With all the talk of “going green” these days in the travel industry, I’m shocked at the number of hotels that don’t recycle.  I don’t know the ins and outs of what it takes to recycle on a large level, but I know my NYC apartment building recycles, which is the size of any large hotel across the globe. It does not seem like too large of a task, and it offers everyone great rewards. I’ve been to some great properties around the world that have been pioneers on the topic, like the Fairmont Dubai and the Lenox Hotel Boston. I’m disappointed when I see hotels in my own neighborhood that don’t recycle. For example, I’m a big fan of the Peninsula Hotel in New York. I think the service and quality of the facilities are well don;, but in the fitness center, for example, the water bottles the guests use are not recycled. It seems to me like a waste of an opportunity to help the environment and allow the hotel to boast to their guests about additional ways they are being taken care of in the hospitality industry. If you have any suggestions on easy tips to recycle, or have any favorite brands that are environmentally aware, I would love to hear about it. – Alex Young, vice president and associate publisher