Exterior shot of the Hawaii Convention Center in Honolulu.

Hawai‘i Convention Center Launches Industry-Leading Conservation Program with LEED Gold Certification and American Dental Association Annual Meeting

The building is the first convention center to earn LEED v.4 O+M Gold Certification in the U.S.

Honolulu (October 3, 2018) – To mark its 20th year of operations, the Hawai‘i Convention Center is launching the Hoʻomaluō Program, a comprehensive approach to environmental sustainability with the goal of enhancing the guest, planner, staff and community meetings and events experience.

Hoʻomaluō is launching in conjunction with the 2018 American Dental Association (ADA) – America’s Dental Meeting. The meeting, to be held from Oct. 18-22, will draw over 15,000 registrants from 46 countries, while generating an estimated $70.8 million in statewide visitor spending. It is ADA’s third annual conference at the Center, including the building’s largest-ever gathering of 30,000 attendees in 1999. The ADA returned in 2009, marking the association’s 150th anniversary. The ADA has committed to reforesting 100 Legacy Trees.

“As contributing members of our community, both professional and personal, we are always working to give back to the public,” said ADA President-Elect Jeffrey M. Cole, D.D.S. “Our organization’s vision is helping the public achieve optimal health, so it made sense to participate in this effort. The Hawaiian Legacy Reforestation Initiative and Hawai‘i Convention Center offer a unique opportunity to offset our carbon footprint in traveling here and to help keep the islands that we love pristine and picturesque for years to come.”

Hoʻomaluō, which means “to conserve; to use or manage wisely” in the Hawaiian language, celebrates the Center’s recent award of LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) v.4 O+M: Existing Buildings Gold Certification by the U.S. Green Building Council. The Center is the first and only “public assembly, convention center” to earn LEED v.4 O+M Gold Certification in the U.S., and is the only LEED v.4 O+M Gold project in Hawai‘i. This certification places the Center among a select group of buildings to complete an extensive review of sustainability and conservation practices. 

“At the Hawai‘i Convention Center, our guests, planners, staff and communities have come together for more than two decades to preserve, protect and enhance the natural beauty of the Hawaiian Islands,” said Teri Orton, general manager of the Center. “This LEED certification nationally recognizes the dedicated work of our staff to make our Hoʻomaluō Program a reality. Since our opening 20 years ago, the Hawai‘i Convention Center has been deeply committed to a multi-faceted approach to environmental conservation that inspires everything we do and touches everyone we serve.”

Hoʻomaluō includes the Center’s work to conserve and reuse resources; maintain a high quality of operations, such as climate, guest comfort and building design; and careful attention to reducing waste throughout each stage in the event process. The Center incorporates guest education and participation through its One Million Trees effort to support the reforestation of endemic Legacy Trees in Hawai‘i. 

In addition, the Center, which is operated by AEG Facilities – the leading sports, live entertainment and venue operator in the world – participates in AEG’s industry-leading corporate sustainability program AEG 1EARTH, which helps it exchange best practices with other AEG Facilities venues and track environmental performance.

About the Hawai‘i Convention Center
“Where Business and Aloha Meet,” the 1.1 million-square-foot Hawai‘i Convention Center provides a spacious, modern and flexible meeting space in the heart of Honolulu – all with an award-winning team and renowned aloha spirit. Conveniently located between East and West, the Center is a global leader for a diverse array of meetings and events, just steps from 30,000 hotel rooms in iconic Waikiki. The Center is a state-owned facility opened in 1998, and is managed by AEG Facilities. For more, visit HawaiiConvention.com. 

About the American Dental Association
The not-for-profit ADA is the nation's largest dental association, representing 161,000 dentist members. The premier source of oral health information, the ADA has advocated for the public's health and promoted the art and science of dentistry since 1859. The ADA's state-of-the-art research facilities develop and test dental products and materials that have advanced the practice of dentistry and made the patient experience more positive. The ADA Seal of Acceptance long has been a valuable and respected guide to consumer dental care products. The monthly The Journal of the American Dental Association (JADA) is the ADA's flagship publication and the best-read scientific journal in dentistry. For more information about the ADA, visit ADA.org. For more information on oral health, including prevention, care and treatment of dental disease, visit the ADA's consumer website MouthHealthy.org 

About AEG Facilities
AEG, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Anschutz Company, is the leading sports and live entertainment company in the world.  AEG Facilities, a stand-alone division of AEG, and its affiliates owns, operates or consults with more than 150 of the industry’s preeminent venues worldwide, across five continents, providing complete venue management, as well as specialized programs in operations, guest services, ticketing, booking, sales and marketing. AEG Facilities also provides resources and access to other AEG-affiliated entities, including AEG Presents, one of the largest live music companies in the world, AEG Global Partnerships and AEG Real Estate, as well as such industry leading programs as AEG 1Earth and AEG Encore to support the success of its venues across the globe. The Los Angeles-based organization owns, operates or provides services to the world’s most elite venues, including STAPLES Center and Microsoft Theater (Los Angeles, CA), StubHub Center (Carson, CA), Sprint Center (Kansas City, MO.), Valley View Casino Center (San Diego, CA), KFC Yum! Center (Louisville, KY.), AmericanAirlines Arena (Miami, Fla.), Barclays Center (Brooklyn, N.Y.), Target Center (Minneapolis, MN),  Oracle Arena and Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum (Oakland, CA), PPG Paints Arena (Pittsburgh, PA), Mercedes-Benz Arena (Shanghai, China), Cadillac Arena (Beijing, China), The O2 (London, England), Mercedes-Benz Arena (Berlin, Germany), Barclaycard Arena (Hamburg, Germany), SSE Hydro (Glasgow, UK), RAC Arena (Perth, Australia), Qudos Bank Arena and ICC (Sydney, Australia), Ericsson Globe Arena (Stockholm, Sweden), Los Angeles Convention Center (Los Angeles, Calif.), Hawaii Convention Center (Honolulu, HI), Puerto Rico Convention Center (San Juan, Puerto Rico) and the Oman Convention & Exhibition Center (Muscat, Oman). For more, visit aegworldwide.com.