“We recognize that a large part of Colorado’s destination appeal is our stunning natural setting. The tourism and convention industry has a strong interest in creating programs that will help us grow our business in a sustainable fashion,” said Richard Scharf, president and CEO of the Denver Metro Convention & Visitor’s Bureau (DMCVB).
Sustainability is a core value in Denver City Government, according to Mayor John W. Hickenlooper, who joined 49 other mayors nationwide in the summer of 2005 to pledge to improve the environment and their cities and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. That same year, Hickenlooper launched the Greenprint Denver Initiative (www.greenprintdenver.org).
Greenprint is a long-term, citywide initiative to promote the importance of sustainable development and ecologically-friendly practices throughout the community. The program includes a plan to plant one million trees in the next 20 years, as well as ways to reduce waste and increase use of renewable energy.
Denver is also facilitating the green business designation of the upcoming 2008 Democratic National Convention, expected to bring close to 50,000 visitors to Denver. This is the first green recognition process for a national political convention. The green designation requires businesses to commit to sustainable practices in seven key areas: leadership, energy efficiency, water conservation, waste and pollution reduction, community involvement, working conditions, and education. (Find out more about how the Convention will be the greenest in Democratic Party history here.)
"This opportunity will inspire local companies to start putting their houses in order now to attract that convention business," says Host Committee director of greening Parry Burnap. “The Democratic National Convention has given Denver an opportunity to create an enduring environmental legacy and show Denver off to the world.”
In a very short time, eco-friendly initiatives, like the city of Denver’s, have gone from becoming a thoughtful way of doing business, to becoming a required component of meetings and events, where the ultimate goal is a zero-waste event.
Britta Erickson is the festival director for the Starz Denver Film Festival, division of the Denver Film Society. This 11-day festival welcomed 40,000 local and international attendees and filmmakers. Following a successful eco-friendly Live Earth event, this organization made the conscious decision to create a zero-waste festival. Since they were not green experts, they consulted with Sustainable Travel International (STI).
Erickson summed up the experience. “We’d heard how difficult it was to turn the focus of large events like ours into one with a reduced carbon footprint. The sorting part of the recycling element was actually the most difficult, primarily due to a culture that doesn’t always understand which item goes into which bucket. Most surprising was that air travel wasn’t our biggest impact. Our biggest footprint was made by onsite transportation.”
For planners who want to turn their event into a zero-waste one, Erickson advised, “Don’t be afraid — it’s the right thing to do for our environment. STI offers an entire segment about turning your event into a zero-waste one. Even adding a few components to your meeting is making great strides. At the end of our event, we were surprised that the entire process was easier than we expected.”
To help facilitate that progress for other planners, Denver is already making progress toward creating a sustainable and eco-friendly environment for meetings.
Located in the heart of downtown Denver, the Colorado Convention Center (CCC) (www.denverconvention.com), one of the most practical and “user friendly” meeting facilities every built, is already committed. Just some of the ways include environmental lighting; monitoring HVAC; creating a huge underground chilled water loop; 300,000 square feet of outer glass to help maintain temperatures; single stream/co-mingle recycle program; and use of bio-degradable cleaning chemicals.
Colorado hotels are continually evaluating the return on investment in going green. Many feel it’s an opportunity to leave a positive ecological imprint in their city, already joining in to make a difference. Planners might want to consider the following eco-friendly hotels to host their green meetings:
· Adjacent to the Colorado Convention Center, the Hyatt Regency Denver Tech Center (www.denverregency.hyatt.com) started a "Green Team" dedicated to exploring new environmental friendly solutions. The hotel is also actively implementing ways to minimize their environmental impact, ranging from compact fluorescent lighting to environmentally cleaning supplies to drip irrigation for landscaping.
- Denver Marriott Tech Center (www.marriott.com) is one of nine Colorado hotels to earn the 2007 ENERGY STAR Label Award by the US Environmental Protection Agency. Programs include water conservation, clean air initiatives, extensive recycling through all areas of the property, wildlife conservation, and even green meals from the culinary staff.
- Other ENERGY Star Label Award hotels in the Metro Denver area are: Boulder Courtyard by Marriott, Boulder Residence INN by Marriott, Boulder University Inn, Denver Int. Airport Courtyard by Marriott, Denver Marriott City Center, Fort Collins Courtyard by Marriott, Fort Collins Marriott, and Fort Collins Residence Inn by Marriott
- In September 2007, The Inverness Hotel and Conference Center (www.invernesshotel.com) introduced an environmental program to integrate current department initiatives into a property-wide commitment to minimize the environmental impact of the hotel. The program, called Destination Earth, is being rolled out into three phases. Each phase focuses on tackling different departments and operations within the hotel, with completion of all phases slated for the end of 2008.
- The eco-friendly Hotel Monaco (www.monaco-denver.com) is one of the only hotels in Denver to offer recycling in every guestroom. The hotel’s chief engineer estimates that the hotel recycles 70% of its waste, and efforts are underway to find more ways to recycle. Besides the standard suggestion for guests to re-use their bath towels, the hotel also uses biodegradable cleaning products throughout the hotel and engages energy-saving techniques like fluorescent light bulbs.
- Restaurants are getting into the eco-groove in Denver, too. At Panzano (www.monaco-denver.com/mondmn_dining.html), the Hotel Monaco’s award-winning restaurant featuring contemporary Northern Italian cuisine, Chef Elise Wiggins and the staff are committed to using organic and local food products, often as much as 100 percent of her food will be organic. Yet the chef consistently maintains the quality and flavors guests have come to expect.
These are just a handful of the ever-growing possibilities of sustainable meeting venues in Denver. The DMCVB, the Colorado Convention Center, suppliers and partners are ready to help planners achieve green meeting status. To make the process effortless, submit an RFP that includes “Green Meeting” in your quotation so that DMCVB may pass on your request.
In fact, many planners have elected to include the EPA Checklist for Sustainable Business Measures and Practices into their RFPs:
- Do you have a recycling program? If so, please describe.
- Do you have a linen/towel reuse option that is communicated to guests?
- Do guests have easy access to public transportation or shuttle services at your facility?
- Are lights and air conditioning turned off when rooms are not in use? If so, how do you ensure this?
- Do you provide bulk dispensers or reusable containers for beverages, food and condiments?
- Do you provide reusable utensils, napkins and tablecloths when food and beverages are served?
- Do you have an energy efficiency program? Please describe.
- Do you have a water conservation program? Please describe.
- Does your facility provide paperless check-in and check-out?
- Does your facility use recycled or recyclable products? Please describe.
- Do you source food from local growers or take into account the growing practices of farmers that provide the food? Please describe.
- Do you use biobased or biodegradable products, including biobased cafeteria ware?
- Do you provide training to your employees on these green initiatives? Please describe.
- What other environmental initiatives have you undertaken, including any environment-related certifications you possess, EPA voluntary partnerships in which you participate, support of a green suppliers network, or other initiatives? .
The good news for planners is that many of these “green” programs are already in place in the Mile High City. All the planner has to do is bring their green meeting or event to Denver, and the DMCVB, the Colorado Convention Center, its hotels, venues, partners and suppliers will take care of the rest.