Sustainable Success Stories: The National Conference Center
How one business is using the Loudoun Sustainable Business Certification for Free PR
Thank you to Lynne Kaye, a member of the Loudoun Chamber’s Green Business Initiative, for this informative post on how impactful sustainable changes can make on local businesses.
The National Conference Center, one of the largest and most comprehensive conference centers in the nation, hosts eco-friendly events and sustainable meetings. One way The National competes for conference and meeting business is through its Green Seal and Virginia Green certifications as well as its Loudoun Sustainable Business Certification.
The Green Seal certification is the most rigorous of the three certifications. Green Seal’s GS-33 standard for hotels and lodging properties includes requirements for energy and water conservation, waste reduction to reduce the overall environmental damage and environmentally sensitive purchasing. In order to earn and maintain certification, Green Seal periodically conducts compliance monitoring to ensure that The National meets Green Seal’s certification requirements.
In past years, to receive recognition for its sustainable practices through the Loudoun Sustainable Business Certification, The National was required to complete the entire scorecard, which was lengthy and took some time.
The National sent a representative to the Green Business Initiative’s committee meeting and brought suggestions on how to improve the Loudoun Sustainable Business Certification. One of the suggestions was to accept third-party sustainability certifications in lieu of completing our entire scorecard. The committee took that suggestion into consideration, and decided that by recognizing the hard work and time businesses like The National put into maintaining their third-party industry certifications, these businesses should qualify for Loudoun Sustainable Business Certification. A business simply needs to submit information to the Loudoun Chamber on their third-party industry certifications. In other words, they no longer need to fill out the entire scorecard.
Why Should You Become a Loudoun Sustainable Business?
For any local business, and businesses with existing third-party green certifications, the Loudoun Sustainable Business Certification provides:
- An easy, cost-effective way to communicate their commitment to sustainability to other Chamber
members and members of the Loudoun community - A listing in the Chamber’s Sustainable Business Directory
- Networking opportunities with other businesses that are pursuing sustainability in Loudoun County
- An easy way to educate employees, customers or other stakeholders on sustainability topics through our periodic events.
Click here to learn more about the Loudoun Sustainable Business Certification (formerly the Loudoun Dulles Green Business Challenge) or contact Chamber Staff member Paige Romanow at promanow@loudounchamber.org.