beautifully woven pieces (for which he spent all morning climbing trees for). Major minus -- noise, disrespect, and overall ignorance of non-tourist related areas. That topic got me talking about my current project -- the hospitality of sustainability -- and first thing he mentioned was that "all that" is for the rich in order to preach "better ways" to the community that they left behind. So, is sustainability, with all its great movements, technologies, and innovations, really that hospitable? Or can it be seen as a ignorantly planned out movement to make shareholders happy and luxury consumers feel better about eating a 4 pound lobster for lunch at a destination resort? This conversation definitely strengthened my resolve to see how sustainability, instilled through a hospitality brand through to its people and subsequently to its guests and community, can make a truly POSITIVE difference not only for the property and wallstreet but for the communities that surround the Earth's many beautiful destinations.