Category: Hotels

Laundry Poster Giveaway!

4/30/2015

As a special web exclusive, here is a free laundry poster download containing a variety of helpful sustainability tips. Post it up in any common laundry room to make sure users save you water and energy, and minimize pollution impacts with their laundry habits. Enjoy!

Having trouble seeing the preview below? Click here to download this free PDF file. Be sure to contact Sundowner for a quote if you have additional custom sustainability signage needs!

sundowner_laundry_signage.pdf
File Size:	272 kb
File Type:	pdf

Download File

0 Comments

Ramada Santa Barbara Designated Gold Certified Green Lodging Property

1/22/2015

0 Comments

Ramada Santa Barbara was recently designated a Gold Certified Green Lodging Property by environmental nonprofit Audubon International.

The hotel is the first in Santa Barbara and the sixth in California to receive certification from Audubon International.

The hotel’s environmental highlights include a pool heated by solar panels, electric vehicle charging stations, LED lighting, permeable pavers, water-conserving fixtures and plates made from sugarcane.

"Because we care about our local community, we're constantly looking for new ways to reduce our environmental footprint," Ramada Santa Barbara general manager Tom Patton said. "Earning a gold-level certification through Audubon International allows us to further communicate this environmental commitment to our guests, and provides great encouragement to our staff to keep up the great work."

Sundowner Sustainability Consulting, a Santa Barbara-based company, is also thrilled with Ramada Santa Barbara's latest environmental achievement. As the hotel's consultants during Ramada Santa Barbara's successful bid to achieve Green Business Certification through Santa Barbara County last year, Sundowner continued to partner with Ramada to ensure its best practices were highlighted throughout the Audubon International review process.

"Ramada's willingness to adopt green practices whenever feasible has really helped solidify their position as a local environmental leader in the hospitality industry," Sundowner Sustainability managing partner Ellie Perry said. "It's been a pleasure to see how quickly they continue to evolve and innovate with each environmental certification they pursue."

Ramada Santa Barbara is one of 64 Audubon International Certified Green Lodging Properties around the United States and the Caribbean. Certified properties are rated in the categories of Communication and Education; Waste Reduction, Reuse, and Recycling; Water Conservation, Energy Efficiency, and Indoor Air Quality. To earn certification, all properties receive a site visit by an Audubon International staff member and undergo a recertification process every three years.

“Ramada Santa Barbara demonstrates a clear passion for adopting measures to lower their environmental impact,” said Katie Hopkins, director of communications at Audubon International. “From the installation of electric vehicle charging stations to incentivizing staff to use alternative transportation, Ramada Santa Barbara is setting a great example in the Santa Barbara community.”

For the full press release, see Noozhawk's article here.

0 Comments

DIY Hazardous Waste Bins

10/21/2014

0 Comments

As a commercial customer, safely disposing of hazardous waste like burned out CFL's or batteries from your facility is your responsibility. Unlike residential customers, commercial customers are expected to make their own drop offs for such waste items to a community hazardous waste collection center. But how do you make sure your employees and co-workers properly store these items for collection?

Time for a simple DIY project to ensure your organization's batteries, old cleaning solutions, and other hazardous materials don't miss the next ride to the collection center:

Step 1: Purchase or find any clean bin with a properly fitting lid. (Landlords of multi-family housing units can even request a free orange bucket for this purpose from Marborg- info here).
Step 2: Attach a Sundowner Universal Waste Poster ($8 for a printable PDF) to it.
Step 3: Voila! You have a bin with some excellent signage ready to accept hazardous waste.

Read on for more information on how to properly handle hazardous waste as a commercial customer.

0 Comments

Green Certification Coaching Pays Off!

8/19/2014

0 Comments

There are a lot of different attitudes in the commercial sector when it comes to green certifications. Some nay say the whole idea, thinking: "It's just greenwashing"... "My customers won't care"... "It's too expensive"... "It's too much work". But here at Sundowner, we believe that the right type of certifications can lead to better environmental performance, and that working with us can save time AND money! Here's how:

"It's just greenwashing"... to ensure certifications actually reward environmental performance, the best programs have independent (3rd party) auditors and/or systems to verify practices and make additional recommendations. Organizations that are industry-recognized and/or are sponsored by government/non-profit entities usually have the most incentive to ensure sound environmental practices. Make sure the certification body is reputable!
"My customers won't care"... if the boom in "eco-friendly" and "green" products and companies in the market today isn't enough to convince you that consumers pay a premium for environmentally responsible goods and services, then you may be interested to hear there can also be penalties for NOT being "green." Consumer suspicion about green claims is at an all time high, as is the expectation that companies will hold to higher environmental standards (e.g. BP is still suffering from the negative PR resulting from their oil spill disaster).
"It's too expensive"... it's hard to see the immediate economic benefits from some environmental measures like buying eco-friendly products, or installing a bike rack on your property. However, those benefits can often emerge later in the form of that allergen-sensitive customer enjoying your paraben free soap, or the reduced health insurance claims from healthier employees that started biking to work. As sustainability experts, Sundowner can help you see the bigger picture and identify environmental measures that work for you. Combine that with our rebate application service, and you may actually see an immediate impact on your utility bills as well money right back in your pocket!
"It's too much work"... then hire a professional! With Sundowner's green certification coaching, we handle the auditors, the paperwork, and the work of actually identifying and implementing green measures. Instead of counting light bulbs, toilets, and bins or trying to write an environmental purchasing policy yourself, be smart like our client Ramada Santa Barbara and hire an expert to save you staff time and hassle. (Click here for an article announcing the Green Business Certification they achieved with the help of our coaching services). As long as you have the desire to do better for the environment, we can get you the rest of the way- just contact us today!

0 Comments

Author

Sundowner offers a full range of sustainability ("green") consulting services to help organizations improve their environmental performance while saving time and money in the process. Read on for more tips and case studies on how to make our mission part of your mission!

Laundry Poster Giveaway!

Ramada Santa Barbara Designated Gold Certified Green Lodging Property

DIY Hazardous Waste Bins

Green Certification Coaching Pays Off!

Archives

Author

Categories