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Walking in Languedoc is passionate about the environment and actively preserves it for our own good and that of future generations. We firmly believe that we all have a right to enjoy its fruits without feeling guilty about it as long as we are responsible for our own actions. Furthermore, we see no reason for people to feel guilty about taking a holiday due to the pollution they will cause, when they are likely to create the same level of pollution if staying at home on holiday or driving to work and back in traffic jams. Rights simply go hand in hand with responsibilities.
All Walking in Languedoc customers, as well as our suppliers, are provided with a copy of our Responsible Travel Policy. Make your travel Carbon Neutral During your short-break or holiday with us, however you chose to travel around in situ, your activities will have some impact on the local environment and wildlife. To compensate for the carbon produced by our own vehicles, in both France and the UK, we buy Scottish trees, a real and symbolic link to our company’s roots. Moreover, we recommend hiring minis or cars of equivalent engine size to our enlightened customers. Statistically, a short-haul flight produces the equivalent CO2 emissions to driving a mini for 3 months. If there are ninety of you aboard, that’s the equivalent to one day behind the wheel per person. Whether you are on holiday or not, please help reduce your personal contribution to global warming by giving your time, money or both to climate-friendly energy projects. There are a multitude of organisations dedicated to action to preserve the environment. Here are just two that we recommend:. Support for local environmental groups and issues We walk under licenses issued by the Federation Francaise de Randonee Pedestre/FFRP, one of the largest walking associations in the world. We are members of a local walking club affiliated to the FFRP. These clubs are custodians of the paths walked by the walking fraternity. Part of our Club’s mission is the protection of the environment.The Enlightened Traveller is delighted to announce that it has sponsored two Great Flamingos or Phoenicopterus roseus. As part of our commitment to actively preserving the environment and all who live within her, it seemed only natural to ‘ adopt ’ two of these beautiful and graceful birds. The flamingo is, after all, an emblem of the French Mediterranean – the Region where we work and that we so much love. Since 2005, it is possible to support a flamingo born in either France, Italy or Spain and the annual subscription rate is 25 euros per bird. To find out more about the scheme we invite you to visit the Interactive Atlas of the Greater flamingos Recycling We took the decision some time ago not to produce a multi-paged glossy brochure and we will stick by that whether it is ‘commercially sound’ or not. That’s about being responsible and leading from the front in the Conviction Business Age.Our promotional materials, and even our business cards, are printed on 100% recycled paper or card by an award-winning printer that uses an environmentally-friendly printing process. We also hope that the days of the fax machine are numbered. To this end, we encourage electronic and telephonic communication by not opening a dedicated fax line. Travel v Tourism Enlightened Travellers visit countries in order to learn and experience the cultures and environments of the places visited. They are not in favour of participating in, or being entertained by, images and experiences created specifically for the tourist market. The distinction between the 'traveller' and the 'tourist' is a significant one. Being an Enlightened Traveller involves:
The following quotations may also help to elucidate:
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