Sustainable Travel

Entries to win a volunteer vacation to an animal rescue society near Cape Town accepted until August 21

KEEN Inc. — a leader in hybrid outdoor performance products, including footwear, socks and bags — is running an exciting contest with the chance to win a week-long volunteer vacation at an animal rescue society near Cape Town, South Africa. Entries are being accepted until August 21, 2009, at www.keenfootwear.com/southafrica.

The trip is organized by i-to-i, a U.K.-based volunteer travel company which has sent more than 20,000 people to volunteer in Africa, Asia, Australasia and Latin America since 1996.

The winner will volunteer at TEARS, an animal shelter that provides pet food parcels, veterinary treatment and animal care education for community members with animals that could not otherwise afford these goods and services. The society also works with children who have had extremely hard lives and teaches them to care and be responsible for animals. Learning these nurturing skills helps to break the cycle of abuse in these children’s lives.

“KEEN values the work that TEARS is doing - teaching a child how to care for an animal can make a life-altering impact on both the animal and the child," says Bobbie Parisi, Vice President of Marketing of KEEN. “In a struggling economy, the first charities to feel the pinch are those working with animals, so volunteers’ efforts are much needed.”

After returning from South Africa, KEEN invites the winner to share stories from the trip on its HybridLife Community page at www.keenfootwear.com/community. The community connects people who are creating possibilities, engaging with the outdoors, and caring for the world around them.

Adds Parisi, "We’re excited to send a member of the KEEN community to experience TEARS first hand and we look forward to sharing their experience through the HybridLife Community where people connect, share and get inspired.”

The grand prize is valued at about $4000 and includes: roundtrip coach class air transportation, provided by South African Airways, for one between a major U.S. gateway city and Cape Town South Africa to volunteer with animals in Cape Town, South Africa; and a shared dormitory room in volunteer house for a minimum of one week and up to two weeks. The travel must be completed by September 30, 2010. Beyond the volunteer opportunities, the winner can explore an amazing range of other activities - from surfing to hiking to shopping in and around Cape Town.

In addition to KEEN, additional contest sponsors include National Geographic Society, and i-to-i Volunteer Vacations. To enter or obtain official rules go to www.KeenFootwear.com/SouthAfrica.

About KEEN
KEEN Inc., manufacturer of hybrid footwear, socks and bags, is an outdoor brand that delivers innovative hybrid products, enabling all outdoor enthusiasts to live an active lifestyle. Founded in 2003, KEEN was first recognized for its Newport sandal, which featured patented toe protection technology.

The company strives to demonstrate integrity and leadership, especially on social and environmental commitments, while promoting an inclusive outdoors community. Through its giving program Hybrid.Care, the company provides support to a variety of social and environmental organizations around the globe.

Based in Portland, Oregon, KEEN products are available in retail locations in the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Asia, Central America, South America and Europe. To learn more, visit www.keenfootwear.com.

Posted by BrianM at 12:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

As more consumers look for eco-friendly travel destinations and hotels, one of the country’s leading travel guides will now include an “eco” icon to designate “green” hotels as more commercial builders aim for green building standards for their hospitality properties.

The AAA 2010 TourBook editions will now include an “eco” icon to indicate properties that promote environmental and energy conservation, reports Green Lodging News. The “eco” option will also be included as an advanced search option in AAA’s hotels section on its Web site. Only those properties that are AAA approved or Diamond rated will be eligible, reports Green Lodging. AAA’s 26 TourBook guides include detailed information for more than 31,000 hotels.

Properties must also be a certified green lodging site as part of a number of state or national green lodging programs, according to the article.

Builders and architectural firms are also working together towards sustainable building practices. Building on its “green” renovation of Sears Tower, the owners, for example, will build an environmentally-friendly hotel next to the skyscraper, reports the Chicago Tribune.

John Huston of American Landmark Properties, representing the partnership that owns Sears Tower, told the Chicago Tribute that the hotel, financed by private funds, will draw “net zero energy from the power grid.”

According to architectural firm Smith and Gordon Gill Architecture, the building will likely shoot for the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification, reports the newspaper.

Several additional eco-resorts can now claim LEED certification. Advantage Fitness Products (AFP), a provider of green fitness solutions, commends three of its hospitality clients that have earned LEED certification. AFP says Orchard Garden Hotel, San Francisco; Intercontinental Hotel, San Francisco and Cavallo Point Lodge, Sausalito, Calif., were three of only 18 hotels nationwide that received LEED certification.

Posted by BrianM at 9:08 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

By Matthew Daly, Associated Press Writer

Despite the recession, a blue-ribbon panel says the federal government should increase by tenfold its spending on outdoor recreation and conservation.

At least $3.2 billion a year up from current funding of about $255 million is needed to conserve and protect the nation's outdoor heritage, including parks, wildlife refuges and open space, the group says.

"In the near term, funding at this level is admittedly a difficult request," the group said in a report released Monday. "Without additional funding, however, there is little chance" to adequately protect the nation's lands and waterways.

The report by the bipartisan panel, made up of elected officials and conservationists, also calls for creation of a nationwide system of "blueways" and water trails to improve water-related recreation opportunities. The water trails would be established through public-private partnerships among federal, state and local agencies, local groups and private landowners.
The report by the Outdoor Resources Review Group is the first major assessment of the nation's outdoor resources since a 1987 report by the President's Commission on Americans Outdoors.

Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., chaired the 1987 report as Tennessee governor. He and Sen. Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M., serve as honorary co-chairs of the latest group.

The time is past due for a serious look at how to safeguard outdoor resources, the senators wrote in a foreword to the report. "Today, with a new president and a new administration, we have the opportunity to put our conservation efforts on solid footing for generations to follow," the said.

Alexander and Bingaman presented the report to Interior Secretary Ken Salazar at a Capitol news conference. Salazar said the report "deserves the utmost consideration." He called outdoor recreation a key jobs creator and said conservation is important, even in difficult economic times.

The 17-member task force was organized by Henry Diamond, an environmental lawyer and former commissioner of the New York Department of Environmental Conservation; Patrick Noonan, chairman emeritus of The Conservation Fund; and Gilbert Grosvenor, chairman of the board of the National Geographic Society.

Posted by BrianM at 9:06 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)