Retreat Insider

When you’re planning a meeting or retreat, does it matter to you whether the venue you select is practicing environmental responsibility in their business? If yes: good for you! We encourage meeting planners and individuals to support our Green Retreat Members. If you think it doesn’t matter, read on because you might change your mind and do something good for the planet! By the way, NOT being green is no longer cool and denial ain’t a river in Egypt …

The Green Retreat Award insignia distinguishes a retreat or conference center that has adopted general green policies that are detailed in an environmental commitment statement on the center’s website. Such policies include:

* Natural resource conservation practices
* Creating and or maintaining their natural setting
* Waste reduction and energy saving practices
* Promotion of the use of local goods and services as is practical and feasible within their geographic locale
* Culinary services that offer clients a choice of organic and/or local foods

The Green Retreat Award distinguishes our Members who practice environmental responsibility, thereby providing a model for each staff member and guest to learn and duplicate in their home, organization or company.

Our FIRST three Green Retreat Award recipients are:

Trinity Conference Center in West Cornwall, Connecticut
Essex Conference Center Retreat in Essex, Massachusetts
Headlands Institute in Sausalito, California

Our hope is that more of our Members will adjust their current business policies and practices to earn the Green Retreat Award within the next 6 months and YOU CAN HELP facilitate that. If the venue you book isn’t practicing green, remind them to visit All About Retreats’ website or read the Retreat Insider Business Blog and read about the Green Award! The future of their business will hinge on changing into greener practices as people demand it!

It is said that ‘Some changes are deliberate, while others are a result of the natural progression of life’. Today, we know that acting intentionally, we can begin to heal and protect our natural environment, knowing that each intelligent act, no matter how humble in scale, adds up to creating a greener future!

Last Word: If you rest complacently in denial that your green efforts could be meaningful, or want to get on board with green living, but haven’t a clue where to begin, we encourage you to pick up and read Peter Senge’s new book: The Necessary Revolution: How Individuals and Organizations are Working Together to Create a Sustainable World.

From the first chapter, Senge makes a compelling case without overemphasizing the causal factors of global climate change: “A revolution is underway in today’s organizations … leading the change from dead-end “business as usual” tactics to transformative strategies that are essential for creating a flourishing, sustainable world. There is a long way to go, but the era of denial has ended.” The more you read, the more you’ll want to do!

Enjoy the sweet green goodness of summer! And, take a look around your own home or office and find things that you can do for the planet, to make the change you want to see in the world!

Cheers!