PROTECTING
THE PLACES WE
LOVE TO EXPLORE

 
 

At our core we’re about supporting women, and of course that includes the OG, the one and only, Mother Earth! After all, none of this, none of anything, would be possible without her many gifts. But let’s be real, from the flights we take to the tents we sleep in, we’re leaving a negative impact on her delicate ecosystems. Nevertheless, we still believe traveling can and should be a force of good. After all, to experience these majestic places, is to fall in love with them. And to love them is to want to protect them and help them thrive for generations to come.

OUR APPROACH

Our goal is to do everything we can to minimize and offset the negative impacts of adventuring, and to help preserve the natural beauty and biodiversity in the places we explore. We want to leave destinations in a better state than we found them, and for all of our adventurers to leave as more empowered eco-warriors!

It’s a journey, we’re always learning and making improvements. We believe no goal is too big and no step forward is too small. Sometimes we’ll stumble, but we’ll always take accountability and work to do better because this matters - to us as a company and as individuals living and loving on planet Earth.

MINIMIZE

We will reduce our consumption and footprint, and Leave No Trace wherever possible.

IMPROVE

We will set big goals, like being Climate Neutral, and take steps every day towards being more sustainable.

OFFSET

We will calculate and compensate for our footprint through certified offsetting programs.

EDUCATE

We will lead by example and share ideas to turn all adventurers into more empowered, sustainable explorers.

 

OUR TIMELINE
OF SUSTAINABILITY

UPDATED JAN 2024

 
 

2024

 

Became a Guardian Member of Sustainable Travel International to support certified offseting projects that protect local environments and minimize tourism’s impact on wildlife and the planet.

 

 
 

Joined 1% for the Planet pledging 1% of our annual revenue to grassroots environmental causes that are helping to protect the planet.

 

2023

 
 

In 2023, our first full year of tree planting, we grew the world's forests by 1004 trees with the help of One Tree Planted! This year we planted trees for each trip our adventurers went on and for every like our Green Friday social media post received.

 

 

Began visiting the Gobi Oasis Tree Planting Project to plant trees on our Mongolia Adventures, and help support the Mongolian government’s goal to plant 1 billion trees by 2030!

 

 

Created a WHOA Gear Swap Facebook group for our travelers to encourage buying, selling, borrowing, and trading gear. Our goal is to lend Mother Nature a hand by helping find gear that's not being used, new homes!

 

 

Started partnership with Epic Water Filters to reduce single-use plastic water bottle use on our adventures by giving all our GALs their cutting-edge CoreXchange Technology water filters and encouraging our adventurers to do the same.

 

 

We made one day completely meat free at Camp WHOA, our annual community get together, to reduce the event’s carbon footprint by reducing meat consumption.

 

2022

 
 

During our second year of offsetting our carbon emissions, we worked with Sustainable Travel International to offset 140.04 t CO2e of carbon. This accounts for each guest and GAL during adventures as well as GAL flights.

 

 
 

Switched our WHOA stickers to be sustainably made from wood instead of plastic!

 

 
 

Began partnership with AMA Torres del Paine to help build new, sustainably constructed trails and support their langa tree nursery in Torres del Paine National Park on our Patagonia Adventures.

 

 
 

Started planting trees for every adventurer with onetreeplanted.org. And our WHOAlums get a tree planted for every single adventure they’ve done (that’s 5 trees in some cases)! So as our family grows, so do the forests! In total we planted 774 trees in 2022!

 

 

Switched to WHOA buffs that are made of 100% recycled plastic bottles.

 

 

Certified all WHOA Group Adventure Leaders in the principles of Leave No Trace, and WHOA Co-Founders have committed to supporting measurable climate action, and have signed ATTA’s Climate Action Leaders in Travel Pledge.

 

2021

 

Pledged to calculate and offset all of our carbon emissions. In 2021, we compensated for 13.61 t C02e through certified science based reforestation and wildlife projects with South Pole.

 

 

Began supporting and helping the Torres del Paine Legacy Fund with reforestation monitoring on our Patagonia Adventures.

 

 

Started giving out compostable bags to all of our adventurers to pick up and properly dispose of trash they find on the trail - supporting our goal to leave places better than we found them!

 

2020

 

Put out the WHOApproved Gear Guide highlighting climate forward gear and outdoor brands, and educating adventurers on how to shop smarter and more sustainably.

 

2019

 

Pledged and encourage all WHOA Adventurers to stop bringing single-use plastics into our destinations, taking the lead from Tanzania’s ban on single-use plastic bags

 

 

Launched our Sustainability initiatives, in order to be transparent and stay on track with our passion and commitment for preserving Mother Earth.