Managers and staff from visitor industry businesses around the island will gather at the Hilton Kauai Beach Resort on Oct. 26 for a one-day conference. Kauai Planning & Action Alliance Inc. has organized the event, called “Greening Kaua‘i’s Visitor Industry:
Managers and staff from visitor industry businesses around the island will gather at the Hilton Kauai Beach Resort on Oct. 26 for a one-day conference.
Kauai Planning & Action Alliance Inc. has organized the event, called “Greening Kaua‘i’s Visitor Industry: Sustainable Tourism — Sustainable Kaua‘i,” which will focus on how to implement more sustainable practices within the industry.
Kaua‘i Planning & Action Alliance is a nonprofit organization that serves as a neutral convener, providing a forum for the community to develop and implement effective solutions to issues that matter to Kaua‘i.
Topics of discussion will include resource conservation and management, use of environmentally friendly products, encouraging staff innovations to improve operations and benefiting the community.
“A number of Kaua‘i businesses that serve visitors are instituting green best practices that serve the triple bottom line: making a profit, promoting a sense of place and caring for our community and our environment,” Doug Sears, general manager of Grand Hyatt Kauai Resort & Spa, said in a press release.
At the conference, participants will hear from industry experts such as Sears and learn what many Kaua‘i businesses are already doing to increase their recycling, conserve water and energy, minimize their waste stream, use more green products and foster a sense of place.
Speakers will include Steve Noakes, managing director of Pacific Asia Tourism Pty. Ltd.; Chipper Wichman, director and CEO of the National Tropical Botanical Garden; Gabriel Zingaro, general manager of Blossoming Lotus; Angela Vento, general manager of the Sheraton Kauai Beach Resort; Jay Furfaro, president of Hospitality Concepts Ltd.; Paul Daniels, commercial energy services representative for Kaua‘i Island Utility Cooperative; Beth Tokioka, director of the Office of Economic Development; and Gail Suzuki-Jones, energy analyst with Hawai‘i DBEDT.
The conference format includes plenary sessions as well as break-out groups to promote interaction and networking.
The conference is designed for general managers, comptrollers, food and beverage managers, recycling coordinators, engineers, housekeeping managers, tour operators, transportation companies, cultural advisors, retail managers, landscapers, business associations, tourism consultants, and county and state directors and legislators.
Sponsors include the Hawai‘i Tourism Authority, County of Kaua‘i Office of Economic Development, Hilton Kauai Beach Resort, Kaua‘i Island Utility Cooperative, Kaua‘i Visitors Bureau, the Kaua‘i branch of the Hawai‘i Hotel & Lodging Association, Po‘ipu Beach Foundation and Princeville at Hanalei.
Early registration fees of $50 for the first person and $40 for others from the same company is available through Oct. 12. Late registration fees are $65 and $50 for the first person and others from the same company, respectively.
Registration and payment must be received by Kaua‘i Planning & Action Alliance by Oct. 22.
For more information, visit www.kauainetwork.org or call 632-2005.
New hires about town
The following individuals were recently appointed to a leadership position in the business community:
• Joyce M.T. Fujimori, Tricia M. Miyashiro and James L. Newberry were appointed assistant vice presidents of Island Insurance’s underwriting services division. Fujimori will serve as large accounts manager. Miyashiro was named surety manager. Newberry is the risk control manager.
• Ralph Kelsey was promoted to vice president by Linthicum. In addition, the company also hired Myron Lindsey as project manager, and promoted Michael Price and Paullette Moorer to contract administrator and controller, respectively, for managing the general construction of the 111,840-square-foot Kukui‘ula Plantation Club Core.
• Jill Dobashi-Clarke was hired as a civil engineer at Reynolds, Smith and Hills Inc. in Tampa, Fla. Dobashi-Clarke is originally from Lihu‘e.
