Alpine Guides Sustainability Policy
We acknowledge the challenges involved in balancing adventure tourism and the impact upon our environment. This inevitably involves international travel and is a difficult equation to solve. Nevertheless, doing something is better than doing nothing at all. Therefore we have implemented some common sense policies to help us all do our part in helping to protect our mountains and other wild places.
- We encourage eco-friendly travel by offering a £100 discount (per person) for train travel and a £150 discount (per car) for car sharing with other AG clients to our venues.
- We are members of Protect Our Winters. POW is a global non-profit organization that mobilizes the outdoor sports community to take action against climate change.
- We have begun to remove financial ties with the fossil fuel industry. The majority of our banking is conducted with Charity Bank and Starling bank – both rated in the top 5 sustainable business banks in the UK.
- We encourage our clients to opt for vegetarian meal options in huts and hotels.
- For some of our clients/trips, air travel may be unavoidable. In these situations carbon offsetting is a potentially viable strategy to help us balance our carbon footprint. Carbon offsetting involves investing in projects that reduce or capture an equivalent amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere, effectively balancing out the emissions generated by air travel. This is a personal choice, but we would encourage you to review the options currently available and make your own provision for offsetting your journey.
- We actively practice Leave No Trace principles, as we have always done. Ensuring that our clients understand the importance of preserving natural environments and leaving them unaltered.
Resources
Carbon offsetting and carbon capture: https://www.smithschool.ox.ac.uk/sites/default/files/2022-01/Oxford-Offsetting-Principles-2020.pdf
Over land travel planning: https://www.alpine-guides.com/ski/planning-your-skiing-trip/travel-planning/
BMC lift sharing community: https://liftshare.com/uk/community/bmc