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 environmental and social impact of travel is built into how we work. We share information with our customers about slower travel options, local food and accommodation, and how their choices affect the communities along the Camino routes.
Improving our Footprint
We work to measure and manage the emissions generated by our operations. From 2023, we introduced vegetarian meal options across our Camino network where available. Between 2020 and 2023, we offset our measured operational emissions through verified gold-standard projects in India and Uganda, certified by First Climate. In 2024, we offset our operational emissions through the Hongera Cookstoves project in Kenya, certified by DGB Group. We are currently reviewing our approach to carbon offsetting for 2025 onwards.
Customers and Communities
We actively share practical information with our customers to help them make more considered choices during their Camino journey — from recommending locally-owned restaurants and shops to highlighting low-impact transport options. We point them to sustainability resources and partners relevant to the routes they walk.
Our Projects
Introducing Vegetarian Meals on the Camino
We have created a series of videos with recipes prepared by a local chef highlighting fresh ingredients and culinary techniques native to 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 a concrete and ongoing contribution to addressing global hunger — a problem that can be meaningfully reduced with the right support.
Investing in Carbon Offset Projects
Using First Climate, we invested in three verified Gold Standard offsetting projects, purchasing 3,000 tonnes of CO2 credits to cover our measured operational emissions between 2020 and 2023: wind power generation in Karnataka, India (2020–2022); the ‘Spouts’ safe drinking water initiative in Uganda, providing local communities with access to safe drinking water (2022–2023); and a 5MW solar PV power plant operated by AEPL in India (2023).
In 2024, we offset our operational emissions through the Hongera Cookstoves project in Kenya, certified by DGB Group, which provides communities with safer and more efficient cooking stoves.
We are currently reviewing our approach to carbon offsetting for 2025 onwards, and will publish updated details here once finalized.
Certificates available in Our Sustainability Partnerships and Certifications.
Measuring and Reducing Our Operational Emissions
Since 2015, we have been calculating the carbon footprint of our operations — covering accommodation and transfers. We are a fully remote team, which reduces commute emissions. Most of our meetings and events are held virtually.
Team and Sustainability
Follow the Camino supported employees in completing a Carbon Literacy certification programme in partnership with Irish sustainability consultancy Earthology in 2023. This initiative helped staff make more informed decisions around carbon in both their professional and personal lives. To support ongoing staff engagement with sustainability, we also developed an Internal Sustainability Guide, shared with all employees and reviewed annually.
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
