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Meet Lightly: 5 Green Venues for Your Next Business Conference

business conference & meeting venue the airlie center

Planning for a business conference? Hoping that Venuefinder or another search service lists properties that’s not only provides all the amenities you require, but also leaves a light(er) environmental footprint? The following five conference venues combine the elements you’ll need to keep your attendees happy, but also incorporate numerous green features. In fact, they’ve all received Platinum status in Environmental Responsibility from the International Association of Conference Centres.

1. The Airlie Center: This former estate in Warrenton, Virginia  (pictured above) not only offers a wide range of accommodations for meetings of all kinds, but also incorporates a 4-acre organic kitchen garden, electric vehicle charging stations, recycling and composting, and bicycles for guest use. Airlie has certifications from LEED and the National Wildlife Federation (for wildlife friendly grounds).

2. The Banff Center: Located in Alberta, Canada’s Banff National Park, this destination for arts and musical events also contains world-class meeting facilities. Among the green offerings for conference planners: collection and use of recycled material (from paper to asphalt), elimination of bottled water from amenities options, composting partnership with the town of Banff, efficient lighting, and motion/occupancy sensors for all rooms.

3. The Conference & Event Center Niagara Falls: More than a honeymoon and tourist destination, Niagara Fall’s Conference Center has integrated green practices throughout the facility. In addition to ample recycling stations and use of reusable plates, glasses, and napkins, the Center also buys food locally whenever possible, makes ample use of natural lighting, and asks vendors to donate excess promotional products to local schools.

4. Lied Lodge & Conference Center: Located on the 260 acre Arbor Day Farms in Nebraska City, Nebraska, the Lied Lodge features (as you might guess) tree planting, as well as a biomass system to heat and cool the facility, Fair Trade, shade grown coffee, and an apple orchard with over 165 varieties.

5. Eaglewood Resort & Spa: Located in Itasca, Illinois – just outside of Chicago – Eaglewood earned its green reputation through waste minimization, which includes cooking staff working with waste reduction specialists to either compost food wastes or donate them – when appropriate – to local charities, energy efficient appliances and lighting, and water conservation efforts at all levels.

Know of other meeting facilities taking innovative steps on the sustainability front? Share them with us in the comments.

This post was generously sponsored by Venuefinder.com

Image credit: MEB. via photopin cc

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