How You Can Help

There are a variety of ways that you can help make WINDPOWER 2008 more environmentally-friendly including:

- Participate in the green travel program to purchase carbon offsets to reduce the environmental impact of your car or flight travel to the conference.  Simply include this selection when you register online or to add it to an existing registration, email conference@awea.org

- Whenever possible, utilize electronic tools for things such as registration, reserving your booth, booking your hotel room, etc....

- Use public transportation or carpool when possible, both from the airport to your hotel as well as around town.

- Instead of renting a car, take the conference shuttle buses provided to official conference hotels to and from the convention center which is a more efficient method of transporting larger groups of people.  And saves you lots of money on hotel parking as well!

- Download the session handouts to your computer versus printing our hard copies.

- Utilize recycle bins whenever possible for appropriate items such as bottles, cans, and paper.  This includes at the convention center, around town, and in your hotels.

- Participate in your hotel linen and towel re-use program and if you find the hotel is still replacing your linens or towels, make the hotel manager aware of the problem so it can be corrected.

- Instead of throwing away your conference bag or badge at the end of the event, drop them into the specific bag & badge recycling stations so AWEA can reuse, recycle or donate as appropriate.

- Tell others you are participating in these activities and encourage them to join you!

Other suggestions re-printed with approval from the Green Hotels Association:

Before You Leave Home:

- Turn water heater to "Vacation" or lowest setting.
- Turn off AC/heat or adjust the thermostat to protect plants, etc.
- Turn water off at outside connection (to prevent flooding should a pipe break while you're gone). When you return, turn on the water slowly and check for problems.
- Appliances, such as TVs and cable converter boxes, should be unplugged because they can draw or "leak" as much as 40 watts per hour even when they're off.
- Turn icemaker off (lift wire) to prevent flooding should it break while you're away.
- Lower the temperature of waterbed heaters at least ten degrees.
- Stop your newspaper. You may be able to donate it to a school.

Travel:

- Purchase electronic-tickets for airline travel whenever possible. Less waste. If paper tickets are lost, they may cost $75-100 to have replaced.
- Enjoy walking tours. Walk where sensible.
- Use public transportation when available.
- Use the hotel van instead of renting a car. Use the bus or local transit system. Share taxis. Less pollution, and you can leave the driving to others.
- If you're driving, turn your motor off when idling. Encourage tour/bus drivers to turn the motor off when idling.
- Don't allow anything to be thrown out of your car windows--ever.

Hotel Stays:

- Participate in hotel linen programs, or let the hotel know that it's not necessary to change your sheets and towels every day.
- Reduce the amount of water used for bathing or showering.
- When you leave your hotel room, turn off the AC/heat, lights, TV and radio. Close the drapes.
- Participate in hotel recycling programs by placing recyclables in appropriate bins.
- Carry a dry cleaning or grocery bag with you in which to carry dirty laundry home.
- Leave little bottles of amenities in the guestroom if unopened.
- Keep bar soap wrappers and take used bars of soap home.
- Let hotel management know, by speaking directly to management or writing them a note, that you want them to conserve and that you want to participate.
- Patronize hotels, airlines, tour operators who support "greening" programs.
- Instead of leaving bathroom lights (and fans) on all night, it's wise to pack night lights for hotel stays.
- If the hotel provides complimentary newspapers, pass yours on to someone else, or leave it in the lobby for another reader. Ask the hotel to see that it's recycled.
- Be sure to turn off exercise equipment, sauna, whirlpool, Jacuzzi or tennis court lights when you're through.
- Check out of the hotel via the hotel's electronic program available on the TV in some hotels. You can view your bill, approve it, and help reduce paperwork.
- Environmental programs or events may be listed on "things to do in the area" portion of the in-house TV programming.

Food / Restaurants:

- Carry a reusable water container with you. Refill as needed.
- Reduce fast food waste whenever possible.
- Pack a few plastic bags. They come in handy for saving half-eaten treats, used hotel bar soaps, keeping salt and pepper packets dry in the cooler, and many other uses.
- Avoid styrofoam. Carry your own cup.
- Avoid room service and carryout.
- When offered individual packages of condiments, take only what you'll use.
- If you commonly take home leftovers from restaurant meals, carry a container, a square of aluminum foil or waxpaper with you. You'll be responsible for putting less styrofoam into the waste stream.

Other:

- Take only the brochures or maps necessary. Return others to the brochure stand.
- Leave only footprints. Take everything out that you brought with you. No graffiti, no litter.
- Support conservation programs.
- Pick up at least one piece of litter every day-especially at national tourist locations which are vulnerable to huge tourist populations.
- Take photos with a digital camera. Disposable cameras are very wasteful and expensive.
- Rather than buying small size toothpaste tubes, squeeze some toothpaste into a clean contact lens case or contact lens cleaning capsule. These are also handy for carrying salves or pills. Be sure to mark appropriately.