Group items tagged

Wyndham Vacation Ownership was named Lodging Brand of the Year at the LODGING Green and Sustainability Conference & Expo in Las Vegas, NV. The Wyndham Worldwide-owned company was recognized for innovative sustainability practices and for creating the WVO Green Certification program, which reportedly saves the company about $2.4 million every year in energy cost savings.

But climate change is making it harder for resort owners and tour operators to make good on this promise. Climate change is having more of an impact on tourist destinations by eroding beaches and bleaching coral reefs. Mountain destinations are not immune either, as a warming climate melts glaciers and snow pack. The latest bleaching of the Great Barrier Reef has again brought to the forefront the growing impact of climate change on tourist destinations. According to the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, warmer than usual waters have caused bleaching (PDF) along much of the reef, and have killed nearly a quarter of its coral.