Jeremie is one of the worst-hit towns. (Photo: AFP)
It is with a great deal of sadness and a broken heart that I must inform you of the status of our beloved nation of Haiti. Adding to the pain of this misery-stricken country, Hurricane Matthew made landfall near Les Anglais, Haiti Tuesday, October 4 at 7 a.m. This storm is the first Category 4 hurricane to make landfall in Haiti since Cleo in 1964.
As many of you are already aware, this country has yet to recover from the earthquake back in 2010, which left a death toll estimated to be between 100,000 and 160,000. Soon after the earthquake of 2010 there was a cholera outbreak that affected the entire island killing thousands.
Following the devastation of Hurricane Matthew at this very moment, the death toll continues to rise. There has been a loss of communication and severe power outage across the areas affected, but there are a number of media outlets that are currently reporting the death toll to be approximately 800 people. Some 50 people were reported killed in the town of Roche-a-Bateau alone. The nearby city of Jeremie saw 80 percent of its buildings leveled. In Sud province, 30,000 homes were destroyed. Most of the deaths in Haiti were in towns and fishing villages around the southern coast, with many killed by falling trees, flying debris and swollen rivers.
It is imperative for us to pray for our brothers and sisters in Haiti, especially those directly affected by Hurricane Matthew. In the aftermath of this storm I leave you with this scripture:
“For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in.” – Matthew 25:35
Pastor Julio Brutus Caribbean Director Clean the World
Delegates attend the 69th World Health Assembly at the United Nations European headquarters in Geneva.
In May, Clean the World Foundation was delighted to participate in two important events in the global health community.
First, we attended the WASH Futures conference in Brisbane, Australia, with some of the most innovative organizations and leaders in the WASH (water, sanitation, and hygiene) sector. It was a fantastic opportunity to learn more about pressing issues and needs around the world, tools and tactics being used to make a difference, and successes various groups are having in their respective fields.
Clean the World Foundation shared critical updates from our work in the hygiene space, particularly our new approach on outcome-based programs such as our Soap in Schools Program in Kenya.
The conference also provided a great opportunity to identify new and innovative ways to partner with other WASH organizations. Look for new endeavors to launch soon, including projects that include nutrition and maternal health in developing communities around the world.
Following on the success of the WASH Futures conference, we attended the World Health Assembly, the annual gathering of global health leaders at the World Health Organization in Switzerland. This weeklong conference tracks progress toward the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s), identifies emerging issues the global health community needs to address, and highlights programs and partnerships that are making a measurable difference for some of the world’s most pressing health concerns.
We were excited to network with other leading global health organizations, working to identify new potential partnership and program opportunities globally while also sharing success stories from our work in the hygiene field.
These events are important for us, not only to learn best practices in the field and identify potential new programs and partnerships, but also to raise awareness of the impactful work Clean the World Foundation does around the world. Our goal is to continue developing our position as a global leader in the hygiene sector. Awareness and recognition at world-class gatherings such as these are big steps in the right direction.
We’ll keep you posted on other events we attend in the coming weeks and months. In the meantime, thanks so much for your support of our impactful work here at home and around the world.
When Clean the World and the Global Soap Project launched in 2009, an average of 9,000 children under the age of 5 died every day from hygiene-related illnesses. Just six years later, the daily average has dropped to around 5,600.
That’s a lot of progress – but our goal remains to drive that number down to zero.
A micro-loan helped Salvacion start a soap business in the Phillippines.
After consolidating the two organizations earlier this year, we emerged as a stronger, unified social enterprise with the capability to save even more lives. The unified organization capitalizes on strengths developed separately by each group over the past six years. Now with all the pieces in place, we are poised to make significantly more impact next year.
In 2016, Clean the World’s Global Soap & Hygiene Initiative will concentrate on developing and implementing programs that make a measurable, sustainable impact on global health. Following is an overview of our strategy to lead the eradication of the leading causes of child morbidity:
Distribution and Hygiene Education
Soap distribution to at-risk people involves a lot more than dropping off a few boxes of product and then moving on to the next community. Our Global Soap & Hygiene Initiative works with leading global health organizations to provide long-term, outcome-based soap access and hygiene education. Those activities happen in conjunction with health and human services targeting vulnerable children and families in low-income households internationally and domestically.
By partnering with global health service groups to identify critical needs, we can deliver soap and hygiene education to the same groups for an extended period. Ongoing access improves health and changes behaviors in measurable and sustainable ways.
Our Soap Distribution and Hygiene Education program collaborates with partners in three specific areas:
Hunger and Nutrition: Food banks, meal service and feeding programs, nutrition education, healthy eating and cooking programs, community gardens and farm-to-table programs
Health and Hygiene: Community-based clinics, maternal and child health services, community well-care programs, health department programs, soap in schools
Family Self-Sufficiency and Financial Stability: Homeless support and emergency assistance programs, foster youth services, senior services, veterans services, parenting support, child care programs, re-entry and workforce programs
Custom Programs
Our NGO partners have a wide-reaching footprint that covers much of the developing world. However, we do encounter communities where there is no NGO presence, or where existing programming is insufficient, not sustainable, or not focused on long-term change.
In these underserved areas, our Global Soap & Hygiene Initiative conducts research to determine the best type of intervention. Our team designs and implements a program that improves health in the short-term and sustains itself long-term. We evaluate the results to make sure the program creates sustainable, positive health improvements by changing recipient hygiene behaviors and instilling lifelong hygiene routines.
The goal is to exit after two years once we see evidence that the program is self-supporting.
Sustainable Soap Supplies
Once people understand the importance of hand washing, the next challenge is often soap access. When supply or cost is a barrier to regular soap purchases, our Global Soap & Hygiene Initiative makes it available through in-country micro-lending and micro-enterprise programs. The programs complement the work of our distribution programs and ensure everyone has ongoing access to soap.
Research indicates that income-generating activities serve as key motivators for sustainable hygiene promotion.
In-country micro-lending and micro-enterprises ensure consistent access to soap while supporting local jobs and economies:
Community Hygiene Micro-Enterprise Project: Providing entrepreneurs with start-up financing and training to become lay health educators. They then teach and promote hygiene and the proper use of soap, and introduce a hygiene-related business opportunity to generate new income sources, serve as hygiene motivators, and reduce barriers to better health.
Soap Maker Micro-Lending Project: Providing micro-financing for individual soap makers to meet an urgent demand in global communities with little or no access to soap. As soap makers repay the loans, the available funds support new soap-making micro-enterprises. Micro-lending is the start of a positive economic cycle in areas of extreme poverty, and these new markets for soap help to prevent disease in communities that need it most.
Advocacy
Our mission to eradicate needless deaths from hygiene-related illness goes beyond soap access and hygiene education. Through the Global Soap & Hygiene Initiative, we educate governments and NGOs around the world to help them understand the importance of long-term WASH (water, sanitation, and hygiene) programming.
We believe governments should do a better job of investing and addressing these needs. They should advocate for hygiene and hand washing awareness by local governments to ensure they address the most pressing health needs of their citizens.
Innovation
Sometimes soap access and hygiene education are only part of the equation. That’s why we also work to identify and promote additional hygiene and tools to help maximize the effectiveness and lifesaving potential of hand washing with soap.
For example, some rural communities don’t even have a hand-washing station. The Global Soap & Hygiene Initiative might offer a creative solution such as a “tippy tap.” Or perhaps a soap powder and water mixture is more effective than bar soap.
Through innovation and technology, we identify the best solution for each specific community.
Soap Stockpiles
The final pillar of our strategy is to maintain an inventory of subsidized soap supplies and hygiene kits for emergency bulk distribution to people in crisis. Bulk distribution is coordinated to promote immediate relief along with complementary safe water, sanitation, and related hygiene efforts.
Together, these programs put us closer to reaching our goal of eliminating all hygiene-related deaths worldwide. But we can’t do it alone. Now more than ever, we need the support of our donors and partners to help us make these efforts a success. It’s easy to help us make a difference. A donation of $25 is enough to serve two families living in extreme poverty for an entire year, and a gift of $50 can provide a year’s worth of soap and hygiene education to an entire classroom. Will you help us by making a financial contribution today?
As always, thanks so much for your continued support. Together, we’re reducing waste and saving lives, one bar of soap at a time!
On Global Handwashing Day, we recognize the importance of hand washing in global health and celebrate the impact hygiene organizations are making around the world.
As you probably know, hand washing makes a difference! Hygiene-related illnesses are the leading causes of death for children globally, claiming nearly 6,000 lives every day – more than AIDS, Malaria, and TB combined. The good news is that we can change that. Hand washing with soap is the single most effective and affordable way to prevent those deaths, reducing the death rate by as much as 50 percent. In fact, since 2009, the number of children dying daily has dropped from roughly 9,000 to fewer than 6,000. We’re happy to have been part of that success.
We’ve distributed more than 30 million bars of soap since 2009, reaching some of the most vulnerable populations around the world. From Ebola response efforts in West Africa to earthquake victims in Nepal, and from disaster relief in the United States to families living in extreme poverty in Latin America – and countless situations in between – we’ve been working with our network of partners to get soap and hygiene education to people who need it most.
Just last month, we shipped soap to support the heartbreaking Syrian refugee crisis in the Middle East and Europe. Soap is a critical tool in times of crisis, and our shipment will help prevent the spread of disease in the refugee camps during this chaotic time.
Perhaps most important, our work focuses not only on the short-term need, but also the long-term ability to sustain the impact we create. That’s why we focus on long-term hygiene education programs and support local micro-lending and micro-enterprise initiatives, to ensure that we’re changing behaviors and supporting the local economy to help continue the impact we’re making over time.
Today, as we celebrate Global Handwashing Day, I hope you will join me in making a donation to help us in this lifesaving work. We couldn’t do what we do without the generosity and support of donors like you. Your gift today will help us continue to get lifesaving soap to families in need here at home and around the world. To donate, simply click the button below.
As always, thanks so much for your support! And have a wonderful Global Handwashing Day.
On Saturday, Sept. 26, Las Vegas Sands Corp. (LVS) and Guest Supply, a wholly owned subsidiary of Sysco Corporation, joined us for an unprecedented global volunteer event. In a 24-hour period, more than 4,000 LVS team members and community volunteers built 200,000 hygiene kits that will be distributed to people in need worldwide.
The Las Vegas Sands Global Hygiene Build with Clean the World took place sequentially at five locations around the globe:
Marina Bay Sands in Singapore
Venetian Macao in Macao, China
Sands Bethlehem in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania
The Venetian Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada
The Clean the World Las Vegas Recycling Operations Center
Kit building kicked off at 9 a.m. local time in Singapore and ended at 6 p.m. local time in Las Vegas.
LVS organized the Global Hygiene Build as part of its corporate social responsibility program, Sands Cares. As a longtime supporter of Clean the World’s mission, LVS has contributed enough discarded soap to create a half-million new bars of recycled soap to combat hygiene-related illnesses among at-risk people in developing regions. This event was yet another way for the company to serve people who don’t have access to hygiene supplies.
“This event exceeded our expectations, with record team member and community volunteer support for an amazing 24-hour united effort to help people in need around the world,” said Ron Reese, senior vice president of corporate communications at LVS. “Clean the World does an outstanding job of taking a meaningful, yet often overlooked cause and getting people rallied to make an impact on the health and well-being of underprivileged populations with critical hygiene supplies.”
Guest Supply was a supporting sponsor of the event and provided hygiene supplies for the kits. Since Clean the World was founded in 2009, Guest Supply has provided the much-needed recovery and distribution logistics for discarded soap and shampoo products from many worldwide lodging partners, while also donating soap that would have otherwise been unused surplus from their manufacturing facilities.
“Clean the World affords us the perfect opportunity to utilize our expertise and relationships to make a difference for people around the world,” said Paul Xenis, president and chief operating officer of Guest Supply. “We are proud to support the Global Hygiene Build as part of our company’s commitment to the global hygiene revolution.”
Clean the World founder and CEO Shawn Seipler said LVS and Guest Supply play significant roles in his organization’s effort to increase access to soap and hygiene education.
“We can’t overstate the value of these partnerships,” said Clean the World founder and CEO Shawn Seipler. “Through their day-to-day support of our life-saving mission and involvement in events such as the Global Hygiene Build, Las Vegas Sands and Guest Supply set the standard for corporate social responsibility. We are incredibly fortunate to work hand-in-hand with companies that align with Clean the World on so many levels to help us achieve our goals.”
Since we founded Clean the World in 2009, hygiene-related deaths among children under the age of 5 have decreased 30 percent, from an average of 9,000 a day to 6,000, a day.
With more than 30 properties across 10 states, Kana Hotel Group develops and manages quality hotels that include brands such as Embassy Suites, Hilton Garden Inn, Hampton Inn & Suites, Homewood Suites, Springhill Suites by Marriott, Staybridge Suites and Holiday Inn Express.
Through their participation in Clean the World’s Hospitality Partner Program, Kana hotels have contributed nearly 11,000 pounds of discarded soap and more than 6,000 pounds of bottled amenities to the Global Hygiene Revolution. That is enough to manufacture 58,000 recycled soap bars, and to put more than 12,000 bottles in ONE Project hygiene kits.
Thanks, Kana, for helping stem the spread of hygiene-related illnesses!
We founded Clean the World with the goal of saving lives in developing countries where millions of people die from illnesses that can be prevented with hand washing. But while distributing more than 12 million soap bars in 67 countries since 2009, we also saw a huge need for soap and hygiene products right here at home. That led us to develop the ONE Project, which provides a way for companies and organizations to make a difference through the distribution of hygiene kits in their own communities.
The slogan for the ONE Project is: “One Kit for One Individual Can Change One Life.”
Thousands of hygiene kits already have been distributed to shelters and outreach organizations throughout the United States. In the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy, we sent more than 10,000 kits to residents of New York and New Jersey who were desperately in need of basic hygiene supplies. Now you can get involved.
Your group can host a hygiene kit building event, or purchase pre-assembled kits ready for distribution. The kits can be distributed to shelters, missions, disaster relief efforts, or a number of other places within your very own community.
All types of groups are getting involved, including companies, churches, schools, clubs and fraternal organizations. A special bond forms when individuals work together for a common goal, and the benefits often reach beyond the initial event. Building and distributing hygiene kits is a great way to foster teamwork and a renewed focus on community. By personally distributing the kits locally, you experience first-hand how something so simple can have such a profound impact on someone’s life.
Your ONE Project program includes everything required to build hygiene kits: soap, shampoo, conditioner, lotion, toothbrush, toothpaste, washcloth, an inspirational note card, and a bag. We also provide a DVD with instructions on how to build the kits, and a leader’s guide with helpful hints and tips.
Unassembled hygiene kits may be ordered for $2.50 per kit with a minimum order of 100. Shipping is included.
For more information on the ONE Project or to get started, please contact Rosanna Kingston at rkingston@ctw2.wpstagecoach.com or (407) 574-8353 Ext.114.
Superstorm Sandy left a heartbreaking trail of destruction and devastation in the Northeast United States. As part of the Sandy relief effort, Clean the World is providing hygiene kits to those in affected areas of New Jersey and New York City. The kits include soap, shampoo and other items that meet the basic hygiene needs of families in the wake of the storm.
We are working with relief organizations that already have on-the-ground distribution in the Northeast to quickly get the hygiene kits to those who need them most. Clean the World currently partners with World Vision and Feeding America among others for domestic product distribution.
You can help this effort. For every dollar donated to Clean the World directly or through the RocketHub campaign, a hygiene kit will be delivered to the distributing relief organization. Our volunteers have already prepared 3,000 hygiene kits. Your donations will support the delivery of those kits, and the assembly and delivery of 10,000 more in the coming days.
Clean the World is also calling for volunteers in Orlando and Las Vegas to assist in the effort. Recycling Operational Centers are open and accepting volunteers to assist in the recycling and product preparation effort, which includes assembling the desperately needed hygiene kits. To volunteer, please contact Rosanna Kingston at rkingston@ctw2.wpstagecoach.com or 407-574-8353 Ext. 114.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to those affected by this devastating storm. Please help today.
Since founding Clean the World in 2009, we have distributed more than 11.5 million bars of soap to children and families in the United States and more than 55 countries worldwide. Something we’ve learned in three-and-a-half years is that hygiene needs vary based on geography and circumstance. Which is why we now offer a bottled body wash-shampoo for homeless shelters, food pantries, outreach missions and non-governmental organizations.
These 13.5 oz (400 ml) bottles contain a combination liquid body wash/shampoo that is brand new – not recycled. It is manufactured in the United States specifically for Clean the World, and available on demand by the pallet or truckload for organizations that need a hygiene product other than bar soap.
When distributing soap around the world, we see a recurring challenge with sanitation and recycling in developing countries. Because of that, we try to minimize the amount of packaging used with our recycled soap.
The new bottled body wash provides an opportunity to tackle this from a different perspective. With an easily removable screw cap, the large bottles can be re-used to carry water or other liquids.
For just a $3 donation, Clean the World volunteers may pick up a bottle of body wash-shampoo at our Orlando headquarters or the Las Vegas Regional Operations Center.
Take a look at this infographic in the July 2012 issue of Metropolis magazine.
Citing a 2012 report, the magazine says that “Recently built properties use twice as much energy per night as hotels built 50 years ago.”
If that’s the case, as Metropolis asks in its “On the Spot” column, are “so-called green hotels” just the less-bad of bad choices?
Not so. The hospitality industry as a whole is making great strides to serve customers better while taking better care of the planet.
I know that’s true for the more than 1,600 hospitality partners in North America who work with Clean the World to recycle discarded soap and bottled amenities. With more than 320,000 hotel rooms being recycled daily, they’ve helped divert more than 750 tons (1.5 million lbs.) of hotel waste from North American landfills. And in doing so, made it possible for us to distribute more than 11 million soap bars worldwide in just three years.
Our hospitality partners are part of what we call the “Global Hygiene Revolution,” our mission to end the thousands of child deaths daily from acute respiratory infection and diarrheal disease, respectively the #1 and #2 killers of children under 5 years of age. A simple bar of soap saves lives.
One of our Clean the World hospitality partners, Andrea Pinabell from Starwood Hotels and Resorts, is quoted in the Metropolis article. As director for Environmental Sustainability, she cited Starwood’s ambitious “30/20 by 20 program, which is aiming for a 30 percent reduction in our energy use and a 20 percent reduction in our water use by 2020, across all of our hotels.”
Of course, the Metropolis article was meant to spark a conversation. The environmental and health challenges facing our world are daunting. That’s precisely why we’re glad to have this chance to share our experience. With thanks to our Hospitality Partners, we’re working together to make the world a better place.
Learn more about becoming a Clean the World Hospitality Partner at CleantheWorld.org.
–Written by Claire Sommer, Clean the World communications partner. Read her Sustainability blog at Kayakmedia.com/blog.
A “Sustainability and Social Impact Report” from McConnell Marketing provides a powerful new way for us to share the Clean the World story with hospitality professionals, business and government leaders, and people involved with sustainability initiatives.
The report is packed with fascinating information about the effects of soap recycling. There are sections on Clean the World’s recycling operations, our social, environmental and economic impact, and a case study on the Caesar’s Foundation.
McConnell is a full-service hospitality marketing agency. The Ohio-based firm serves more than 100 clients, including St. Regis, Ritz-Carlton and InterContinental.
During a company retreat last summer, team members from McConnell agreed to embrace the concept of social responsibility with a non-profit organization.
“As soon as I learned about Clean the World and their mission, I wanted to find a way to help them achieve their goals,” said Mark McConnell, owner of McConnell Marketing. “Upon visiting their website and learning more about the organization and its mission, I knew they would be a perfect fit.”
Katie Williams, McConnell’s director of business development, visited Las Vegas to learn more about Clean the World. She was the first volunteer at the newly opened regional operations center in Las Vegas. McConnell’s Katie Hively then joined Williams for a follow-up meeting in Orlando.
“As the first-ever volunteer at Clean the World’s Las Vegas center, I was amazed at the efficiency and scope of the sterilization process,” said Williams. “After spending some time, and elbow grease, helping out, I left the center knowing one thing for sure: I wanted to help more”
After reviewing Clean the World’s operation and discussing our needs, McConnell committed to join in the global hygiene revolution and help us fulfill our mission. The “Sustainability and Social Impact Report” is a fantastic example of what McConnell can accomplish with their industry knowledge and contacts. Some highlights from the report:
– Clean the World is the largest global recycler of hotel amenities, with more than 1,500 hospitality partners throughout North America. – In three years of operation, Clean the World has distributed more than 10 million bars of soap to children and families in the United States, Canada and more than 55 countries worldwide, while also fulfilling an environmental mission by diverting 700 tons of hotel waste from polluting landfills in the United States and Canada. – Based on U.S. market statistics, the combined hospitality segment produces close to 200 million metric tons of solid waste per year. As a ratio, the non-recycled solid waste produced is composed of 62 percent organic waste, 8.6 percent plastics, 6.8 percent metals and 22.6 percent other, including soap, glass, textile and paper. – Today, hotel guests notice and appreciate green initiatives and socially responsible efforts, and the result is high customer satisfaction and repeat business.
Plum Point Elementary School Principal Joyce King was a little taken aback when one of her fifth graders came to her with not only a proposal, but tentative dates and a flier for how to present her idea to the school.
The idea was for the entire school to participate in a “Clean the World” soap drive, which the student, 11-year-old Amitha Patel, read about in a Jan. 8 article from The Washington Post’s travel section titled “A green, clean recycling machine.”
Amitha explained that the article states that Clean the World, a three-year-old Orlando, Fla.-based nonprofit, was started by two men who wondered how much soap was thrown out in hotels without even being touched and how this soap could help others.
Since then Clean the World’s initiative, Amitha said, has been to collect both new and used soap and then sanitizing it and molding it into same-size bars, which are distributed to third-world countries.
“People in third-world countries, they don’t have soap so they get more diseases,” Amitha said.
She said she and King decided to hold the drive in the spring and from April 30 to May 14, students were encouraged to bring in at least one bar of soap.
“They had a contest where whatever grade brought in the most soap got treated to ice cream at recess … a little friendly competition,” Amitha said.
Amitha and her fellow fifth grade friends, Carissa and Bailey Lauer, Mia Isaac, Sydney Koteff, Tori Howard and Mary George Gipson, counted the soap totals on Tuesday and came to a total of 220.4 pounds of soap for the whole school.
The third grade won the grade contest with 67.85 pounds of soap.
King said she expected the students to count the soap by bars, but it was actually Amitha’s idea to count it by ounces and then divide the number of ounces by 16 to get the total pounds.
Amitha said counting by ounces made more sense because several of the bars were different sizes.
“That was totally on their own, I had no input on that,” King said with a chuckle. “It amazes me the leadership that Amitha displays.”
The final numbers indicate that the kindergarteners collected 40.8 pounds; the first graders collected 17.8 pounds; the second graders collected 31.9 pounds; the fourth graders collected 41.2 pounds; and the fifth graders collected 20.7 pounds.
Amitha and her friends made the final soap count announcement on the school’s morning TV show.
Clean the World recently distributed more than 800 hygiene kits to homeless individuals at the Christian Service Center in Orlando, Fla.
The hygiene kits contained bars of soap, bottled amenities, and vanity kits provided by hospitality partners participating in the Clean the World program.
The ROI for the event was immediate as the hygiene kits were enthusiastically received by those in attendance.
“Our people often ask for soaps and other hygiene-related items because it’s hard to keep clean on the streets,” says Mary Lynn Walker, director of development and communications at the Christian Service Center. “Keeping your body clean is a basic need, and Clean the World has helped us distribute more than 3,000 hygiene kits this year to homeless individuals, families and students in local schools. We are impressed that Clean the World thinks globally, but also acts locally to help people in need.”
Christian Service Center helped deliver comfort to more than 12,000 homeless families in 2011.
It seems we’ve hit on a developing trend with sustainability in the hospitality industry.
A recent article in Travel Weekly focuses on the hospitality industry’s embrace of sustainability, including soap and bottled amenities recycling. Clean the World is mentioned in this story.
The article also highlights several Clean the World hospitality partners, including Starwood Hotels and Resorts, Las Vegas Sands (The Venetian and The Palazzo), Caesars Entertainment, and Mandarin Oriental.
It’s always nice to be part of a positive trend. Even better to be at the front leading the parade.
Clean the World offers sustainable, socially responsible, and charitable programs and services to the international hospitality community.
Our efforts improve access to hygiene products in disadvantaged communities around the world, and help divert needless hotel waste from polluting local landfills.
Clean the World is committed to being an exemplary steward of our global environment. We save lives with soap and protect our planet. Key points of the Clean the World environmental strategy include: – Actively promoting sustainable, socially responsible programs to the global hospitality industry and among all customers and suppliers
– Turning trash into treasure. Promoting recycling of gently used hotel amenities (soaps, shampoos, body washes, lotions and gels) throughout the global hospitality industry
– Establishing sustainable best practices for the recycling, production, and distribution of soaps and bottled amenities from waste to renewal as lifesaving hygiene solutions (Winner, 2011 Sustainable Florida Award)
– Aligning with eco-minded corporatepartners, such as UPS, to promote and provide carbon neutral transport of soaps and hygiene supplies from hotels to Clean the World recycling operations centers and toward a final destination in communities around the world
– Producing all printed marketing collateral on 100% recycled or post-consumer waste paper through an arrangement with New Leaf Paper – the first to market with 100% post-consumer papers of unparalleled brightness and printing specifications, including the first-ever 100% post-consumer recycled coated papers, book publishing papers and more
– Minimizing waste by upcycling previously discarded soaps into freshly pressed soap bars ready for global distribution
– Recycling of all waste products produced at Clean the World headquarters in Orlando through a single-stream recycling solution provided by Orlando Waste Co.
– Eliminating plastic wrapping of soaps that would add to the world’s pollution problem – Meeting or exceeding environmental policies for proper “green” business growth and operations
– In less than three years Clean the World has collected, recycled and distributed more than 10 million bars of soap to children and families in the United States, Haiti, and more than 45 countries – Soap saves lives. Thanks for helping Clean the World.
Location Solvers is a corporate partner and long-time supporter of Clean the World. In its efforts to bring greater attention to travel deals and rich information about lodging and meeting planning options for savvy consumers, Location Solvers also has a passion for sustainability.
It is this passion that led them to help support Clean the World.
Michael Jahn, CMP, managing partner of Location Solvers, was gracious enough to answer a few questions about his company’s support of Clean the World, and the reasons he feels this partnership will grow in the future.
How did you first hear about Clean the World? About four years ago, Location Solvers began asking, “how can we make a positive impact on the world through our operations?” We started looking for ways to preserve the Earth’s resources and give a portion of our revenues to charitable donations such as Save The Amazon Rainforest Organization (STARO) and Metropolitan Touring Company, which makes efforts to protect and preserve the Galapagos Islands. Over two years, the decision to give annually quickly evolved, and we started to look for an organization that directly contributes to the sustainability of the hospitality industry.
After some research of organizations working in the hospitality industry, we found a soap-recycling organization that was in its nascent stage and its aim was to sanitize used hotel soap and send it to refugee camps in Africa. This concept of recycling a common waste product like soap struck us as something that could change the hospitality industry, but we also wanted to find something that also connected to our communities here in the United States.
Not long after, we read about Clean the World in a hotel industry newsletter, which highlighted how Clean the World collected and recycled soaps from hotel partners and distributed those soaps to communities abroad as well as those in the United States. We were also impressed by Clean the World’s desire to employ people in need of work and support social programs. These goals to support local employment and to improve sanitation to communities in the U.S and abroad really resonated with Location Solvers’ commitment to be a positive global steward.
How can Location Solvers work with Clean the World to grow together with a common purpose? Location Solvers has an extensive network of hotels and sales contacts across the United States, both brand-name and independent hotels, which are always looking for ways to be more environmentally and socially responsible. Many are looking to develop programs to “green” their operations and they want to connect with non-profit organizations that work in the hospitality industry. We continue to share the story about Clean the World and the experiences that other hotels and our clients have had with implementing the soap-recycling program. And we’ll always serve as a liaison between and our hotel contacts and Clean the World to jumpstart new hotel soap-recycling programs across the United States.
Many of our clients are interested in collaborating with Clean the World for soap drives during specific events. Our role is to provide our clients information about the hotels so they can select the best venue for their event. We sometimes work with hotels to initiate a recycled soap drive for their event or meeting. This means that both the hotel and clients get experience and exposure to Clean the Word’s model of sending discarded soap for sanitization. The more people understand the simple ways to reduce waste and improve livelihoods, the more apt they will be to participate in the future.
You’ve made generous donations to Clean the World. Why and for what reason?We feel that giving back to our community and caring for our Earth is important for every business and person on the planet. Location Solvers has made a commitment to give a significant portion of its revenues to Clean the World — we choose not to reveal the specific amount — to show our commitment in support of its operational costs and to grow as a long-term partner with Clean the World.
What do you hope to accomplish with these donations? In giving our time, energy and a portion of our proceeds to Clean the World, we hope that there will be growing awareness of consumers, hoteliers, and the general public about the products we use and the waste it creates. Something as simple as soap can have a big impact, both in terms of recycling, but moreso in providing soap to those populations that have limited access to sanitation. We hope our donations and time will help build critical relationships and awareness to support communities in need.
What are some creative ways that followers of Location Solvers raise their awareness about sustainability and get involved with Clean the World’s mission?
Some of the ways that our clients and hotel colleagues talk about sustainability and Clean the World’s mission is by talking about waste. Trash removal and its costs are a big target for managers to consider when reviewing the Clean the World recycling program. Others look to discuss ways to connect their meetings or events to a greater purpose. Even if the meeting content is unrelated to the environment or international development, meeting planners and attendees still desire to be part of something big and connect themselves to a greater cause.
Hotel initiatives that include putting up sustainability statements in guest rooms may also feature Clean the World as part of that property’s social and environmental commitment. We’ve not yet seen this with our hotel affiliates, but it would be a great way to start designing a standard Clean the World statement to share with each of the participating hotels to put in all their guest rooms. There’s so much that can be done to help Clean the World.
The recent rash of natural disasters throughout the Southeastern United States has led to increased soap donations to Clean the World. We are doing our part to help turn these generous soap donations into hygiene relief for victims of the storms that have ravaged so many states and communities.
Ron Burth of Venice, Fla., who has previously traveled with Clean the World on soap distribution trips to Haiti, came to Clean the World headquarters in Orlando to fulfill his “next mission.” He filled his truck with more than 800 lbs. of soaps and bottled amenities (shampoos, conditioners, lotions and gels) as part of an outreach effort promoted by Northland Church.
“It’s a super group of people who just want to help wherever there is a need,” Burth says.
He left this morning with three volunteers to begin an 11-hour journey to Alabama. The volunteers are bound for Tuscaloosa, where many homes and families were devastated by tornadoes. They will distribute soaps, along with other hygiene, clothing and food supplies donated by outside organizations, over the next several days.
Photos of the soap distribution trip to Alabama will be featured on the Clean the World Facebook page once they are available.
We have told you about medical supply drives last week by Nadine Mentor in Central Florida and Lisa Laude-Raymond in South Florida. Both groups continue to collect from their local medical communities. Additionally, a major medical drive was conducted at Room Service Rentals in Orlando, coordinated by Kerline Docteur with Joie de Vie Weddings & Events, Inc. We expect to receive those items today. And Clean the World Advisory Board Member, Dr. Ted Kaplan, continues to supply key surgical products for the field. These items are shipped to Cap Haitien and couriered by either doctors or Clean the World transport to hospitals such as the Justinien Hospital and the Hopital Sacre Coeur in Milot. More are being shipped today. All of these collection leaders and their networks have done a tremendous job bringing critically needed items to Clean the World for transport and distribution in Haiti.
Another Orlando company headed by Mary Beth Lavin, Formula One Life, dropped off desperately needed powdered and liquid baby formula. The powder formula is bound for Ft. Lauderdale Executive Airport this morning to deliver to Cap Haitien this evening. Check their efforts out here: http://www.formulaonelifeblog.blogspot.com/
We are pleased to share that Westgate Resorts deliverd 4 skids of relief items this morning. Ellen Tatich and Carlos Castro did a wonderful job organizing supplies from their beautiful resorts. Clean the World Hospitality partner Ocean Reef in Key Largo, FL continues to collect a major amount of items. In addition to putting an additional collection truck in our service, they have collected and donated 3 truckloads of hygiene products, clothes, food, water and other necessary items. Katie Kaye, Scott Ascherl and the entire Ocean Reef team continue to lead a tremendous effort. Other hotels continue serve as key collection points for hygiene items. See the complete list here: http://localhost:8888/cleantheworld/donate-soap-and-shampoo.asp
Two major upcoming donations: The North Florida Surgery Center, located in Pensacola Florida, provided 5,000 Surgical procedure kits that include anesthesia drugs, antibiotics, and other items for the o relief efforts in Haiti. They loaded a UPS truck yesterday that should arrive at Clean the World today. More details on this tomorrow. Chris Coulahan has done a fantastic job coordinating and organizing this critically needed donation.
And one of our very own, Jeremy Chambers, along with his concerned sister Lisa Chambers, has coordinated a tremendous effort on the collection and transportation of massive amounts of water. Culligan and the International Bottled Water Association (IBWA) have donated massive amounts of bottled water to the Haiti Relief Effort. The water will leave Wilmington, NC Friday to deliver to Orlando. From there, we will coordinate it into Haiti.
Organizations such as Gilchrist & Soames, Marietta Corp, Northern Colorado Paper, Cole Papers join soap makers, and concerned citizens in making necessary donations of hygiene products and medical supplies. We are contact regularly throughout the day to find out how and what to donate. Please send all donations to our new facility:
Clean the World 8026 Sunport Drive #306 or #206 Orlando, FL 32809
The plane left Orlando International Airport at 12:45pm ET bound for Cap Haitien, Haiti and, hopefully, Port-au-Prince, Haiti. The first stop in Cap Haitien has just been confirmed. We are on the ground.
We delivered soap, medical supplies, water, doctors, nurses and Clean the World relief workers. Also, if we make it to Port-au-Prince, we will rescue two injured Haitians, flying them back to Florida. All air efforts have done in partnership with CARE. Please read the partnership details here: http://localhost:8888/cleantheworld/blog/2010/01/alert-beginng-today-ctw-supplies.html
We will issue a press release next week on the program. We would still like your property to join the effort to collect hygiene products for the Haitian relief effort. Click here to learn how you can do this: http://localhost:8888/cleantheworld/blog/2010/01/alert-clean-world-hotel-partners.html
As we move full throttle into the New Year, it appears the hospitality community is determined to make 2010 an even better year than 2009. We continue to see tremendous activity and excitement around national Clean the World’s Hospitality Recycling Program. We are now operational in 17 states across the US!
And right here, in our home state of Florida, the momentum and growth continues. We are incredibly pleased to announce that Club Med Sandpiper has joined the Clean the World family. By signing on to our unique recycling program, Club Med Sandpiper is reducing landfill waste in beautiful St Lucie County and instead ensuring their partially used bathroom amenities are being recycled, re-purposed and distributed to children and to those that truly need it here in the United States and abroad in impoverished countries like Lesotho, Africa, Haiti, Guatemala, Honduras and abroad. Thank them for their commitment to Clean the World!
And if you are looking for a great family vacation, filled with sports and children’s activities, look no further than this very active and beautiful resort. With 3 swimming pools, 2 restaurants, and all the family accommodations necessary, this resort can also nearly guarantee Florida sunshine all summer long. 🙂
Want sports? Club Med Sandpiper offers basketball, beach volleyball, Club Med Gym Cardio training and weight room, soccer, water polo, archery, sailing, in line skating, skateboarding, table tennis and softball. For group activities, how about aqua fitness, cardio splash, cardio tennis and power walk. Also, in partnership with Grand Slam Partners and world class tennis coaches, Club Med Sandpiper offers the Elite Tennis Academy, and they offer the Golf Academy.
I am telling you- they have it all! They even have child care for all children, ages 4 months to 17 years old. With four children, my wife and I truly appreciate resorts that offer child care and activities so that we can spend some down time alone at the resort too.
It is so fitting that a resort so dedicated to children at their property, all year long, is committed to a program that Saves Children’s Lives across the globe. Thank you Club Med Sandpiper for joining the Clean the World family!
As we approach the end of 2009, and reflect on this amazing inaugural year for Clean the World, we should continue to be thankful for the many blessings and wonderful progress that we have made. The most challenging year for a new organization is the first and unbelievably Clean the World is almost complete with our first year. In the most challenging economic period of our lifetime, we established one of the most unique and impactful recycling programs of our lifetime.
A big reason for our success has been the tremendous response from the Hospitality Industry. In 2009, the hotels that have joined Clean the World’s Recycling Program have stood up to be the early adopters, the industry leaders in sustainability, and innovators that have taken an essential step for us by adopting our program. None of this is possible without their support. As the hospitality industry continues to focus on eco-friendly, green efforts, those hotels that participate in our program have made a clear commitment to Save our Planet, and participate in a program that will Saves Lives!
Today, another leader has emerged from the hospitality industry. The Sheraton Indianapolis Hotel & Suites, located in the prestigious Keystone at the Crossing, has committed their two beautiful 12-story towers, 560 room property to our recycling program to prevent needless local landfill waste and instead help save lives across the globe. This prestigious Starwood property is connected by skywalk to the Fashion Mall which offers 100 upscale stores, offers an indoor pool and whirlpool, dry cleaning and laundry service, complimentary breakfast in the Club Lounge, and the professional staff that always comes along with a Sheraton Suites property.
Here is something we haven’t done before: lets do the math for a moment to truly understand what the Sheraton Indianapolis Hotel & Suites is doing. (***Keep in the mind that the following are my rough estimates and based on national averages and CTW averages. These are not exact, but close estimates***)
The average hotel occupancy rate is 60% across the country. Let’s apply that national occupancy rate and say that this large 560 room property has approximately 336 rooms filled every single day. If 3/4 of those rooms produce a bar of soap, then 252 bars of soap every single day will not hit an Indiana landfill, but instead be recycled and delivered for free to a needy person in Africa, Haiti, or Central America. That’s over 7,500 bars of soap a month and over 90,000 bars of soap a year! That’s amazing! And that is only the bars of soap. Apply the same math to approximate the amount of shampoo, conditioner and lotion bottles being recovered.
There is no doubt that it will change lives. And it takes the leadership and commitment from individuals like Matt, Andy and the entire Sheraton Indianapolis Hotel & Suites to join a program that will allow them to not only protect their local environment but supply OVER 750 FAMILIES with soap and shampoo for an entire year.
Now that is really good math that I love to think about!
What a great blog to start a great week with: Let me tell you about an awesome non-profit, with very cool people who are truly focused on addressing needs, overcoming obstacles, and getting help to those that need it most.
Last week, Clean the World had the privilege of delivering 858 pounds of soap and over 2,000 sewing kits to a massive, 76 foot sailboat. The Southern Wind, as its named, is fully loaded with 20,000 pounds of medical supplies as it sets sail on its mission. Pushing out to sea from St. Augustine, FL yesterday, November 1, The Southern Wind is taking its 15 member crew of extremely talented and caring individuals on a 15 country sail.
But this isn’t just a medical supply transport boat. No, it is far, far more… It’s the Floating Doctors! A floating, sailing, navigating on the high seas, non-profit doctor’s office. Fully equipped with supplies, a labratory, and, well, very cool doctors and medical students committed to serving and helping those that need them and their practice. The Floating Doctors are committed to Saving Lives!
Led by Dr. Banjamin LaBrot, the Floating Doctors overcome shipping and logistical challenges often preventing these critical, life saving supplies and practices from reaching the islands and areas of the Caribbean, Central America and the Pacific that they will sail to and serve. In addition to Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Panama, The Floating Doctors will take supplies to Cap Haitien, Haiti, an area very dear and close to the heart of Clean the World.
Dr. Ted Kaplan, our dear friend and partner, who heads the Cap Haitien Health Network, has coordinated with the Floating Doctors to pay a visit to the northern region of Haiti, desperate for medical supplies and doctor visits. It is because of Dr. Ted Kaplan that Clean the World learned of The Floating Doctors and was privileged to supply soap and sewing kits to the floating medical mission.
CNN recently did a wonderful, detailed story on The Floating Doctors. Please click on this link, read the story, and watch the video. This is an amazing group of individuals that is sacrificing a tremendous amount, leaving friends, family and jobs, to meet the medical needs of people that truly need it. http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/10/28/floating.doctors.sailboat/index.html
Again, I cannot stress this enough- We at Clean the World are very privileged to have been able to be a part of helping The Floating Doctors on their mission. Please think about them, pray for them, and maybe even send them a note of encouragement at their web-site: http://floatingdoctors.com/ .
On a regular basis, I want to ensure that our entire Clean the World community of partners, supporters, volunteers, and well wishers know exactly how much soap and bottled amenities (shampoo, conditioner, lotion and bath gel) we have received, collected, processed and re-distributed.
Since our inception in February, 2009, our first hotel pickup in March, 2009 and our first delivery to the Central Care Mission in April, 2009, we have received and donated the following:
– Over 9,400 pounds of bar soap has been collected from hotel partners. That’s approximately 100,266 bars of soap (1.5 oz bars) donated, sterlized or re-batched, and recycled. Pretty cool, eh?
– Over 4,500 pounds of shampoo, conditioner, lotion and bath gel has been collected and recycled from hotel partners
***And with the recent increase of CTW hotel partners, 10,425 pounds or 5 TONS of the above that has been collected, processed and recycled over the last 60 days alone!!***
– Soap makers and manufacturers have donated over 440,000 pounds of soap and other hotel amenities… sorry, what did I say?!?… Oh Yes, that’s correct- Our soap maker community and soap manufacturers, led by Marietta Corp, one of the hotel industries leading hygiene and hotel amenity providers (found here: http://www.mariettacorp.com/ ), have stepped up to the plate BIG TIME with donations of crucial items needed by those less fortunate.
Here’s something else that you may not have known- Clean the World also collects and distributes other hotel amenities such as sewing kits, shoe shine kits, shoe mitts, pens, pads, laundry bags, shower caps, and vanity kits. Think about how valuable a sewing kit is to someone who only has tattered clothes. Or how a shoe shine kit may give a homeless man or woman a psychological boost before heading into a potentially life altering job interview. It all matters and it all helps!
May we take a moment to thank Marietta Corp, soap makers, and amenity providers for their commitment to SAVING LIVES. It makes a lot of sense actually- As soap makers and amenity providers, they know the value that cleansing oneself and proper care has to an individual’s body, mind and spirit. From disease prevention to the psychological impact of a good, thorough cleaning, they are in the business of providing simple necessities that I dare some of us may take for granted.
And on the lighter side, but the absolute truth- Representing the best soap maker name category, Thank you to the “Naked Soap Maker” of Montpelier, ID, who donated 18 pounds of soap to Clean the World… The naked truth is- every little bit helps! (sorry, I couldn’t help myself)
Ok- Back to the numbers….
Guess what the value of all that soap and other amenities is: Over $475,000 !!!! It is only because of the commitment and dedication of the entire Clean the World family of partners and supports that this little soap collecting and recycling charity from Orlando Florida has been able to receive so much valuable soap, amenities and hygiene products!!!
To date, Clean the World has processed or recycled, and distributed over 90% of all of the soap, bottled products and other hotel amenities received. That’s over 409,000 pounds of goods that have been donated.
Domestic groups and organizations receiving goods include the following: Central Care Mission, STAR Family Center, Salvation Army Adult Re-hab Center, Salvation Army Men’s and Woman’s Shelter, Christian Service Center, Covenant House, Help Now of Osceola, Central Florida Coalition for the Homeless, First Baptist Church of Bastrop, TX, and Operation Christmas Child Gift Box by Crossroads Community Church in Sparks, MD.
International groups and organizations receiving goods include the following: Clean the World’s Direct Haiti Distribution, Cap Haitien Health Network, World Vision, Harvest Time International (domestic and international), Floating Doctors, Sanctuary of Praise Ministry sending to Freeport, Bahamas, and a medical mission sending Lesotho, South Africa.
Your financial and gifts in kind donations of soap, shampoo, conditioner, lotion, and other hotel amenities are LIFE SAVING and Clean the World is making sure they are getting into the hands of the organizations, groups, missions and, most importantly, PEOPLE who need them most.
You keep it coming and we’ll stay focused on the cause and continuing telling you all about it!!!
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