NEW ORLEANS – May 19, 2022 – New Orleans & Company and Mayor Cantrell’s Administration are pleased to announce that the City of New Orleans has been accredited as a Global Biorisk Advisory Council (GBAC) STAR™ Destination. New Orleans is one of only five cities in the country to achieve such a status that speaks to the city’s commitment to health and safety for all residents, businesses and visitors.
Under the guidance of GBAC, a Division of ISSA, the worldwide cleaning industry association, New Orleans has empowered businesses and public facilities within a community to establish and maintain a comprehensive system of cleaning, disinfection, and infectious disease prevention for their employees, customers, and community members.
The GBAC STAR is the cleaning industry’s only outbreak prevention, response and recovery accreditation. It is an important indicator of the city’s thoroughness with cleaning, disinfection and prevention.
“The City of New Orleans welcomes this newest accreditation,” said Mayor Cantrell. “This critical achievement, paired with New Orleans being a national leader in COVID-19 vaccination rates, represents our ongoing commitment to keeping our people safe, especially as we continue to see the return of festivals and major special events. I am extremely grateful to our residents, business leaders, and hospitality industry for coming together and helping emerge from the pandemic as a safe destination city.”
“As COVID-19 numbers continue to be at an all-time low in Louisiana, the GBAC STAR certification emphasizes that New Orleans is built to host large scale events and conventions,” said Stephen Perry, President and CEO of New Orleans & Company. “The certification demonstrates our commitment to making New Orleans a viable destination for people to do face-to-face business and support local businesses.”
Dr. Jennifer Avegno, Director of the New Orleans Department of Health, added, "As we continue to be a national leader in COVID-19 response, the GBAC STAR designation is a testament to the city's commitment to being a safe and healthy destination for all those who choose New Orleans as a place to live, work and visit.”
The City joins the New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center and Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport as GBAC STAR accredited. Other New Orleans facilities that are GBAC Star accredited include the Smoothie King Center, The Fillmore and House of Blues. To see the full list of New Orleans facilities accredited, please visit www.neworleans.com/gbac-star-destination/.
The destination team included members from both the convention center and airport that were instrumental in helping New Orleans & Company acquire the destination accreditation for the city.
About GBAC, a Division of ISSA
Composed of international leaders in the field of microbial-pathogenic threat analysis, mitigation, response and recovery, the Global Biorisk Advisory CouncilTM (GBAC), a Division of ISSA, provides training, guidance, accreditation, certification, crisis management assistance and leadership to government, commercial and private entities looking to mitigate, quickly address and/or recover from biological threats and real-time crises. The organization’s services include biorisk management program assessment and training, Forensic Restoration® response and remediation, the GBAC STAR™ accreditation, designation, and registered programs, training and certification of individuals and consulting for building owners and facility managers. For more information, visit www.gbac.org.
New Orleans & Company is the tourism and hospitality industry’s official destination sales, marketing and trade organization, responsible for driving over $10 billion of diverse annual business to the regional cultural economy. We attract leisure and cultural travel, business meetings, conventions, weddings, festivals, sporting and special events to New Orleans, considered the cultural capital of the south, in a highly competitive global environment. Founded in 1960, New Orleans & Company is committed to celebrating the richness of our culture while creating jobs, building careers, and enhancing the quality of life for every New Orleanian. For more, please call 504-566-5011, visit Neworleans.com, Facebook at New Orleans & Company, or Twitter and Instagram @Visit New Orleans.
FREE E-NEWSLETTER
