Orlando, FL — Thursday, May 13, 2010 — Now the luxury amenities used by guests at The New York Palace Hotel will have a second life in third world countries. The luxury Manhattan hotel added to its corporate responsibility initiatives by implementing an innovative soap-recycling program. “Reducing environmental impact is a priority for us, and Clean the World’s ability to recycle discarded soap was a simple solution for our ‘reduce waste’ team,” said Elvir Dervisevic, Director of Housekeeping.
With a focus on high ethical standards, engagement with the community, and care for the natural environment, it was a natural fit for The New York Palace and Clean the World to partner together. This is the first hotel in the New York Metropolitan area to join the Clean the World program.
Whitney Hoover, an independent sustainability consultant, and Cecile Epperson, Director of Wellness and Sustainability for the Palace Hotel, met Peter Insalaco of Clean the World at the GoGreen Expo in March. “Once we learned that we would not only help prevent tons of waste but also contribute life-saving tools, we were eager to be the first to implement the recycling program in New York,” said Epperson. “It’s an obvious solution with dual impact.”
The gently-used and discarded amenities from the hotel’s 813 rooms and 86 suites will be shipped to the Clean the World Recycling Operations Center in Orlando. After a sanitization process, the soap is provided to homeless shelters and impoverished people around the world, where hygiene tools are crucial in the prevention of diseases such as acute respiratory infection and diarrheal disease. Clean the World estimates that the hotel will provide over 25,000 bars of soap monthly to underprivileged people in desperate need of soap, while simultaneously diverting 28 tons of landfill waste and recycling over four tons of plastic each year.
Ecological effectiveness couples with humanitarian efforts thanks to The New York Palace’s latest green initiative.
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About Clean the World, Inc.
Clean the World is committed to reducing the waste created by discarded soap and shampoo products and collects these items from hotels to be recycled and distributed to domestic homeless shelters and impoverished people worldwide, helping to prevent millions of deaths caused by hygiene-related illnesses. Clean the World Foundation, Inc. is a not-for-profit, 501(c)(3) tax-exempt charitable organization. For more information visit: http://localhost:8888/cleantheworld
About The New York Palace
The very finest in old-world elegance and new-world opulence can be found just beyond the courtyard gates of The New York Palace Hotel on the corner of 50th & Madison. With 813 rooms and 86 suites, The Palace is known for unparalleled splendor, spectacular views, sumptuous rooms and exquisite service. Located in the heart of Manhattan — across the street from St. Patrick’s Cathedral and only steps from Rockefeller Center — the Hotel’s world-renowned courtyard incorporates motifs from several 15th-century Italian cathedrals and has served as the entranceway to the historic Villard Mansion since 1882. Today, The New York Palace Hotel gracefully blends The Villard Mansion with a contemporary 55-story tower for the guestrooms that was completed in 1980. Guests can book accommodations online at www.newyorkpalace.com or contact reservations at 1-800-NY-PALACE (1-800-697-2522).
