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Worldwide Green Hotel Certification Programs

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Below are six of the most highly regarded hotel certification programs. All are independently audited, but they don't all take the same factors into account. To make it easy to identify which sustainable tourism issues each program addresses, we've listed them at the end of each entry.

Energy Star

An EPA program that rates energy efficiency not just in lightbulbs and refrigerators but in hotels as well. More than 150 properties participate, but just being a part of the program doesn't necessarily indicate much—look for a score of 75 or higher out of 100. www.energystar.gov.

EU ECO-LABEL

A rigorous new program that certifies hotels and campsites throughout the European Union's 25 member countries. Fifty-one hotels currently participate—with more on the way. www.eco-label-tourism.com.

Green Globe

Probably the best-known label. Based on stringent Australian guidelines, it certifies properties primarily in Australia, New Zealand, and Asia but has begun to expand into the Caribbean and elsewhere. www.greenglobe.org.

Green Leaf

A Canada-based label, run in association with Audubon International, this program has just begun to expand into the United States. (Thailand's highly regarded, though unrelated, certification program is also called Green Leaf.) www.greenhotelsonline.com.

LEED

Created by the U.S. Green Building Council to certify that buildings meet with standards of energy efficiency, conservation, and sensitivity to locale. Hotels have been slow to take up the challenge; only about 20 throughout the country have applied. San Francisco's Orchard Garden Hotel, opening next month, hopes to be the fifth to receive accreditation. www.usgbc.org.

Sustainable Tourism Certification Network of the Americas

A joint effort of the Rainforest Alliance and the International Ecotourism Society that links certification programs from several countries to maintain minimum— and evolving—environmental standards throughout the Caribbean and the Americas. www.eco-indextourism.org.

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