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.

LEARN MORE ABOUT OUR

SUSTAINABILITY INITIATIVES

OUR APPROACH

SETTING GOALS

OUR TIMELINE

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.

OFFSET

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

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.

EDUCATE

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

THE UNITED NATIONS
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS

Updated May 2024

To keep ourselves in check, we look to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals to help us measure our financial, environmental, and human impact across everything from equality to protecting our ecosystems. These 17 goals provide an ambitious, universally adopted blueprint for achieving a more sustainable future for all by 2030. As firm believers in using travel as a force for good, we take our role in this vision very seriously.

Here's a look at how we are currently making progress on nine of those goals along with our local partners.

Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.
- Through a Trailblazer Leader Grant awarded in partnership with LEKI Poles, we were able to provide Wilderness First Aid Responder training for one of our Kilimanjaro female guides, allowing her to grow from Assistant to Lead Mountain Guide.
- As part of our first International Women's Day Kilimanjaro climb, we raised funds to build a sports field at Tembea Girls School in Kajiado, Kenya, bringing more opportunities to students on a national level.
- Our partner in Ecuador, Tierra del Volcan, has donated 2,500 books to Seed Libraries, or reading corners, in five schools across the region.

Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls.
- 100% of WHOA's local hiking partners are women-owned and/or women-led. Elizabeth, our long time Peru partner and founder of Mountain Gods Peru, started her own trekking company in a male-dominated industry, and is a perfect example of the power of these types of partnerships.
- In Mongolia, our local partners Eternal Landscapes founded Chandmana Erdene, a circular approach to tourism that makes tangible and lasting differences in the lives of Mongolian women by offering opportunities to train and work in tourism.
- After our Patagonia W Trek wraps up, we connect, share, and learn from a group of local female entrepreneurs, artisans, and artists in Puerto Natales. It's not just a cool way to see and experience the culture and town, but to also support sustainable, small, local businesses.

Promote sustained, inclusive, and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent work for all.
- Our porters are the ones who make climbing Kilimanjaro possible. That's why we're proud to be a longtime partner company with the Kilimanjaro Porters Assistance Project which upholds ethical climbing practices, while ensuring crews on the mountain receive fair wages, proper gear, and adequate shelter for their expeditions.

Reduce inequality within and among countries.
- We offer ongoing support for Shirikisha, a woman-owned and operated collective of deaf artisans in Tanzania who make beautiful, sustainable textiles.
- With partners like Mountain Goat Movement, Sierra Nevada Brewing Company, and LEKI Poles, our Trailblazer Rise Grant from The Carabiner Collective helps us remove financial barriers associated with travel, bringing more diversity and representation to the outdoors.

Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns.
- We're cutting down our carbon footprint by reducing the meat we serve on our adventures. Plus, we declared one day totally meat-free at our 2024 community get together, Camp WHOA.
- When it comes to gear and swag, we're all about sustainability. Our buffs are made from recycled plastic, our stickers made of wood, and we're planting trees for every adventurer. Oh, and don't forget about our WHOA Gear Swap Facebook group, where we encourage our travelers to buy, sell, borrow, and trade gear.
- In Iceland, our food is locally sourced from the Midgard Base Camp kitchen, who make it a priority to reduce food waste from breakfasts and dinners each day. They serve up locally grown herbs, freshly caught fish from the South Coast, pasture-raised Icelandic lamb, and plant-based dishes from neighboring town Þykkvibær.

Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts.
- We offset CO2 by calculating and offsetting all our travelers' in-country emissions, and those of WHOA HQ operations.
- We are Guardian Members of Sustainable Travel International to ensure our carbon offsetting efforts go to certified programs.

Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas, and marine resources for sustainable development.
- Following Tanzania’s lead on saying no to single-use plastic bags, we’ve made our packing lists the ultimate resource for single-use plastic free packing, and are rallying all our WHOA Adventurers to avoid bringing it to our destinations.

Protect, restore, and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss.
- We’ve made our adventures even more eco-friendly by planting trees through the One Tree Planted initiative.
- We're helping the Mongolian government reach their goal of planting one billion trees by 2030 through the Gobi Oasis Tree Planting Project.
- In Ecuador, our partners Tierra del Volcan have been busy planting over 600,000 native trees on the northern slopes of Rumiñahui Volcano—the second summit on our Cotopaxi 3 Summit Challenge Adventure. These trees aren't just for looks, they're doing some serious work with restoration efforts by protecting water sources and absorbing carbon.

Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development.
- We've put our money where our mouth is by joining the 1% for the Planet community as both members and charity partners, pledging 1% of our annual revenue to grassroots environmental causes.