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Green Living -- at Home and on the Road
How environmentally sensitive are you in your daily life? Do you recycle? Is organic food at least part of your diet? What about resource conservation -- with energy and water? And if this is part of the way you live, do you take those habits on the road?
When you stop to think how much the hospitality industry consumes resources in the effort to have ample light, clean sheets and towels, hot water and proper climate for their guests, you'll understand why you should take your green habits with you when you travel. A typical hotel purchases more resources and products in one week than 100 families do in one year. There are a variety of steps you can take that will help the hospitality industry reduce it's consumption and shrink it's environmental footstep.
The book Cradle to Cradle (buy your copy from the link found at http://www.thebandblady.com/reading.html), a vital read written by William McDonough and Michael Braungart, will challenge your present concept of the Five Rs and replace it with a new paradigm of environmental soundness. Pay attention to as much of the Five Rs -- Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Renewable, and Repair -- as you can while you travel to do your part in greening the hospitality industry.
There are lots of ideas for ways to be green both at home and as you travel. First you'll find the green on the road suggestions, then ideas for being greener at home.
Reduce your use of resources (water, natural gas/propane, electricity, plastic, and paper) in the bathrooms, kitchen, yard, and around the house.
Reduce your use of resources (water, natural gas/propane, electricity, plastic, and paper) in the bathrooms, kitchen, yard, and around the house.
- While you travel:
* Turn lights, TV and/or radio off when you leave the room.
* Forgo the individual amenities offered by hotels, keeping them out of the landfill. Travel with your own
soap and shampoo.
* Save water by minimizing your shower length.
* Utilize the hotel's sheet and towel re-use program.
* Unless you actually read the newspaper left at your door, ask to not get one.
- At home:
* Retrofit bathrooms with low-flow fixtures
* Plant xeric gardens so the plants native to your location can thrive on what water nature provides rather
than your outdoor faucets provide
* Use energy efficient appliances and air conditioner/furnace to save electricity.
* Retrofit your lights with compact fluorescent light bulbs to save energy.
* Pre-cycle by buying products that have minimal packaging and then strive to buy products in more
highly-recyclable containers like glass and metal.
* Print on both sides of office paper, and only subscribe to magazines you actually want and read.
Reuse products as much as you can.
- While you travel:
* Your sheets and towels for several days, like you do at home.
* Avoid disposable cups. Use durable ones, maybe ones you travel with.
* Shun plastic water bottles by travelling with your own stainless steel water bottle (and use this link to buy
one now <http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000FB893E/ref=nosim/thebandblady-20>).
* Buy recycled products whenever possible.
-At home:
* When your sheets and towels wear out use them for rags.
* Repair appliances that break rather than toss them.
* Buy recycled products whenever possible. Shopping bags, especially those you get at the store.
Recycle as much as possible, diverting many items from landfills helps save the planet from toxic waste and wasting land.
- While on the road:
* Ask your hotel where you can recycle trash you don't want to throw away. If your hotel doesn't have
guestroom recycling bins, consider taking your recyclables with you and putting them in recycling bins on
the street or at the airport.
- At home:
* Recycle as much as you can: paper, plastic, glass, press board, cardboard, and metal.
* Compost food scraps either into your compost bin or find someone who wants to recycle them for you.
* Donate sheets and towels to a shelter.
Renewable resources are better choices than non-renewable. Consider what the products you choose to use in building your house and running your inn do to the earth.
- While on the road:
* Rent an electric or hybrid car when you travel, if you can't use mass transit, bike or walk, or take a cab.
- At home:
* Make sustainable materials a priority. Cork and bamboo are great options, fast-growing trees can be
good when properly managed. But stone and granite aren't renewable so may not be your best choice.
* Choose alternative fuels (solar, wind, water, and geothermal) when you can because they are
renewable, though they have a slow payback period. Petroleum-based fuels are not renewable, though
they seem cost effective and are readily available.
My passion for the environment, blended with my passion for the hospitality industry, has finally led me to create this page as a resource for those who want to be greener but don't know where to start. Take one step at a time in your green quest, if you can't take more steps. Promote your green steps on your website, on your brochure, and around your B&B inn. Let those guests who want to support green innkeepers find you and enjoy a green vacation. Make your green action part of your market niche. To help you with your green action, here are some resources for you.
Resources Products
- Cleaning Supplies:
* Use the strongest Oxygen bleach available -- StainSolver (buy from http://www.thebandblady.com/stainsolver.com. It comes in 4, 12 and 50 pound containers.
- Consumer Research:
* Air Quality Guidance: articles about air purifiers and air filters can be found at http://www.thegoodairlady.com. Air quality is suffering but with guidance you can take steps to breathe
more easily.
* Mattress Guidance: articles about buying environmentally sound mattresses that will not only be good for
the environment but you as well. http://www.themattresslady.com is the place to start your research. A
good night's sleep is more than meets the eye.
* Water Quality Guidance: articles about water pollution and water filters/purifiers can be found at http://www.thegoodwaterlady.com. There are various issues covered to help you decide how clean and
abundant you want the water you use both at home and as you travel.
- International Green Lodging Directory
* EcoCrown http://www.ecocrown.com
* Environmentally Friendly Hotels http://www.EnvironmentallyFriendlyHotels.com
- Soap/Shampoo dispensers
* Make dispensing your shampoo more stylish and fun -- and easier too -- with Aviva Dispensers (you can
buy them easily from this link: http://www.thebandblady.com/aviva.html).
- Coffee
Buy and drink organic, shade grown, fair trade coffee and tea. There are so many resources now it's hard to keep up with your options. Start with your local roaster, and branch out from there. Buying locally is more environmentally correct.
- Education and Green Building:
* The U.S. government rates a variety of products and ideas. Visit Energy Star (http://www.estar.gov ).
* For those interested in improving the environmental performance and reducing the adverse impact your
buildings, BuildingGreen ( http://www.buildinggreen.com) is a good site to visit.
* Green Concepts ( http://www.greenconepts.com) is an information exchange site for an energy efficient
lifestyle.
* If you are looking for green building materials, check out Oikos (http://www.oikos.com ).
* A wide range of flooring issues are covered at The Flooring Lady. Learn about floors and floor care at http://www.TheFlooringLady.com. And don't forget that some flooring materials make great counter tops
too.
* If LEED certification is in your future, you need the U.S. Green Building Council (http://www.usgbc.org )
Your green lifestyle shouldn't stop when you leave home; here are some green tips for when you're out on the road
Before you leave home:
- Turn your water heater down to the lowest possible setting
- Turn off air conditioning/heat or adjust accordingly for plants, ect
- Unplug appliances, TV's and any other electricity consuming devices. They consume energy even when they are not turned on.
- Stop or suspend your newspaper service until you arrive back home
While at your accommodation:
- Participate in hotel linen programs, or let the hotel know that it's not necessary to change your sheets and towels every day.
- Reduce the amount of water used for bathing or showering.
- When you leave your hotel room, turn off the AC/heat, lights, TV and radio. Close the drapes.
- Participate in hotel recycling programs by placing recyclables in appropriate bins.
- Carry a dry cleaning or grocery bag with you in which to carry dirty laundry home.
- Leave little bottles and packages of amenities in the guestroom if unopened.
- Take used bars of soap home.
- Instead of leaving bathroom lights on all night, pack a night light for any extra lighting you may require.
- If the hotel provides complimentary newspapers, pass yours on to someone else, or leave it in the lobby for another reader. Ask the hotel to see that it's recycled.
- Be sure to turn off exercise equipment, sauna, whirlpool, Jacuzzi or tennis court lights when you're through.
- Check out of the hotel via the hotel's electronic program available on the TV in some hotels. You can view your bill, approve it, and help reduce paperwork.
- Carry bottled water with you. Refill as needed.
- Reduce fast food waste whenever possible.
- Avoid Styrofoam. Carry your own cup.
- Avoid room service and carryout.
- When offered individual packages of condiments, take only what you will use.
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