April 29th, 2011 by TRT Blog

As seniors in high school begin completing the slow steady march towards graduation, for many a final hurdle remains. Those who did not make an early decision are faced with the dilemma on where to earn their degree. Cost, location and areas of study have always  played a major role in deciding where to end up, but a new study from The Princeton Review has shown that green initiatives are now playing a more significant role for students than ever before.

In its survey of 8,200 students the Princeton Review found that 69 percent considered a college’s commitment to environmental issues contributed to their decision to apply to or attend the school. This is up slightly from 64 percent in 2008. As the deadline draws near for students to make a decision on where to attend, schools must be aware that prospective students are more aware than ever about actual green practices, and not just green speak.

What schools do to set themselves apart will decide the size of their incoming class, and possibly decide the immediate future of a school’s budget. Fortunately, as students have increased their awareness on green initiatives, schools have as well. The Princeton Review highlighted 311 schools whose green practices set them apart. A few notable schools:

• 75 percent of Auburn University’s food budget is spent on local and organic food
• Bowdoin College in Maine has 100 percent of its energy provided by renewable sources
• South Carolina’s first solar powered site is on Coastal Carolina University’s campus
• 99 percent of Green Mountain College’s Vermont campus is maintained organically

The guide is filled with methods that have propelled the schools to signatories with the American College & University Presidents’ Climate Commitment (ACUPCC), The ACUPCC is a high-visibility effort to address global climate disruption undertaken by a network of colleges and universities that have made institutional commitments to eliminate net greenhouse gas emissions from specified campus operations, and to promote the research and educational efforts of higher education to equip society to re-stabilize the earth’s climate.

As the focus shifts towards saving green, in the environmental sense, guides such as these will play a much bigger role not only for students but for other schools to learn and progress their initiatives making going green at the university brighten our future.

princeton review, rankings, Universities

April 26th, 2011 by TRT Blog

We value all of our clients no matter the industry, size or scope of work needed to be done. In the more than 30 years that The Refinishing Touch has been in operation, we’ve been lucky enough to have been able to work with boutique hotels, major universities, government sectors and large hotel chains to meet their specific needs. One such example of the latter is the work we completed for Hilton onsite at the downtown Salt Lake City hotel.

As our crew enjoyed stunning mountain views, they refinished and replaced counter tops on over 500 armoires as well as the hardware throughout (drawer handles, pull knobs) on furniture at the hotel. It was a complete renovation project and turned out wonderfully, to match the stunning views of you get in Salt Lake:

Swing on by our website to have a look at the press release for more information on this project in beautiful Salt Lake City. Later this week we’ll showcase another project that we are proud to have recently completed and detail the full benefits that refinishing has made possible for yet another one of our much loved and appreciated customers.

furniture refinishing, Hotels, Operational Update

April 22nd, 2011 by TRT Blog

Earth Day 2011 has arrived! All month we’ve been highlighting ways that communities, businesses and people go above and beyond celebrating Earth Day. It’s great to think that Earth Day started in 1970 when members from all political backgrounds came together to make the world a greener place. Now, the Earth ‘season’ starts with the observation of Earth Hour just one month prior, and Earth Day has become a globally recognized (and supported) event.

Along with Earth Hour, other environmentally-driven events are popping up. Along with initiatives such as 2012’s ‘One Billion Acts of Green’ goal, an international tree planting drive led by director James Cameron and a push to increase online community members (now close to one million), Earth Day has become a worldwide movement. We’ve been stressing the importance of looking beyond Earth Day, and while there’s still work to be done, we can safely say that the green community is making tremendous strides toward this accomplishment.

Many green-efficient products are being made available at lower costs now than when they were first introduced – and without sacrificing quality! Items such as water efficient washers and dryers, energy efficient light bulbs and perhaps most importantly, electronic vehicles (EVs) are more prominent today than ever before. Really – check out all of the news!

With increased awareness, citizens have begun making smarter decisions with energy and are keeping ‘going green’ on their minds.

As with many of you, our work here at TRT continues beyond Earth Day. With the many projects and events that we’re taking part in, it is not only our hope to promote the message of saving green while going green, but also to educate others on the simple steps we can take to make the most of what we already have.  After all, it is often the smallest steps taken by many that have the most impact.

While The Refinishing Touch is only a small part of the bigger picture, we urge all of our readers to join us in thinking beyond Earth Day. We are proud of our work and our association with focused and determined groups and individuals who see the value in making a concerted effort to improve the world around us. It is our plan to continue bringing the knowledge and insight from those who we’ve crossed in our travels to this blog, and we’re excited to hear more from those of you involved in different green activities around the country.

Happy Earth Day, everyone.  Get out there and go green!

Earth Day, environment, green

April 19th, 2011 by TRT Blog

This month we’ve seen how two different sectors of our country approach Earth Day, and how they go beyond what you normally see from other businesses. We’re delighted to be involved with industries that realize the value that green business practices bring to the environment, as well as to their bottom line. Our Government has shown its commitment to Earth Day as well, and while less risk-averse than the other two sectors we’ve covered, it still has strong methods and goals in place.

Despite this, there is still no unifying message across federal or state governments. Many times when in this debate, we still find the politicians and pundits arguing over the existence of climate change, and what should be done to control it. It’s quite ludicrous that this debate is still going on. We can all agree that green practices are necessary – a brief scan of the websites of Congressmen and Senators shows that all acknowledge what they’ve done to improve the environment. However, when presented with an actual change in policy, many of these same voices go quiet. And with big power companies funding these voices, it unfortunately seems there may not be anyone speaking up to make the change needed.

If there is to be sweeping changes necessary, the Government needs a unified stance, and to make its message clear to the public. As long as there is division within the halls of our Government, so there will be division around the country. Without a clear, unified message on the best practices for companies and individuals, stories like that of the solar panel installers who charge over 5 times the national average because there are no set standards will continue to take place.

Of course it’s healthy to have an open debate, but the next step must be less talking and more action

climate change, Government

April 15th, 2011 by TRT Blog

We came across a wonderful program that was taking place at Stanford University in California called ‘Ditch That Dumpster’. We reached out to one of its organizers for a Q&A discussion for an inside view of sustainability from a university student’s perspective.

Cyrus Pinto is a sophomore economics major with an emphasis on sustainability. He is the head of the Zero Waste division of Students for a Sustainable Stanford (SSS) where he has forged new partnerships between the Athletics department and on-campus business operations. Through his interdisciplinary studies, he hopes to fuse traditionally contradictory fields with sustainability and pioneer a new (economically and sustainable) “green”.

When did you decide you wanted to get involved with promoting sustainability?

My work in an ecology lab on campus initially sparked my interest in natural conservation, and my interest developed more after I took an introductory seminar on Environmental Economics. My conversations with the professor made me realize not only how crucial sustainability is, but rather the importance to bring sustainable initiatives to financial parity with nonsustainable practices.

How did the project of “Ditch That Dumpster” begin? And when did it kick off?

My friend and mentor in the group, Nicole Gaetjens, initially began the project. She organized a multidisciplinary team of students from political, business, and volunteer organizations to bring them together to make the move out process more sustainable, as she witnessed the material waste firsthand during her freshman year. We held the first event in June 2010, and this year the event will take place June 9th, 10th and 11th.

How would you describe the general attitude toward the environment and climate change on your campus?

Extremely favorable. The vast majority of students engage in sustainable practices, which can be attributed to the prominence of a sustainable vision in our campus and in the surrounding community’s culture. Sustainability has grown from a fashionable trend into a seamlessly integrated component of everyday life.

Would you say that applies to across universities as a whole?

I would call the attitude favorable. Universities are a bastion of  environmental progress and their student populations tend to be more open minded as a whole.

Where do you see the climate change initiative in the next 10 years?

I see the sustainability initiative focused on fishery conservation. We are on track to full fishery collapse by 2048 because of our current consumption level and mismanaged seafood stocks. I envision the US leading the charge, using Alaska Salmon fishing as the current model, and hopefully export our technology and ideas overseas.

What do you think universities can (or *should*) do to improve the environmental awareness and action of its students?

There needs to be more staff-student interaction. I view professors as mentors for the academic career, but relationships with the staff are just as crucial because they can mentor you in your extracurricular endeavors. Personally, I could never have had the same success in my initiatives without the help of the university staff.

If you had to give a grade for the work done on campus towards improving and implementing environmental practices, what would it be? Why?

I would give it an A. The attention and effort that is collectively poured into sustainable initiatives by students, staff, and faculty is remarkable, as well as the collaboration between all three parties. For example, to make the football games more sustainable, the ZeroWaste Group of Students for a Sustainable Stanford is teaming up with stadium operations to improve recycling, and last year the Athletics department teamed up with an engineering professor to use the solar lighting towers that one of his classes built as a final project.

What kinds of out-of-the ordinary practices do you do to conserve energy?

When I was growing up I would go around the house after everyone went to sleep to make sure all the lights were turned off in the house. If I discovered a light was still on the next morning I would remind my parents and brothers that they were not just wasting energy, but they were also wasting money by leaving that light on. This naturally led to my interest in environmental economics.

What can universities/students learn from other industries such as hospitality and government with regards to environmental practices/policies?

Students tend to have more idealistic principles of sustainability than industry or government which tend to be more pragmatic. I think that each of these groups can learn from the others. Students can factor financial considerations into their sustainable initiatives, and hospitality and government might be able to capture some of the youthful energy and optimism.

We thank Cyrus for his time and congratulate him for being an innovator and leader on campus and in his community. Hearing from individuals such as himself reassures us the future is in good hands.

We’ll continue to bring you news from the forefront of the work for sustainability throughout the month with a continued look into hospitality, government and universities as we get closer to Earth Day.

Q&A, Recycling, Stanford

April 12th, 2011 by TRT Blog

Our countdown to Earth Day continues this week, and our focus shifts from hospitality to the university sector. Universities are gaining influence in the growing world of green, and for good reason. All of our future decision makers are graduating from these places of higher learning, and the more involved they are with energy conservation and climate change, the brighter our future looks. Not only that, but universities know to attract the best and brightest, and a strong understanding of green practices is a much higher priority.

With Earth Day two weeks away, schools have been increasing their participation levels both at the student and institutional level. At the University of Rhode Island (URI), for example, the Student Action for Sustainability has organized a program around Earth Day that goes beyond the typical campus fare of vendors, live events and informative sessions. To promote recycling, all members of the URI community are encouraged to nominate “Rhody Recyclers of the Day”. Students, faculty and staff have been asked to nominate those on campus who demonstrate any level of commitment to the act of recycling. Along with recognition of their deed, those selected will have their name entered into a drawing for an Amazon Kindle. An improved environment should be incentive enough for recycling, but it never hurts to be given a chance to win a free eReader if you’re seen doing so.

Promoting greener behavior through individual acknowledgement is wonderful, but sometimes involving a whole community ofstudents results in higher turnout. Four colleges in Michigan are well aware of this – they’re competing with each other for the title of greenest school. Students at Baker College, the University of Michigan-Flint, Kettering University and Mott Community College – each one in the Flint, Michigan area – will compete again this year in the ‘Recycling Challenge,’ sponsored by Waste Management Inc. and Genesee County Metropolitan Planning Commission. Prize money is split by the school that recycles the most by weight and by pounds per student enrolled. The schools competed through the end of March, and later this week a winner will be announced.

Later this week we’ll speak with a member of ‘Students for a Sustainable Stanford’,  a unique program that provides incoming students with better than average furniture, and outgoing students with a responsible way to dispose of old furniture – so watch this space!

Whether it’s through individual accolades, school competition or general educational sessions, we’re thrilled to see schools stepping up by doing more to expand their involvement before, during and after Earth Day to make the environment a year round focus.

Earth Day, involvement, Sustainability, Universities

April 8th, 2011 by TRT Blog

We continue our look into sustainability across hospitality this week, in anticipation of Earth Day, with a conversation with Bancroft Hotel owner Daryl Ross. The Refinishing Touch has a great working relationship with the Bancroft, who has a  proven track record towards the commitment of being green.

We’re pleased to have the opportunity to speak with Daryl, who is an alumni of University of California at Berkeley. Along with the Bancroft Hotel, he also owns five eateries close to his alma mater. All are extremely popular with students, faculty and staff for their combination of low-key ambience and carefully prepared, mostly organic food at reasonable prices.

How involved is the Bancroft Hotel in promoting sustainability? Are there specific goals it has for becoming more green?

I would say our primary goal was to not participate in “greenwashing”. It’s very difficult because so many companies have realized that calling their product green will promote sales. There is no law or standard that controls how people use the word “green” or “eco-friendly”. When you are trying to figure out what to buy and what move to make, you just have to do your homework. That took a very long time for us. We kept asking ourselves “Is this product really green? Does it really do what is says it does? Did it really get made the way they said?” Traceability is really difficult with many products. For example, we have bamboo towels. Bamboo is promoted as a green fiber, but in reality it takes a great deal of energy to turn the plant into viscose, or the fiber that is then woven into towels. We decided to go this route because it was made at a wind turbine-driven mill and that somewhat negated the energy use. We also wanted to showcase many different products and bamboo is one of them.

This is another important goal for us: Showcasing different green products. Our rooms are made up of a selection of green products such as curtains made from soda bottles, recycled carpet tiles, organic linens, non VOC paint, on-site refurbishing of our armoires into desks, etc.

How would you describe the general attitude toward the environment and climate change in your hotel?

We take it very seriously and educate our employees about it. Most of our employees are made up of Cal students, as UC Berkeley is across the street from the hotel, so that already gives us a head start. It’s easy to get these smart kids to understand what we are doing. And many times they already know more than we do about the most recent developments on climate change.

Where do you see the climate change initiative in the next 10 years?

I hope that it will gather strength and depth. We need to move beyond the initial efforts that are being made right now to substantive efforts that will really make a difference.

What do you think hotels can (or *should*) do to improve the environmental awareness and action of its guests and employees?

It’s all about education. No one likes to do this because somehow it’s perceived as negative or pedantic. If every guest that stayed in every hotel room learned something about saving resources during their stay that they could apply to their lives, then we would really be making a difference.

If you had to give a grade for the work done within hospitality towards improving and implementing environmental practices, what would it be? Why?

Unfortunately I would not give a very good grade here. I think lip service is paid to environmental practices, but only as far as there is an immediate payoff or potential marketing fodder. The issue has been reduced from being efforts that can be made for a global problem to how much can be allocated to this piece of our marketing.

What kinds of out-of-the ordinary practices does the Bancroft do to conserve energy?

As a baseline we are a “Green Certified Business”. This was done sometime ago and brought us up to date with CFLs, energy star appliances, water reducing showerheads, etc. But this is only a start and often all that many hotels do to call themselves green. We looked beyond these things to make all of our FF and E (Furnishings, Fixtures and Equipment) eco-friendly. All fabrics contain recycled materials, all paints and sealants have low or no VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds), even the wood of our picture frames are FSC certified (Forest Stewardship Council). As for our systems, we already have hydronic heating, which is quite efficient. And we are phasing a multi-pronged approach: We will be installing a triangle tube, ultra-high efficiency furnace, solar thermal panels to pre-heat water using solar energy and fuel cells, which convert natural gas into electricity with a by-product of heat. These systems will all compliment each other and will also showcase these technologies. Hopefully other hotels can look at us—a small boutique hotel with only 22 rooms—and see that it can be done and that it is the right thing to do.

What can the hospitality industry learn from other industries such as universities and government with regards to environmental practices/policies?

The government and Universities are very good at making policies. These are essential starters for any environmental action plan. Most businesses don’t want to spend the time to outline their long-term plans for becoming more energy efficient, maybe they don’t even have a plan. But they should work with someone who knows what areas will give the most leverage and create a plan that phases in things they should do over the next 10 years. Even if the technology changes, they will at least have goals to aspire to.

We thank Daryl for his time, candid thoughts and of course the deep involvement he, and by extension, the Bancroft Hotel has in sustainability. Next week we’ll take an in-depth look at the work universities are doing before during and after Earth Day.

Bancroft Hotel, hospitality, Q&A

April 5th, 2011 by TRT Blog

We’re gearing up for an exciting month here at The Refinishing Touch. Each week we’ll be profiling an industry we’re closely affiliated with, showcasing work being done to promote sustainability and climate change. Each sector is different and we think by providing you with a view of what we see in each will provide you a better appreciation of how leaders in each field are improving the environment. We hope to inspire and encourage each one of you to think about ways that you too can help.

The series kicks off with a spotlight on the hospitality industry, which (as you may know) we’re very closely involved with. Hotels are more conscious than ever about the work they do environmentally not only because of the positive impact that environmentally conscious decision-making has, but also because hotel guests are more aware of ‘green efforts’ than ever before. Days like Earth Day are excellent opportunities for hotels and resorts to show off and celebrate the work they’ve done and continue to do in the name of sustainability. With Earth Day getting closer (April 22), many hotels are creating programs to encourage Earth Day participation from guests all month long, and even afterward.

In Ohio for instance, The Lodge at Geneva-on-the-Lake, is encouraging local elementary students together with Boy and Girl Scout troops to participate in a aluminum can collection drive, to take place in the week before. Whichever group collects the most, receives a pool and pizza party at the end of the school year. While not paying dividends immediately, The Lodge is showing the benefits and rewards to recycling to a much younger generation, and quite possibly creating future guests — pizza and pool parties tend to stick in young children’s minds.

via Charles Hotel media

Other hotels have begun pulling out all the stops. At the Charles Hotel in Boston, MA, followers of its Twitter feed will receive green tips of the day throughout April, and will find them throughout their stay at the hotel via iPads at check-in and elevator information screens.

But it’s not just informative programs that hotels are starting. The Charles Hotel has created a package for guests, which includes a two night stay in one of the hotel’s deluxe guestrooms, a signed cookbook from renowned sustainable chef, Peter Davis and full use of the hotel’s bike rental system.

Whether it’s through community involvement or programs tailored to an entire green initiative, hotels are going beyond Earth Day to promote a positive change for our environment.

Earth Day, hospitality

April 1st, 2011 by TRT Blog

With April comes the joy of spring. Rain showers bring flowers to bloom, activities start being moved outdoors and warmer weather takes offers a sweet escape from the bleak, cold days of winter. Fittingly, the month of April also plays host to one of the most widely recognized, environmentally –focused events of the year: Earth Day.

For everyone here at The Refinishing Touch, Earth Day is more than just a trendy event to show how much the environment means to us. For us, Earth Day is a culmination of the work we do all year round.

At TRT, we take the earth seriously, which is why this month you’ll be finding a whole series of blog posts dedicated to the work done not only by us, but by others who we’ve recognized as leaders and innovators in the ‘green’ department. We’ll have interviews, spotlights and opinions on climate change, the environment and beyond.

We’re looking forward to Earth Day on April 22 and hope you’ll join us back here to check out all we plan on sharing throughout April!

Earth Day