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How Anthony Bourdain changed both food and travel

Bambi Majumdar Food & Beverage

The news about Anthony Bourdain's suicide on June 8 shook the world. His work reached across the food, travel and media industries but it touched millions. From the streets of Bangkok to diners in cowboy country, he explored the food that locals loved and devoured. He taught us to celebrate the differences in culture and appreciate the exotic. He also gave us a glimpse of the restaurant world, which is as harsh as it is creative.

Airlines, restaurants and hotels are switching to more sustainable products

Linchi Kwok Travel, Hospitality & Event Management

From airlines to restaurants and hotels, the hospitality and tourism industry is responding to the calls for more sustainable products. A small move, as “simple” as dropping plastic straws, could make a significant impact on the planet. For example, Starbucks announced in July that the company would eliminate single-use plastic straws in over 28,000 stores. This "small" move alone is expected to eliminate more than 1 billion plastic straws per year.

The best of US battle sites

Cindy Belt Recreation & Leisure

I was never big on history classes in school, but after traveling and seeing historical locations in person, I feel more connected. Each place I visit means I learn and understand a bit more. A particular part of history is our wars. Battle sites and museums can be found in many states, especially in the East. You can experience history in a more intimate way by visiting sites such as these.

Will the days of ‘going for a drive’ come to an end?

Lucy Wallwork Transportation Technology & Automotive

"Autotelic travel" is undirected travel. In contrast with directed travel, this is travel for the sake of enjoyment, not in order to reach a destination. In the United States, this has manifested culturally as the tradition of "going for a drive." But with the new sustainability agenda, and the urgent need to reduce automobile trips for environmental and societal reasons, is this a luxury we can still afford?

5 benefits to plastic food service packaging

Tracy Szwec Food & Beverage

Today, it seems that there is a push to move to other products for food service packaging besides plastic. While there is understandably an abundance of plastic being mishandled from the waste standpoint, the reality is that there is no better product to use for packaging of food products, both from a retail and restaurant sales standpoint. Consider these five benefits to choosing plastic.

Is hotel luxury dead?

Michael J. Berens Interior Design, Furnishings & Fixtures

What’s in a name? A luxury hotel by any other name is still luxurious, right? No longer, it seems, in today’s hospitality industry. When hotel discount brokers offer "luxury" accommodations at $49 a night, as occurred during the recent Independence Day holiday, does the word "luxury" have any useful meaning? Those in the industry who want to appeal to the wealthy and sophisticated traveler are upping their game and moving beyond traditional standards of luxury.

Singapore’s Seletar Airport gets ready for passengers

Matt Falcus Transportation Technology & Automotive

Pressure will soon be relieved on Singapore’s Changi Airport, as plans to open a new passenger terminal at the smaller Seletar Airport in the north of the city-state are on track. The structure is due to open later this year. Seletar is 19 miles north of Changi. Built as a Royal Air Force station in 1928, it saw action during World War II and can claim to be Singapore’s first international airport. Today, the airport is a busy general aviation facility, with flight training establishments and a number of maintenance operators providing heavy engineering services from the single-runway site.

Yes, you can be confrontational

Anne Rose Business Management, Services & Risk Management

The word "confront" has acquired such a negative connotation. When someone is described as confrontational, you think of an argumentative person, or a critical, whiny person. Someone who enjoys "picking a fight," or is a bully that enjoys beating others down. It doesn’t need to be that way. Confront only means to face head-on, directly, and unequivocally. This is often healthier than passive-aggressive actions that some managers take to avoid confronting unacceptable behavior.

Gateway Arch National Park gets a makeover

Dave G. Houser Recreation & Leisure

A revitalized Gateway Arch National Park was dedicated during a festive ceremony July 3 in St. Louis, the culmination of a five-year, $380 million renovation project. The park was established in 1935 as the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial to honor President Thomas Jefferson, who turned St. Louis into the Gateway to the West by doubling the size of the United States with the Louisiana Purchase in 1803. It was renamed Gateway Arch National Park through federal legislation in February to better reflect the nature of the park's main attraction.

What would Boeing’s hypersonic jet mean for travel?

Bambi Majumdar Transportation Technology & Automotive

Boeing has announced a futuristic, hypersonic jet that promises to change travel. On this plane, one could travel from Los Angeles to Tokyo in three hours or from New York to London in two. The design was unveiled at American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics’ (AIAA) AVIATION Forum, which was held in Atlanta from June 25-29. Though it is still in a conceptual stage and could be decades away from being built, the idea has created quite a buzz.

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