ORLANDO (Oct. 23, 2008) – As people all over the world begin to focus more and more on conservation, energy savings and smart use of resources, Rosen Hotels & Resorts in Orlando is doing its part by launching a new environmentally-friendly meetings initiative called RosenGreenMeetings.com. The eco-conscious program, which is outlined at www.rosengreenmeetings.com, is designed to assist meeting planners who are interested in reducing the environmental burdens typically associated with large meetings and conventions, including excess paper hand-outs and registration forms, un-recyclable signage and plastic name badge holders, and more.
The recently launched site, www.rosengreenmeetings.com, shows meeting planners the ways in which Rosen Hotels & Resorts is already working to help the environment, provides 10 meeting planner tips for holding a greener meeting, offers numerous links to learning more about “going green,” keeps planners up to date on the latest green meetings news from Rosen Hotels & Resorts and provides an e-mail link to sales staff.
“We don’t claim to be the first hotel group to implement a green meetings initiative, nor do we claim to be the experts, but we can say that we have been practicing conservation efforts for many years and continue to look for ways to reduce, reuse and recycle wherever possible,” said Harris Rosen, President & COO of Rosen Hotels & Resorts. “We are proud to offer this environmentally responsible option to our meeting planners and their clients who choose to join us in our efforts to become more responsible citizens of Central Florida, and ultimately, our Earth.”
Rosen Hotels & Resorts’ three Orlando convention properties, 800-room Rosen Plaza, 1334-room Rosen Centre and 1500-room Rosen Shingle Creek, were each designated One Palm Green Lodges in 2007 under the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP)'s Florida Green Lodging Program. Launched in March 2004, the Florida Green Lodging Program establishes environmental guidelines for hotels to conserve natural resources and prevent pollution. The three properties rank among the first 50 properties — the top one percent in Florida — to have received this designation.
Long before Florida’s Green Lodging program was established, Rosen Hotels & Resorts has made efforts to be responsible stewards of the area’s resources. For example, each of the hotels offers guests the opportunity to use linens and towels more than once, and each has water-efficient toilets and washing machines. Outdoor lighting and back-of-house lighting is operated by sensors. Programmable thermostats, Energy-Star appliances and paper and newspaper recycling programs are among the many ways the hotels lessen their eco-footprint. Rosen Shingle Creek goes as far as to convert used cooking oil into bio-fuel to operate its golf course maintenance equipment.
Rosen Hotels & Resorts also offers its associates the opportunity to conserve resources by offering Lynx bus passes via a payroll deduction program, posts a directory of associates interested in carpooling and offers alternate work schedules of four 10-hour days in certain departments to help reduce gas costs.
These energy-saving programs are imperceptible to hotel guests, proving that upscale accommodations don’t have to waste resources such as water and energy, to provide a superior guest experience. “Guests may never notice the small changes we’ve made to help save our planet, but we do them because it’s simply the right thing to do,” said Rosen. “Those guests who do take note applaud our efforts because they, too, are socially responsible citizens who are concerned about the effects man has on his environment.”
Together, the three Rosen convention hotels offer the most rooms, most meeting space and closest proximity to the Orange County Convention Center of any Orlando convention hotels. Combined, they offer more than 3,600 rooms and more than 611,000 square feet of flexible meeting space and one of the nation’s largest column-free ballrooms. An award-winning championship 18-hole golf course and golf academy, world-class spas, nearly two dozen dining, entertainment and lounging options, state-of-the-art fitness centers, a variety of tennis and sport courts, provide meetings attendees and leisure guests unparalleled convenience and amenities.
For more information about Rosen Hotels & Resorts, visit www.rosenhotels.com. For more information about Rosen Hotels & Resorts’ Green Meetings program, visit www.rosengreenmeetings.com.