Our Sustainability Initiatives
At Follow the Camino, sustainability is not a side project. It is built into how we operate. We actively review how we work and perform across governance, workers, community, environment, and customers.
Our CEO and team work together to discuss initiatives that help us manage our organisational impact on the environment, and to share recommendations with our customers and suppliers on how to operate more sustainably.
We work with locally-owned accommodation providers and encourage our clients to eat at independent restaurants, buy locally made products, and participate in local experiences. This keeps economic benefit within the communities we travel through.
We measure our carbon footprint annually and share that data publicly (see our Sustainable Tourism Policy).
Our Sustainability Priorities
Our sustainability work is built on three pillars: Awareness, Improving our Footprint, and Customers and Communities. At Follow the Camino, we recognise that we have a role to play across the communities and environments we work in, and we organise our efforts accordingly.
Awareness
Awareness of the impact of travel is one of the biggest drivers of change. We advocate for slower, more mindful ways of travelling and engaging with the natural environment and local communities along the Camino.
Improving our Footprint
Our projects are focused on measuring and managing our carbon footprint. Since 2023 we have introduced vegetarian meal options across our Camino network. We have also invested in carbon offsetting projects to account for the emissions created by our operations and customers’ air travel to the Camino
Customers and Communities
We encourage our customers to make their Camino journey as sustainable as possible. This includes sharing information about sustainable travel and ‘leaving no trace’, and pointing them to sustainable tourism partners along the way.
Our Projects
Introducing Vegetarian Meals on the Camino
As part of our commitment to sustainability and promoting local produce, we have created a series of videos with recipes prepared by a local chef. These videos highlight the fresh ingredients and culinary traditions of the regions along the Camino. Our aim is for the hotels and restaurants we work with to adopt these recipes for their own menus. We also encourage clients on our Guided Tours to have at least one vegetarian meal during their trip.
United Nations World Food Programme
Since 2014, the company has donated €10 per month per employee to the UN World Food Programme. While it is not a comprehensive solution to the many crises the world is facing, we see it as part of our commitment to giving back and to addressing global hunger, a problem that can be readily tackled in our lifetime with the right support.
Investing in Carbon Offset Projects
Using First Climate, an organisation dedicated to helping companies achieve net zero carbon emissions, we purchased 3,000 tonnes of CO2 credits across three gold standard offsetting projects: one focused on renewable wind energy, one on solar energy, and one on safer and more efficient cooking stoves for communities in need.
You can view our carbon certificates in our Sustainability Partnerships and Certifications section
Measuring our Carbon Footprint
Since 2015, we have been calculating the carbon footprint of every trip we operate, from airport transfers to hotel stays, luggage transfers to breakfasts. We also measure the footprint of our office and business operations.
We are a low-paper office, with everything done digitally. Most of our team works from home, reducing commuting emissions. We run and attend webinars and conferences virtually where possible to limit business travel.
Our Team and Sustainability
In 2023, we supported a group of employees in completing a Carbon Literacy certification through Irish sustainability consultancy Earthology. We have since developed internal sustainability guidelines and recommendations to help our team incorporate sustainable practices into their day to day work.
Our Sustainable Tourism Policy 2024
Responsible Public Policy Engagement
- We base all policy positions on reliable scientific evidence
- We make no financial contributions to political parties or candidates
- We make no in-kind contributions to political parties, candidates, or political organisations
- We prohibit bribery, corruption, or any form of improper influence in any political engagement
- We assess supported organisations annually and will end relationships if their positions contradict our impact commitments
