Marriott International has designated April as "Environmental Awareness Month," inviting its more than 2,700 hotels worldwide, along with their associates, owners and guests, to engage in initiatives which help preserve their natural surroundings and reduce resource consumption.

"This month is a way for hotels to renew their existing energy conservation campaigns and look at new and different ways to support our environmental commitment," said Pat Maher, senior vice president of Engineering for North America, Marriott International.

The event builds on Marriott's award-winning commitment to the environment and gives hotels an opportunity to continually improve efforts toward cleaner air, recycling, and water and energy conservation.

Eco-themed competitions, including a poster contest, are being offered at hotels worldwide to generate momentum among associates.

Marriott's commitment to the environment has been recognized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, which named the company an Energy Star "Partner of the Year" for two consecutive years and also awarded its coveted Energy Star label to 183 Marriott-branded hotels.

Specifically, Marriott was recognized for saving more than 83 million kilowatt-hours (kwh) of electric energy consumption —the equivalent of lighting Washington, D.C., for three months; and reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 68,000 tons annually—the equivalent of removing 15,000 cars from the road or planting 1,500,000 trees per year.