Responsible Tourism Policy
At the very start of the company, we produced a policy outlining a set of responsible points that we endeavour to adhere too and developed a guideline for travelling responsibly in Nepal. These early efforts placed us as leaders in the responsible tourism practice in Nepal.
We cannot claim that we have achieved every point on our policy to our complete satisfaction, but we continue to pursue our goal. We have voluntary allowed our actions to be audited by an external mediator in an attempt to better ourselves in this field.
Suppliers
We have made the decision not to vertically integrate but to subcontract all services required to local qualified Nepalese companies. This ensures a greater financial spread and channels more money back into the local economy. We also guarantee that all suppliers are paid upfront and/or on time.
We develop long-term partnerships to establish long-lasting economically stable relationships within the local community. Through these relationships we encourage our stakeholders to adopt similar Responsible Tourism practices. By enlisting the help of our clients, we keep a watchful eye to ensure they are not acting irresponsibly.
Development of Experiences
When developing a tour or trek all environmental, social and economic issues are taken into consideration. We take lengths never to develop a tour or trek that will have a detrimental effect on the environment.
Our tours and treks focus on local practices such as meditation and yoga. We promote local traditions, local food and encourage home stay visits to enhance cultural preservation.
We aim to ensure that our operations do not disrupt or lead to the displacement of local people. We only run small group trips that are within a scale appropriate for local conditions and operate within the limits set by local infrastructure and carrying capacity.
On the Trail
Home stays and small family-run lodges are used in preference over camping to ensures money is invested straight back into the local community.
All food is purchased from the local villages unless this cannot be provided in a sustainable manner.
Our clients are encouraged to support local income generation by using Nepalese owned services and village owned shops, stalls and restaurants.
We ensure all waste is disposed of in the correct manner for the area we are in. For National Parks this is in the provided waste reciprocals and for off-the-beaten track treks it is brought back to the start of the trail.
Trip Leaders and Crew
Our guides and porters are exceptional people and we do our utmost to protect them from exploitation.
Where possible we hire local guides from the region the where the trek is run in. We discourage clients to trek without guides. Not only can this be unsafe; it also deprives someone of much needed employment.
We encourage all our clients to hire porters. This is a great way of funneling money straight back into the local community. Porters’ wages are approximately 1500 rupees per day ($ 15) so what is less than the price of a few beers in the city is a lifeline to these people.
Where possible porters are hired from the local communities that the treks operate in. Not only does this provide employment for local people, it also negates the need for transportation thus reducing the company’s carbon footprint.
The Team
All staff members are Nepalese and from a range of ethnic backgrounds. We do not discriminate on gender or age.
We provide regular and ongoing training, in the principles and practices of responsible tourism, to both our staff in the office and those employed out of the office.
10% of the company's profits go directly into employee benefits.
All members of the team are treated as equals. Respect for individuals is an important part of the business and this extends to all people who work with us.
The Office
We aim to run our office in an environmentally friendly manner by decorating and furnishing it with fair-trade products and locally produced furniture, using energy saving bulbs, recycling as much waste as possible and keeping water and electricity consumption to a bare minimum.
We do not produce glossy brochures; instead we rely on electronic means to distribute our promotional literature. All business cards & presentation albums are produced from recycled paper.
We constantly remind our staff about environmental practices through verbal and written notices.
We take our responsibility towards looking after the environment very seriously and as a company we try to run our offices in an environmentally friendly manner as possible.
Philanthropy
We provide financial support to local economic, developmental and environmental projects giving back to the community that is supporting our business.
All members of staff are entitled to a specified amount of work time to pursue their own charitable projects.
We take our impact on the local community very seriously. Almost all personnel are involved in some form of social/charitable work. Time and funding is given to allow them to support these ventures.
Spreading the word
We encourage our clients through our team members, guides and literature to act in a responsible way. We aim to educate them in ways to minimise their impact on the environment and local community and to give them an insight and understanding of the host destination.
