Sustainability
Our Commitment
Settled Nomads' Promise to People & the Planet
The tourism industry has the potential for positive influence and transformative change. Settled Nomads is dedicated to a more sustainable and resilient tourism community in Nova Scotia.
We have set a goal to become Nature Net Positive by 2030. Ensuring our adventures give back more to the environment & local communities than they take.
We believe that tourism needs to take full account of its current and future economic, social, and environmental impacts, and address the needs of visitors, the industry, the environment and host communities.
We are working towards better travel by committing to the four elements of our Sustainability & Climate Action Plan; measure, decarbonize, restore, & advocate. With these pillars we are able to ensure our action plan commitments are embedded in all of our decisions and services.
We take on our responsibility to not only reduce our negative impacts but to proactively contribute in a positive way to the environments and relationships which we are intrinsically dependent on.
Through our Sustainability & Climate Action Plan, we commit to adventures that are good for people and the planet.
Our Promise
To demonstrate our commitment to improving the sustainability performance of our business we are a signatory of Tourism Declares and the Glasgow Declaration.
The Responsible Traveler's Handbook
This digestible handbook is full of helpful reminders, tips, best practices, and resources.
Sustainable Development Goals
Our Sustainability & Climate Action Plan focuses on working towards 9 key UN Sustainable Development Goals:
Measure
Action Plan
By the nature of our company, our Business & Trip Emissionsare relatively low.
Settled Nomads operates remotely, with no physical office location. All tours and business operations take place in Mi’kma’ki, Turtle Island (Nova Scotia, Canada).
Transportation to and within Nova Scotia is the predominant direct source of emissions for our customers and company.
Settled Nomads commits to tracking our vehicle kilometres on guided tours & other work-related driving. Due to the nature of self-guided trips, we are not able to track the driving distances of our customers. However, we do provide approximate round-trip driving distances for each of our self-guided trips from multiple key location hubs in Nova Scotia.
With our Sustainable Purchasing Policy, we track:
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Our food miles
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The percentage of our spending on goods and services with local suppliers (defined as privately owned suppliers whose headquarters are within 300 km of our location)
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The percentage of the goods and services we purchase that are sustainable/sustainably sourced, as certified by a third party or other recognized standard
Decarbonize
Action Plan
We support the global commitment to halve emissions by2030 and reach Net Zero as soon as possible before 2050.
We will consistently align our actions with the latest scientific recommendations, so as to ensure our approach remains consistent with a rise of no more than 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels by 2100.
We will prioritize community and ecosystem well-being, by reducing the carbon- and material-intensive ways we deliver visitor experiences.
We will continue to fund Gold Standard and equivalent carbon reduction projects and plant trees through Ecologi.
Other key environmental & social metrics include:
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Diversity & Inclusion (measured by tour partner and customer composition, online/media representation, divergence from colonial tour narratives/content)
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Tour waste generation
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Giving contributions (financial & volunteer hours)
Restore
Action Plan
Climate change, pollution and biodiversity loss jeopardize most tourism activities. Rising sea levels, more frequent floods, and other extreme weather events threaten community livelihoods everywhere, from infrastructure and supply chains to food security.
We commit to supporting Indigenous-led conservation initiatives and recognized land conservation organizations working to protect and restore Mi’kma’ki (Nova Scotia).
We want to ensure that our adventures give back more to the environment & local communities than they take. With everything we do to create and run trips, we not only aim to reduce our negative impacts on the environment but we are working to incorporate donations into our tour costs. By linking each of our trips with a local conservation or community project we are able to give back and protect the local resources our outdoor active and cultural tourism experiences are dependent on.
Advocate
Action Plan
This journey is not one we can do alone; we will continually work to build reciprocal industry relationships in which we can share and take learnings from each other.
We will collaborate and develop industry partnerships with like-valued companies, that are actively demonstrating their commitment to positive change.
Encourage industry partners to declare a climate emergency and take purposeful action to reduce their carbon emissions as per the advice from the Intergovernmental Panel on ClimateChange (IPCC) to cut global carbon emissions to 55% below2017 levels by 2030.
Advocate for and educate travellers on sustainable travel, encourage travellers to practice and engage in responsible tourism.
Campaign for wider system changes needed to move NovaScotia's travel industry towards a low carbon future.
Publicly share transparent annual updates regarding our Sustainability & Climate Action Plan.
Our Progress
2020 Settled Nomads was created. Business was in developmentstages, and not yet operating.
2021 Settled Nomads had a soft rolling launch.
As of 2021, we:
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Were the first Canadian Tour Operator signatory to declare a climate emergency with Tourism Declares
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Signed the Sustainable Tourism 2030 Pledge, to demonstrate our commitment to improving the sustainability performance of our business - as we work towards certification
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Became a signatory and launch partner of the Glasgow Declaration on Climate Action in Tourism
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Are an Industry Partner to the Indigenous Tourism Association of Canada (ITAC)
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Created The Responsible Travellers' Handbook; our guide for travelers wanting to participate in tourism responsibly
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Work with 100% locally owned businesses
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Prioritize outdoor active and cultural travel experiences that have low negative impacts
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Operate in line with Leave No Trace principles
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Created a Sustainable Purchasing Policy
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Aim for all of our experiences to have zero or minimal waste programming
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Provide guided experiences that are free from single-use plastics
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Use dishware and utensils that are reusable or composable in our guided experiences
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Monitor food waste from our guided tours
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Sort refuse into recyclables, compost, and garbage
As of Q1 2022:
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Settled Nomads is a Climate Friendly Workforce; planting trees and funding Gold Standard and equivalent carbon reduction projects through Ecologi
Next Steps
Settled Nomads aims to be a regional leader in sustainable tourism. We have built a strong foundation for our business based on our core values, but our journey is continuous. Our commitment to improving our sustainability performance must be actively and transparently demonstrated.
Next we are working towards:
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GreenStep’s Sustainable Tourism Operator certification, a standard officially recognized by the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC)
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Source 100% of our food & beverages for trips from local producers and growers
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Work with non-profits, NGO’s, conservationists and activists to campaign on important issues, and design adventures that can make a difference
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Contribute to building sustainable economies in rural areas
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Link every trip with a local conservation or community project it directly supports
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Build in offsetting and/or donation costs into the price of our trips
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Create adventures that encourage & facilitate active or public transportation as the primary mode of transportation
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B Corp Certification
Have questions or general inquiries? Want to learn more, share ideas for consideration, or provide feedback? We would love to hear your thoughts or feedback on how we can improve. Staying accountable to our community is important to us, we always appreciate ideas to explore, questions to consider, and constructive feedback to improve upon.
Wela'lin/Thank You!
For your support as we work on our Sustainability & Climate Action Plan goals.
Settled Nomads' Sustainability & Climate Action Plan was developed in alignment with Tourism Declares' and the Glasgow Declaration's signatory commitments.