As Ogunquit’s Green hotel, when the movie An Inconvenient Truth released, our hotel was also learning about Maine’s Environmental Leader program. The combination proved inspiring – a movie showing the effects of climate change on a daunting and dramatic scale and a program showing how a hotel could do its part to be green and lessen its carbon footprint and environmental impact.

Since then, our Ogunquit resort has focused on clean beaches, added an eco-package called Surf Ogunquit, change our pools, swapped our cleaning chemicals and much more. But another part of our certification as an Environmental Leader Hotel is eco-education – providing our customers with information on how they can travel greener, live more co-friendly and help contribute – financially or otherwise – to the cause.

As Kermit the Frog said  – “It’s not easy being green.”

Hang in there – try little changes. Swap out cleaning products as you go through them, visit your town’s website for recycling tips, check out places like Home Depot for energy saving ideas (and definitely for CFL light bulbs – as old bulbs go, have eco-friendly bulbs on hand. As a Resort with 144 rooms, we saved thousands. You will save too.), and finally, keep looking for ideas! Below are good websites to check out for more tips on saving energy and being green – home and away!

Environmental Education Websites – A Few Favorites at our Ogunquit Hotel

1. energystar.gov – tips on appliances, sealing air leaks, buying CFL’s and more. A good resource for the little things around the house.
2. resnet.us – find a home-energy rater in your state and have an audit on your home. A great way to know what contractor project you could do – now or when it fits your budget.
3. efficientwindows.org – heat loss thru windows is a tremendous waste and directly hits the wallet.  Updating your windows, especially when old man winter is right around the corner, is well worth it. Hey – they say the holiday shopping is starting early? Maybe Santa gives the gift of warmth and energy savings this year!
4. environmentalhomecenter.com – so you have an audit, picked a project – now what? Check out this site. Has everything for a green(er) home. Did you know there is a great solar powered backyard umbrella and also solar lights for patios and walkways? Daylight savings time will never creep up on you again!
5. rateitgreen.com – you’ve found a couple of product options (there really are that many green products out there now. It’s a good thing.). This site makes it easy to compare them and choose the best for you.
6. dsireusa.org – Going green and getting paid. Green incentives are out there. At the Resort, we have worked several times with the State of Maine on eco-efforts. In addition to state programs, there are Federal tax incentives and credits. So go on – go green and get paid.
7. betterworldclub.com – the AAA of eco-travel. Sign up and receive member discounts when you take a trip. Be green away from home!

New sites are popping up all the time. Plus our hotel has an Environmental Updates page – give it a book mark and visit often!