MINIMAL FOOTPRINT EXPEDITIONS THAT GET YOU OFF THE GRID FOR AS LONG AS POSSIBLE
ANYONE DENYING CLIMATE CHANGE DOESN’T CLIMB HIGH MOUNTAINS, AND THOUGH WE DON’T PUSH IT AS A CENTRAL AGENDA WE SEE THE EFFECTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON EVERY TRIP. ICE FORMS DIFFERENTLY, GLACIERS ARE SHIFTING, SNOW LEVELS ARE CHANGING, RIVERS ARE DIFFERENT, AGRICULTURE IS BEING ALTERED AFTER MILLENIA AND THE LIVES OF MILLIONS ACROSS THE GREAT PLATEAUS & WATERSHEDS OF ASIA ARE ADAPTING TO CONDITIONS NOT SEEN IN LIVING MEMORY.
WE ALSO KNOW ABOUT CLIMBERS TAKING LONG HAUL FLIGHTS WITH LOTS OF SYNTHETIC GEAR AND WE SEE THE CONUNDRUM. WE TAKE THIS SERIOUSLY AND MAKE EFFORTS TO ADDRESS IT.
NO EXPEDITION CAN BE AS FOOTPRINT-LESS AS STAYING AT HOME AND CONSUMING NOTHING, BUT WE CAN BALANCE OUT THE HIGH-CONSUMPTION FIRST-WORLD LIFESTYLE BY SPENDING TIME IN PLACES THAT DON’T REQUIRE DAILY USE OF HIGH-ENERGY COMMODITIES. AND THE MORE OF THOSE DAYS THE BETTER.
ONE REASON WE ADVOCATE LONGER TRIPS IS RELATIVE TO THE COSTS OF GETTING THERE THEY START TO EVEN OUT. FLYING ACROSS THE PACIFIC FOR A 5 DAYS TRIP IS EXCESSIVE WE BELIEVE, BUT MAKING THAT FLIGHT FOR A 5 WEEK TRIP MEANS SEVERAL TIMES LONGER YOU ARE NOT AT HOME DRIVING YOUR CAR, TURNING THE LIGHTS ON & VISITING THE SUPERMARKET.
LOGISTICALLY WE MINIMIZE OUR FOOTPRINT BY USING NEWER, CLEANER VEHICLES, STAYING IN UPDATED ACCOMODATION THAT IS MORE ENERGY EFFICIENT, SOURCING BULK ITEMS FROM WHOLESALE SUPPLIERS, EATING LOCALLY TO A FAULT AND WORKING WITH LOCAL PEOPLE RATHER THAN FLYING OUTSIDERS IN. IN XINJIANG & TIBET WE USE ANIMALS FOR PORTAGE RATHER THAN HUMANS, AND WE PAY FAIR, GOVERNMENT-SET WAGES THAT ARE SUSTAINABLE.
SUPPORTING LOCAL INITIATIVES IN CHINA ISN’T THE SAME AS IN PLACES WITH DIFFERENT FORMS OF GOVERNMENT. CHINA DOESN’T HAVE THE LARGE GAPS FILLED BY NGO’S LIKE NEPAL AND PAKISTAN DOES. LIKEWISE WE DON’T ALWAYS AGREE THAT INJECTING AFFLUENT WESTERN VALUES INTO REMOTE, TRADITIONAL CULTURES HAS MANY BENEFITS. THE WAY WE LEAVE A POSITIVE AND SUSTAINABLE IMPACT IS TO INTERACT WITH LOCAL PEOPLE ON THEIR TERMS BY AVOIDING THE TOURIST BUBBLES THAT WE’VE SEEN CREATE DISPARITY IN OTHERWISE HEALTHY SOCITIES. WE DON’T REQUEST EXPENSIVE FOREIGN BRANDS (CLIMBING EQUIPMENT THE OBVIOUS EXCEPTION), WE DON’T EXPECT FOREIGN FOOD, WE DON’T STAY IN FOREIGN FRANCHISE HOTELS AND WE DON’T DONATE ALIEN JUNK OR MONEY TO CAUSES THAT ARE NOT SUSTAINABLE.
PROBABLY THE LARGEST IMPACT ELEMENT OF A TRIPS ARE THE FLIGHTS THERE AND AWAY. BY OPERATING IN CHINA, ALL OUR TRIPS BEGIN AND END IN MAJOR AIR DESTINATIONS THAN REQUIRE MINIMAL FLIGHTS TO GET TO. THESE DAYS CHENGDU & URUMQI ARE LARGE REGIONAL HUBS THAT MAXIMIZE THE EFFICIENCY OF MOVING PEOPLE AROUND THE WORLD. UNLIKE MORE SECONDARY DESTINATIONS THAT REQUIRE THREE OR MORE FLIGHT FOOTPRINTS TO GET TO (AND AWAY FROM) OUR CENTRES OF OPERATION OFTEN REQUIRE JUST A SINGLE CHANGE IF THAT.
THE EFFECTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE IN PLACES LIKE CHINA ARE ACROSS A WIDE SPECTRUM OF FACTORS, NOT JUST RETREATING GLACIERS & THINNING ICE FALLS. WE MATCH THE AFFECT OF THE SIGNIFICANT ENVIRONMENTAL COSTS WE ENTAIL BY MAKING OUR STAYS IN REMOTE AREAS AS ‘FORWARDLY SUSTAINABLE’ AS POSSIBLE BY DEMONSTRATING HOW OUTSIDERS CAN MOVE THROUGH THESE PLACES WITHOUT PUTTING DISPROPORTIONATE DEMANDS ON THEM.
