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By Lookout Staff

May 9 -- A hotel, an architecture firm, a construction company and a restaurant will be recognized by the Santa Monica Chamber of Commerce Monday for their social responsibility and stewardship of the environment.

The 2008 Sustainable Quality Award Grand Prize winners are Duvivier Architects, Loews Santa Monica Beach Hotel, Morley Builders and The Lobster. Border Grill, Hartnell, Jesse Bornstein Architecture, Rustic Canyon, Salesforce.com and Taxi! Taxi! are being recognized with Excellence Awards, while M3House and MTV Networks will receive special recognition.

The Santa Monica companies are being honored for undertaking voluntary activities that result in cleaner air and water, less waste, reduced traffic and pollution, improved quality of life for residents and workers and a strong and viable local economy.

“These businesses have shown that being green is an effective business strategy and they are making an important contribution to our community’s environmental, social and economic viability,” said Laurel Rosen, the chamber’s president and CEO.

“This was a very diverse and highly accomplished group of applicants,” said Dean Kubani, manager of the City’s Environmental Programs Division. “Our hope is that we can promote a business climate where all businesses achieve the level of commitment to sustainability that these award winners exemplify.”

Duvivier Architects is being recognized for projects that incorporate strategies such as passive solar, energy efficiency, water retention and recycling, and for their use of non-toxic and recycled building materials.

Loews Santa Monica Beach Hotel is being honored for emphasizing energy, water efficiency and waste reduction throughout the facility. The hotel also offers incentives for employees who utilize carpooling and public transportation and shop locally at the Santa Monica Farmers’ Market.

One of the largest construction and engineering firms in Southern California, Morley Builders is being recognized for constructing many LEED buildings and recycling as much as 92 percent of the construction and demolition waste they generate. They run a green office, including a paperless accounting and payroll system and an eco-friendly procurement policy.

The Lobster won kudos for a menu that features classic American Seafood that is sustainably certified caught or farm raised. Their most recent accomplishment is installing a 9KW solar panel system via Solar Santa Monica’s program.

The awards will be handed out at the 13th annual Sustainable Quality Award luncheon, which will include a keynote address by Gay Browne, founder and CEO of Greenopia: The Urban Dweller’s Guide to Green Living.

Peter Kreitler and Alexandra Paul, co-hosts of Earth Talk Today, will Emcee the event at the Sheraton Delfina Hotel co-sponsored by Southern California Edison and The Gas Company.