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Green Tip of the Month

Sustainable Sincerity

Our upcoming Green Scene ("Mayan Marvel," September 2010) contains helpful tips on how to detect greenwashing when perusing "organic" product labels. That's when companies try to unjustifiably tout a product's environmental virtues.

As John Vater, co-ower of Spa Adriana in Huntington, New York, warns, "The big print giveth and the small print taketh away."

Here's some information about avoiding this pitfall:

Read labels with a discriminating eye.
John and his wife, co-owner Adriana Vater, caution spa professionals against taking a product label at face value. "If the packaging claims it doesn't contain something, you should ask yourself what's there to do that ingredient's job," Adriana says. "Every component of a product has a purpose, and sometimes a so-called 'green' ingredient is just as offensive as the original."
Educate yourself.
The Vaters say it's important to develop an understanding of how product ingredients work. "With today's Internet access, you can quickly look up the chemical composition of any item," John says.

It's not always easy going green. How do you ensure that your spa's environmental initiatives result in real, positive change? Send your ideas to Katie O'Reilly, associate editor, at koreilly@creativeage.com.

Green Spa Growth

It’s official: The green-spa movement is more than just a passing fad. The industry is making a conscious effort to increase its use of Earth-friendly design, water- and energy-saving procedures, and organic, sustainable products and services.

GreenLogo Miami Beach is making big waves with an influx of green spas. Seven hotel spas have been awarded the Green Eco-Leaf Rating by iStayGreen.org, an online social network that rates environmentally friendly travel destinations.

Each hotel and spa passed a 70-point eco-audit administered by iStayGreen to meet strict standards. These include the inclusion of energy-efficient lighting, water conservation initiatives, drought-resistant landscaping, prominent displays of recycling bins throughout the property, use of recycled paper products and environmentally friendly cleaning products, and a nonsmoking policy.

The hotel/spa destinations that made the elite list include Lapis Spa at the Fontainebleau Resort Miami Beach and Raleigh Hotel & Spa Miami Beach.

“These properties have taken the environmental lead by reducing their carbon footprint and insuring a more sustainable future for Florida,” says Richard Varner, founder of iStayGreen.org.

To view the complete list of Green Eco-Leaf facilities, visit iStayGreen.org.

To increase your own environmental efforts, see our monthly Green Tip, and read Green Scene in each issue of DAYSPA.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, September 29th, 2009 at 4:50 pm and is filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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