FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media contact: Geoff Geils
Email: ggeils@icestoneusa.com
Telephone: (718) 510-9922
NYC’s Green Leaders, IceStone Durable Surfaces & Linblad Expeditions Team Up for Photo Contest
New York, NY – January 25, 2010 One glance at the photos of a guest returning from Lindblad Expeditions’ Ice Bears journey to Arctic Norway and you are likely to see polar bears, walrus, reindeer and Ice — not IceStone — that is, until now. Today, the durable surface green leader and award-winning sustainable tourism company, both based in New York, announced a new kind of nature-inspired photo contest, one that includes a contemporary vision of protecting it. IceStone’s second annual photo contest is calling all designers, architects and builders to submit photos of commercial installations that include the 100% recycled glass-in-concrete surface. Winners of the best photo will join Lindblad on an expedition for two this summer. Complete details can be found at www.icestone.biz.
IceStone chose commercial installations as the focus of the contest in keeping with growing trends in this segment of green building. According to the US Green Building Council (USGBC), green commercial installations, in comparison to average commercial buildings, consume 26% less energy, have 13% lower maintenance costs, have 27% higher occupant satisfaction and emit 33% less greenhouse gases. These savings are driving the growth in green building, together with unprecedented government incentives. IceStone, as part of these savings, offers LEED points, a 100% recycled material and no VOCs. Notable IceStone commercial installations include Disney’s Epcot Center and NASA headquarters to the corporate offices of Microsoft, Amazon and Chevron. Commercial building sectors expected to grow this year, according to USGBC include education, government, and hospitality, healthcare and retail segments.
The prize winner will travel on one of Lindblad’s expeditions to Arctic Norway, offering travelers a one-of-a-kind journey in search of polar bears, kayaking among the glaciers and hiking on the arctic tundra with a best-in-class-operator when it comes to sustainable tourism. Lindblad, in partnership with the National Geographic Society, follows a set of Guiding Principles that have earned the company awards for environmental stewardship, innovative, travel philanthropy, sustainable cuisine, and conservation education (with millions of dollars working on conservation in the Galapagos islands, Baja California and Antarctica). The Arctic was specifically chosen as the grand prize for the winning photo entry to reinforce both the fragility and importance of the Arctic when it comes to more companies taking leadership in the realm of environmental stewardship and corporate responsibility.
Judges for the photo contest are architects, designers and sustainability thought-leaders such as Rick Cook, Founder and Partner of Cook+Fox Architects; Eric Corey Freed, Executive Director of Urban Re: Vision and Principal of organicARCHITECT; Rick Fedrizzi, Founding Chairman of the US Green Building Council; Lisa Foster, CEO, One Bag at a Time; Sven Lindblad, President of Lindblad Expeditions; and Tish Tablan, Environmental Project Manager, McDonough Braungart Design Chemistry (MBDC).
About IceStone
IceStone is the only durable surface to achieve Gold level Cradle-to-Cradle certification, given by McDonough Braungart Design Chemistry (MBDC). This certification shows that IceStone’s company and products have passed stringent manufacturing standards that measure toxic ingredients, emissions levels, water and energy usage, renewable investments, on-going data collection systems and recyclability, as well as a code of corporate ethics and labor standards. The product is designed to replace mined stone counter-tops (such as marble or granite) or engineered stone (such as products made with quartz or other material, in a base of resin or petrochemical mix) and comes in 29 colors in a classic and Refined line. In addition, the company is a founding B Corp member, believes in the power of business as an institution for social good, and adheres to strict CSR business practices. For more information, visit www.icestone.biz.
About Lindblad Expeditions
Lindblad Expeditions is an expedition travel company that offers voyages in the Galápagos, Antarctica, Baja California, Alaska, the Arctic, and beyond. The company is partners with the National Geographic Society to inspire travelers to explore and care about the planet. As pioneers of global exploration, the organizations work in tandem to produce innovative marine expedition programs and to promote conservation and sustainable tourism around the world. Lindblad Expeditions has been named “#1 Small-Ship Cruise Line” and “#1 Small Ship for Families” (Travel + Leisure’s World’s Best Value Awards 2009); “The Best Ships in the World” and “The Best Itineraries” (Condé Nast Traveler: Truth in Travel Awards 2008 and 2006).
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