Intrepid Travel, the world’s largest adventure travel company, has been named to Fast Company’s list of the World’s Most Innovative Companies of 2024. The list represents the top brands driving progress around the world and across industries. This year’s list shines a spotlight on businesses that are shaping industry and culture through their innovations, setting new standards, and achieving remarkable milestones.
Intrepid Travel has earned 8th place in the Travel, Leisure, and Hospitality category for launching its Carbon Labelling program, alongside organizations such as Hilton, Delta, and Hopper. This is the fifth time the brand has received this honour, most recently in 2023 for its work in corporate social responsibility.
“We are honoured to receive this recognition. Fast Company’s annual list is globally regarded we hope this will further inspire other businesses to become more transparent.” said James Thornton, CEO of Intrepid Travel, “The travel industry cannot shy away from our environmental impact.”
Intrepid Travel launched Carbon Labelling on over 500 itineraries in 2023, representing one of the industry’s most comprehensive carbon labelling initiatives to date. The carbon labels show the total CO2-e of the trip per traveler, per day, helping travellers better understand the environmental footprint of their travel choices and allowing them to make informed decisions.
“Our list of the Most Innovative Companies is both a comprehensive look at the innovation economy and a snapshot of the business trends that defined the year,” said Fast Company editor-in-chief Brendan Vaughan. “We face daunting challenges on many fronts, but the solutions we celebrate in MIC give me plenty of hope about the future.”
Intrepid believes carbon labelling will soon become standard practice and part of government policy, like nutrition labels in the mid-1990s. Since the launch, Intrepid has released a free, publicly accessible open-source guide with its carbon labelling and trip emissions methodology. The objective of this guide is to provide other travel businesses of all sizes with the technical guidance to do the same: calculate the greenhouse gas emissions generated from operating their trips, and then transparently share this information with their customers.
“By working together, exchanging learnings, and helping each other come on the journey, we can achieve more impactful outcomes than anyone could in isolation.” said Dr. Susanne Etti, Intrepid Travel’s Global Environmental Impact Manager, who was instrumental in developing the carbon labeling program.
See the full list of honourees here: www.fastcompany.com/most-innovative-companies/list
Learn more about Intrepid’s carbon labeling and carbon management program here: https://www.intrepidtravel.com/carbon-management
ABOUT INTREPID TRAVEL
Intrepid Travel is a world leader in sustainable experience-rich travel that has been taking travellers to discover the world's most amazing places for more than 30 years. The company’s mission is to create positive change through the joy of travel. The company offers more than 1,150 trips on every continent and each one is designed to truly experience local culture. With its network of destination management companies in 26 countries, Intrepid has unique local expertise and perspectives. Globally renowned as a leader in responsible travel in 2018, the carbon-neutral business became the world’s largest travel company to be certified B-Corp. Intrepid Travel is the first tour operator to have established near-term science-based climate targets with the Science Based Targets Initiative. Its non-profit organization, The Intrepid Foundation, has raised more than $12 million for more than 135 partners around the world.
For further information download the company’s 2023 Integrated Annual Report here.
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