Our Commitment
TO BE CARBON NEUTRAL (EFFECTIVE 2021):
- investing in climate-smart agriculture and forestry projects as a self-imposed carbon tax in an effort to neutralize our business's carbon impact
- offsetting each guide and guest's carbon footprint (both on tour and during R&D). Standard business practice would allow us to ignore this impact, but we don’t want to be a standard business. So far (2021, 2022 and 2023), we have offset estimated carbon emissions from all air miles (international and domestic, calculated from actual ports of departure/entry), road miles, accommodations, meals, and business-related internet use.
- partnering with Vermont-based Native (another B Corporation) in 2021 and 2022:
- for 2021, we neutralized 200 tonnes by supporting equivalent emissions reductions of a composting project at Laurelbrook Farm in Connecticut
- for 2022, we neutralized 628 tonnes by supporting equivalent emissions reductions of a solar cookstoves project in Madagascar
- partnering with Cool Effect in 2023 and 2024:
- for 2023, given the big differences we found on the internet for how to calculate metric tonnes from long-haul flights--with 1,940.000 miles flown this year, calculations range from 240 to 637 tonnes--we opted for the most conservative number and neutralized 729 tonnes (total emissions in 2023, inclusive of all long-haul flights) by supporting the equivalent emissions reductions of a biogas digester in rural areas of Maharashtra State of India
- for 2024, given the similar driven mileage over last year and 15% increase in number of guests, we neutralized 838 tonnes (inclusive of long-haul flights) by supporting a project which obliterates super warming methane emissions from the decomposition of waste in landfills in Brazil
- with Cool Effect, 90 cents of every dollar goes to the carbon offsets, so we opted to cover the remaining 10% with Terrapass and neutralized an additional 73 tonnes in 2023 by investing in a landfill gas capture project in New Bedford, Massachusetts. In 2024, we neutralized an additional 84 tonnes as well by investing in carbon reductions projects with Terrapass
TO MINIMIZE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT:
- recycling plastic, glass and paper both at home and on tour, and minimizing water consumption whenever possible
- avoiding food waste by always ordering food in the right satisfying amounts
- purchasing additional carbon offsets (beyond the above, in order to assure carbon neutrality) from reputable organizations such as Terrapass, which supports emission reduction projects around the United States, and Treedom, which aims to make the world a better place one tree at a time
TO OFFER THE KIND OF TOURISM WE BELIEVE IN:
- promoting sustainability, biodiversity, respect for people, animals, and environment on tour, during local events, through social media, and on our website
- featuring pillars of cultural preservation on tour including Slow Food Presidia, agriturismi, and alberghi diffusi (see “Ingredients”)
- visiting lesser-known, less-celebrated places that nonetheless hold deep stories of incredible people connected to beautiful landscapes and traditions
- patronizing restaurants, farmers, and artisans who produce "good, clean and fair food"
- considering all of our stakeholders—not only guests and guides, but also suppliers, local community, and environment. We work hard to leave a positive handprint on the Earth [see below]. We are a proud certified B Corporation.
TO INVEST IN THE PLACES WE GO AND NGOS WE BELIEVE IN:
- donating at least 1% of sales revenues to non-profit organizations that move and inspire us (See below)
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Who we have been supporting
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Being a B Corp