Name: Abby Gulden
Title: Sustainability Coordinator
Organization: Orange County Convention Center
Years at Orange County Convention Center: One
Primary responsibilities: “My primary responsibilities are three-prong: managing in-house facility-based sustainability initiatives; managing client relations as it pertains to sustainability; and pursuing external relationships—with organizations such as the Green Meeting Industry Council and Green Destination Orlando, for example.”
Organization’s most significant sustainability-related accomplishment so far: “I think the most significant has been the continued efforts of incorporating sustainability into the employee and business culture. Also, the hiring of a sustainability coordinator.”
Organization’s most significant sustainability-related challenge: “Maintaining momentum and consistency with all of our sustainability-related projects and continuing to improve.”
ORLANDO, FLA.—When she was hired as the first sustainability coordinator for the Orange County Convention Center (OCCC) in March 2012, Abby Gulden joined an organization that already had made significant strides in greening its operations and reducing its environmental footprint. With her hiring, however, OCCC now has a point person to drive continuous improvement and network within the Orlando market and beyond it.
As sustainability coordinator, Gulden leads the sustainability team and manages the ISO 14001 Environmental Management System. The OCCC’s Environmental Services section received the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 14001:2004 certification for its Environmental Management System in 2007. It was the first convention center in the United States to receive the certification. Recertification occurs every three years and there are annual audits.
Gulden works with OCCC employees, business partners, and community partners to enhance sustainability efforts. She also works with clients to keep them informed of the OCCC’s sustainability initiatives and to assist them in creating more sustainable events. The OCCC has a long list of green options it offers to its clients—from organic and sustainable menus upon request to donation programs for leftover food and other items.
Rooftop Solar PV System
The OCCC made a big splash nationally more than four years ago with the unveiling of a one-megawatt photovoltaic system on the center’s rooftop. Solar panels span the length of five and a half football fields, generating 1,300 megawatt-hours of electricity per year—greatly reducing the center’s carbon footprint and electricity costs.
“It’s doing really well and is very low maintenance,” Gulden says, adding that the panels offset about 10 percent of the OCCC’s utility costs—sometimes more when there are no shows booked. Peak production months are May and November.
A recent LED lighting installation initiative is helping to further reduce electricity consumption. “We have converted the majority of meeting rooms and most back-of-house areas to LED lighting,” Gulden says. “There is a big ROI. Most of those fixtures are very high and difficult to change. We are saving on labor.”
In addition to the continuous monitoring and load-matching of HVAC systems to reduce energy consumption, the OCCC also utilizes an energy information system to further monitor power consumption.
New Bins, Compactors Purchased
To help streamline the recycling process at the OCCC, recycling bins were recently upgraded and seven new compactors were added. The OCCC just signed a contract with Organic Matters, a company that collects food waste and then processes it into livestock feed. A sustainable purchasing policy also keeps waste in check. Recycled paper and packaging options are available, toilet tissue and hand towels feature recycled content, and trash bags also contain recycled content. In 2012 the OCCC had a waste diversion rate of 58 percent.
To minimize water consumption, no potable water is used for irrigation. When outside grass or plants are watered, drip irrigation is used. Xeriscape planting principles are practiced. Low-flow fixtures further reduce water consumption.
Additional green initiatives at the OCCC include using environmentally friendly maintenance products, including biodegradable solvents and cleaners, and the installation of solar powered parking meters in front of the West Building. There are two solar charging stations for parking attendant golf carts, as well as EV Charging Stations, available for guests at both of the North/South Building entrances. The OCCC is working with Drive Electric Orlando and in partnership with other tourism based businesses in the area, a Convention District Map (CDM) has been created. The electronic CDM provides up-to-date information and will enhance the sustainability efforts of the OCCC, replacing the printed Convention District Map that was previously distributed.
The OCCC is pursuing LEED EBOM 2009 (Gold) certification and is the third meetings facility to be certified to the Specification for Evaluation and Selection of Venues for Environmentally Sustainable Meetings, Events, Trade Shows, and Conferences—one of the nine APEX/ASTM Environmentally Sustainable Meetings Standards.
Education Reflects Interest in Sustainability
Abby Gulden holds a B.A. in Environmental Studies from Brevard College in North Carolina and a Masters of Environmental and Business Management from the University of Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia. She has spent the last 12 years applying her passion and commitment to the environment through conservation work, environmental education, and as a LEED consultant.
Gulden is active in the Central Florida United States Green Building Council chapter and is on the Board of Directors for the Florida/Caribbean Chapter of the Green Meeting Industry Council.
“I have always had an interest in the environment and have always wanted to do something in the area of sustainability,” Gulden says. “I love the variety of my job. Every day is always different.”
Go to the Orange County Convention Center.
Glenn Hasek can be reached at editor@greenlodgingnews.com.
