ECN has launched an industry-first framework to help agents communicate the responsible tourism practices of expedition cruise operators
This comes after the Expedition Cruise Network identified the lack of a common language used by the industry and travel agents to discuss the responsible tourism and sustainability efforts by operators.
The new ‘Responsible Expedition Framework’ was announced yesterday at the annual ECN conference, and evaluates participating operators across six areas of responsible expedition cruising with 35 questions.
Each operator is then provided with a current ‘stage’, an accompanying badge, which agents will be able to easily identify, and a detailed report identifying its strengths and opportunities for improvement.
The six areas assessed include certifications and external validation, sustainable management and governance, environmental stewardship, community, cultural and destination stewardship, guest education and expedition ethos, and positive impact and conservation contribution.
Based on their performance across these categories, operators are assigned a stage: emerging, developing, integrated, embedded, and contributing.
Akvile Marozaite, CEO and co-founder of the ECN, said, “Expedition cruising takes place in some of the world’s most environmentally sensitive destinations and brings travellers into contact with remote communities, wildlife, and fragile ecosystems. It is in the interest of our entire sector that these places are visited carefully, respectfully, and responsibly.
“Travel advisors told us that they wanted a clearer way to understand the work expedition cruise operators are undertaking. [This framework] will help travel advisors have more informed conversations with their clients while giving participating operators a practical roadmap for continued improvement.”
Akvile emphasised that this is a voluntary framework, not intended to replace any official credentials.
Founding participants include HX Expeditions, Poseidon Expeditions, Aqua Expeditions, Araniu Cruises, Australis Cruises, Oceanwide Expeditions, UnCruise Adventures, Golden Galapagos, Scenic Eclipse, 60South, and PONANT.
Currently PONANT is the only operator in the top ‘contributing’ stage, with HX and Oceanwide in ‘embedded’. The rest were either developing or integrated, with none sitting in the first ‘emerging’ stage.
It is hoped that this framework encourages agents to give more sustainable options, particularly as the average age for expedition cruising decreases.
Steve Jones, COO of Orca, a whale and dolphin conservation charity that helped develop this framework, said, “It’s a really positive step and I think this will grow and gain momentum as it goes on.”
