B Tourism: Blending Luxury and Sustainability with Explora

Ready to discover how luxury travel can coexist with environmental stewardship? Join us as we sit down with Juan Marambio, Sustainability Manager, and Romina Da Pieve, Deputy Conservation Manager from Explora. These two passionate experts pull back the curtain on how Explora is driving conservation efforts across some of the world's most pristine natural reserves. From the unique ecosystems of Puritama to the breathtaking landscapes of Patagonia's Torres del Paine, you'll learn about the groundbreaking initiatives that are safeguarding these environments for future generations.

Ever wondered how a workforce of 800 people can make a difference in small communities? Juan and Romina reveal Explora's hands-on conservation programs, from international staff working as park rangers to educational outreach for local youth on Easter Island. You’ll hear about the Terevaka Archaeological Outreach program, designed to instill environmental stewardship in the next generation, and the impactful roles high-profile guests play in inspiring broader environmental responsibility. This episode sheds light on how comprehensive and inclusive community engagement can lead to sustainable tourism and lasting conservation.

Travelers, get ready to rethink luxury! We wrap up with a deep dive into sustainable practices in luxury travel. Discover how Explora harmonizes luxury and comfort with environmental responsibility, focusing on sustainable water usage, reducing carbon footprints, and preserving biodiversity. Juan and Romina share insights on transitioning to green energy, moving towards a zero-waste company, and the thoughtful construction of lodges that blend seamlessly with their natural surroundings. This episode will leave you inspired and informed on how purposeful travel can significantly contribute to conservation and sustainability efforts.

B Tourism website

B Tourism podcast series info 

• Exodus Adventure Travels; Rochelle Turner, Head of Sustainability
• Brooke Hansen: University of South Florida & Dr. Alan Fyall University of Central Florida
• Legacy Vacation Resorts: Madison Daum
• Explora; Juan Marambio, Sustainability Manager and Romina Da Pieve, Deputy Manager of Conservation Research 

Dirigo Collective Website

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:02

If you want the business to thrive, you need to take care of your asset, and your asset in this case is not yours. It's from the local community, it's from the humanity, or even not the humanity, it's from all the species, you know, because we're talking of the ecosystem.

Speaker 2: 0:30

Welcome to Responsibly Different, brought to you by Campfire Consulting. In this space, we kindle the stories, insights and dialogues at the heart of conscious consumerism and impactful business practices. Each episode is a journey into the essence of making decisions and investments that nurture positive change. Join our impact strategist, brittany Angelo, as she dives into the narratives of leaders and visionaries who are reshaping what it means to live and work with intention and purpose.

Speaker 3: 1:00

As part of this podcast series, campfire collaborated with the Bee Tourism Network to bring to you, all our listeners, some exciting conversations exploring the forefront of responsible travel and sustainability, in collaboration with industry leaders and innovators in the travel sector. Curious about bee tourism? Well, here's Madison Dom of Legacy Vacation Resource talking a bit more about what the group does and how they connect through the Bee Tourism Network. If you're curious to learn more about bee tourism or this series, head to the show notes to find some links.

Speaker 4: 1:32

The goal of bee tourism is to connect individuals and communities, so we really would like to partner with moreocals so we can highlight and bring up those in the community, whether they're B-Corps or not. They can be 1% for the planet, members or just people who are caring about their impact. But really being able to connect communities globally, that will help extend our reach.

Speaker 3: 2:07

In this episode, I am thrilled to welcome Juan Marambu, Sustainability Manager, and Romina Pierre, Deputy Conservation Manager from Explora. Their dedication to sustainability and conservation is truly inspiring. In conservation is truly inspiring. Our discussion covered a wide range of topics, including innovative conservation strategies, the critical role of sustainability in travel and how Explora is working to protect natural environments while promoting responsible tourism. Juan and Romina's insights shed light on the practical steps and research necessary to advance these goals. This conversation reinforced my belief in the power of collaboration and knowledge sharing in driving positive change in the tourism industry.

Speaker 5: 3:17

Enjoy, the episode. Thank you so much for joining me on the Responsibly Different podcast.

Speaker 4: 3:23

Enjoy the episode.

Speaker 5: 3:24

Explora is an explorations company in remote territories of Argentina, chile, peru, bolivia that has the purpose of exploring the places as a journey to conservation. So in Explora we believe that when you experience deep connection with nature, you start to understand the places and you start to love them, and for the same reason appears the desire of conserving. So that's what Explora is and what we do at Explora.

Speaker 3: 3:59

I love that. And am I correct in understanding that a lot of your conservation research is connected to the tourism aspect of your business?

Speaker 5: 4:22

Yes, I mean what we do is we do conservation with the educate, or to share the things that we learn with them and, at the same time, to make them part of what we do in the reserves. And they can be part in several ways or getting associated with us, or come with us to do works in the fields, or come, and I don't know, and buy the things that we do to do diffusion and education. That's what we do.

Speaker 3: 4:58

So. This is not a sit back and put your feet up kind of vacation. This is a get your hands dirty and help out. I love that.

Speaker 5: 5:06

Yes.

Speaker 3: 5:07

Awesome. I'm curious if you can share some of the key conservation-driven initiatives that Explorer has implemented across all of your different natural reserves and then in your lodges.

Speaker 5: 5:23

Okay, Although the main goal we have is to impact with conservation 1 million hectares. We have just started and at the moment we are already operating two conservation reserves. In the north we have Puritama, with the main focus there is to protect a big area, with the main focus there is to protect a big area. It is a very particular ecosystem that creates an oasis in the middle of the desert and in this oasis there are some amazing animals like the Andean cat, which is a very scarce animal there are only 2,500 of them in the world. And in the other hand, in the south, in Chile and Patagonia, we have our second reserve, the Torres del Paine, and we started with a process of ecological restoration next to Torres del Paine National Park, which is the place where we have in the world more density of pumas, and in there we are working in reforestation, cleanup, defense, the old fences, education, monitoring wildlife with track cameras, for example. So that's what we are doing for the moment.

Speaker 3: 6:43

I'm curious when and I think I saw this on your social media, but you said that there's pumas in one of the reservations and when you're taking people out. I guess can you describe the relationship that like or the interaction that your guests would have when they're interacting with the pumas, knowing that they're endangered?

Speaker 5: 7:10

Yes, with the cameras we saw that we have pumas in both reserves in the north, in Puritama, and in Patagonia. But in Patagonia it's much easier to see them because there's a bigger amount and we know, and we've seen for the last two years in our reserve in Torres del Paine, that there's two families there's one with three cubs, one mother with three cubs and another mother with two cubs, one mother with three cubs and another mother with two cubs.

Speaker 5: 7:44

Once we go out, with guests in horseback rides or in hikes exists the opportunity to see these animals in our reserve but also in the national park. When that happens, we always stay calm, far from the animals, and the animals always stay far from us, because there's a mutual respect. And even though it's common to see, it's not that easy because they have the perfect camouflage, especially at this time of the year with the yellow grasses, and the pumas are a very similar color than the grasses. If you go in winter where there's more snow, it's easier to see them. So normally a guide or someone that is trained to to detect the animals. What they see the first is how the wanakos are screaming or moving or behaving and you understand that there's a puma close and what you see is like the movement of the animal. And then, once you got it, you can spend a long time looking at the activity in there, but it's a very spectacular experience.

Speaker 3: 9:04

Yeah, that sounds it, Juan. What about you? Can you share some initiatives with us as well? Sure, sure thing.

Speaker 1: 9:12

You know, explora is 30 years old we became 30 years last year and we've run a long way since 1993, you know and nowadays we have six lodges in different parts of South America, as Romina was saying, and two conservation reserves. We recently started an expedition to Tierra del Fuego, which is the southernmost tip of South America, and Romina was talking about our initiatives. In the two conservation reserves, but in the different lodges we have, we also work in collaboration, as Romina was saying, with local organizations to promote conservation and regeneration of local ecosystems. For example, in the sacred valley this is the second time we're working with a local organization called ECOAN. They are specialists in working with local Andean communities, creating community-led conservation areas and in those areas they are restoring highland ecosystem, where the water is, you know, conserved by glaciers and highland lagoons so that it can stream down to the rivers and valleys, and they are reforesting those areas with a tree called quenua, which is the tree that lives highest in the world. It can live over 4,000 meters high. Also, we are supporting initiatives which might be a little bit, you know, like not so fancy but equally important.

Speaker 1: 10:49

We recently helped with the implementation of a flamingo census in the Atacama Desert. The flamingo is a very particular species. It can thrive in such harsh conditions which would be unlivable for other animals, and it also nests in the soil flat, which is something very particular. But it's also an indicator of how healthy, in terms of water availability and water quality, is the ecosystem. So by counting the flamingos you can understand the evolution of the presence of water in the area and also raise alerts in terms of other species that might be affected with this. So we are supporting that in Atacama.

Speaker 1: 11:33

Also, in Patagonia National Park, we are working with an organization called Rewilding Chile which carries out the legacy of Douglas Tompkins' conservation. Douglas Tompkins is this renowned US citizen that was the owner of some clothing companies and devoted himself afterwards, with his wife, christine Tompkins, to buy and conserve huge areas in the Patagonia, and he donated the greatest land in history towards the Chilean government for the creation of a national park. And we're working with Rewilding, supporting the research that they are doing in the Patagonia National Park and supporting also the Rewilding efforts that they are doing with the South American ostrich, with the Andean condor and with other species in the Patagonia National Park. And so there are many other initiatives that support our work, but we also try to do them in collaboration with local organizations, because if it's not community led, then probably it's not sustainable at all.

Speaker 3: 12:49

Yeah, wow, okay. So many different initiatives that you both are naming, and I love it and I guess, like the number one thing that I'm hearing from both of you is that you're inviting the public into these research-based initiatives, and it's really cool to hear that education has such an important component to your work. So I'm wondering can one of you speak a little bit more about how education kind of aligns with your overall mission and how conservation and sustainability is embedded into your values as a luxury travel brand?

Speaker 5: 13:30

Yes, we believe as education, but not formal education. I mean you get educated once you go walking with knowledgeable guides and they explain you not just the rules, they explain you what happens if you don't follow the rules. For example, if we say, okay, we should stay on the trails, right, it's not because it's a rule, it is because if you go out of the trails, maybe you will step on a lichen that takes thousands of years to grow and are the promoters of the soil generation, right. So when you start to understand why things happen or why we should care is a way of education. That's what we do with guests, no, and through the guides or through the restaurant, when we talk about what we eat and the local food, and they start to care about the community, to care about the landscape and the surroundings, and the same with our staff.

Speaker 5: 14:45

I always say that we have a huge opportunity because at Explora works almost 800 people, and imagine if you have 800 promoters of your conservation activities or your sustainability activities in places like small villages like San Pedro de Atacama, or in Easter Island or in Torres del Paine, which are small communities, and you have these people you know promoting with the same energy that you do, you are creating an impact and that's the education that we do, from the hotels to the outside, with our staff and also with our guests, and that spreads to the community. And at the same time, we support different organizations and we invite, for example, schools to our reserves or municipalities or things like that, and we finance different activities for them to go and explore nature in a safe way. That way they can relax, they can have experience as as kids, that they will never forget and they understand and they become part of the research and they dream someday we'd be scientists. No, and that's the different things we do.

Speaker 3: 16:09

And I bet, like that's so magical to. I mean, I love, I adore teaching the younger generation and it's like when you take them outside and they and that one thing just clicks for them and then they're like I want to do this for the rest of my life, like that's what. That's what like keeps me going forward, especially when it comes to education. So it's cool to hear that kind of in through your story and see that it also means a lot to you.

Speaker 5: 16:38

Yes, we did something that was an experiment, this time for the first year. And we did an experiment this time for the first year and we did um. We invited one people from every different country destination to come and work for one week as a park ranger in our conservation reserve. So we have someone from peru, some from matagama, someone from the staff right, and they spent one whole week working with the park rangers. So for them it was like opening a Pandora box of this world, of staying full time in nature doing the cleanup of the fences or counting the trees that are coming, and they went back to the places where they live telling how fantastic this is. And that's also a kind of education, because he learned when he, they learned when they traveled to our reserves and then they went to the houses or to the partner. They said you know what's going on. This is so fantastic because that was a very nice experience for us.

Speaker 3: 17:51

Oh, I love that. Thanks for sharing.

Speaker 1: 17:53

Romina has nailed it perfectly. But to add into the conservation efforts that we do with young people from the local communities, we've been supporting for more than 10 years a program that started in Rapa Nui in the Easter Island, which is called the Terebaka Archaeological Outreach. We name it Tau, and the program is like some sort of summer camp, you know, where students go into the ground, they go out and use the most advanced scientific methodologies and equip equipment to research on their local patrimony, on the local environment. The rationale behind this program was that many times scientific research comes into destinations where local communities are, but local communities are totally excluded from those research and from the information that arises from those research. So we wanted and the founder of this program, which is called Britton Shepardson, is our researcher from the, from Arizona was that we need the local community to be, you know, the drivers of the research and particularly the guardians of its results, you know. So they need to be aware of them and they need to understand them and they need to act according to these findings.

Speaker 1: 19:29

You know implementation of this program for over 10 years, with over 100 young students that have, you know, learned firsthand how to conserve and how to understand the changes in the environment and to protect their local patrimony in Easter Island, and nowadays we're implementing that in Patagonia National Park and also in the Sacred Valley in Peru. And, as you were saying, brittany, this has been life-changing for them. Many of them have devoted their later careers, their later studies, to science, to research and to conserve or even to, you know, to showcase their local patrimony as local guides or other kinds of works in tourism, because they participated in this program. So that is something that is at the core of what we do, and I also wanted to add that, as romina was saying, um, and and we are a luxury travel brand.

Speaker 1: 20:31

You know, so many times decision like world scale decision makers stay with us. I cannot say names, but very renowned names, you know. So, if we, when we go out to explore nature, to explore culture with them, if we can move them, even if it's just a little bit, towards taking greater care for our planet, getting more involved into regeneration, getting more aware of climate change or or the threats to biodiversity in the world, we can, we, we strongly believe and I do, I really do believe that we can be part or we can spark a much greater change, not only for Explorer, but also for the world. So that's our passion. You know like we want them to turn into guardians of our planet.

Speaker 3: 21:27

Yeah, oh, that's so, so beautifully worded. So thank you for saying that. I couldn't agree more. So I would love to kind of switch gears a little bit and I want to understand more about the natural reserves in Patagonia. So, romina, can you maybe share with me more about the Explorers Natural Reserve in Patagonia and the importance of preserving the landscapes that you all are working so hard to preserve?

Speaker 5: 21:59

Yes, patagonia is famous because it's an area which is full of nature. There's not many inhabitants in there, and so it's a big number of national parks and it's one of the most protected places in Chile and in Argentina. And we have more than one property in Patagonia, both in Chile and Argentina. But we already started with our first conservation reserve in Patagonia, and the importance of this conservation reserve, which is next to Torres del Paine National Park, is that it's helping the national park to create this buffer zone in the surroundings of the park.

Speaker 5: 22:51

Something that is happening in Torres del Paine is that it's becoming like a hub of conservation, so there's more than one initiative of conservation.

Speaker 5: 23:02

We are not the only ones in there and we are creating this buffer zone to help the park to do not become an island in the middle of the place where there's productive activity, because the animals doesn't know the frontiers. So we need to support the park in order. If the animals go in and out the park, they will go to a protected place too. That's why it's so important the location where we are in Torres del Paine and at the same time, we give a little bit of support to the national park, because we are in an area where there's not many park rangers of the national park the Torres del Paine is huge so in case something happens, they know the national park, they know that they can ask for support and we could go eventually with our rangers maybe faster than them to certain places, I don't know. We have a little firefighters brigade and our park rangers know how to do it and first aid and if there's people lost, and we can also support from our position the park not only in nature but also in people.

Speaker 3: 24:32

You're starting to mention how you're working and supporting local communities and, I guess, at larger stakeholders, to ensure that sustainable tourism is practiced and that you have a positive impact on your surrounding areas, but I'm wondering can you speak a little bit more to what is that engagement with the local communities really looks like? Sure.

Speaker 1: 24:54

As we are in remote areas, our neighborhoods, you know, are very small and it's like we know each other. You know, like everyone knows Explora, or most people locally, and the staff from Explora comes from the few families that live there. And of course, we get, after a couple of years, we get acquainted with most of the local organizations and stakeholders. So, of course, we have a sustainability policy andologies, capacity building that needs to be implemented every year, and implement an active strategy for contacting local organizations, whether they are important to our purpose or whether they are relevant in the area where we are. So we coach our local managers and the local executive team so they can get the best alliances, agreements and projects and joint projects with local organizations in order to promote conservation, education, particularly those two, in the different destinations where we are. So, yeah, that's how we do it, you know and we understand. You know in some areas we are more relevant than others.

Speaker 1: 26:36

Let's say, for example, in San Pedro de Atacama we have a positioning because we were one of the first, let's say, big hotels in the area. It's 50 rooms, so it's not that huge, but we were one of the biggest at the time, 30 years ago. So everyone somehow knows Explora and they expect and they are looking at everything that we do. So we need to do things right and we need to to show and pioneer other tourism companies. Uh, in this day, you know direction, you know to commit, to work collaboratively towards a conservation, towards regeneration and education of the younger generations in terms of the critical aspects that play out in a certain destination. So that's what we do. We work through the local management teams.

Speaker 3: 27:34

They are in constant meetings, they are participating in local events, they are participating in whatever participatory, you know like policy that might be taking place in the area, and that's what we ask them to do, and you're mentioning that you're embedded into these local communities, and one thing that, like, really intrigues me and something that we're working on trying to work on it more frequently in the States here is ensuring that, like, the native culture is preserved. Ensuring that the native culture is preserved. So I guess I would love to hear from you, knowing that these communities are small and there's not a ton of overpopulation in some of these communities that you're working in, can you maybe share an example or give me some insight into how Explora is working to ensure that the natural culture is preserved, even with tourism and your trips that you're planning going through these communities?

Speaker 1: 28:47

Sure, Well, this is a very relevant question, particularly since in many destinations where we are, they are indigenous land, so there are live indigenous cultures there, there are live communities, indigenous communities there. So this is very relevant. So what we try to do is that, first, we try to keep numbers low in terms of our own impact, so our explorations are never more than eight people per guide. We try to go and have a great variety of possibilities for people to go exploring, so that we don't, you know, like, overpopulate one single trail or one single activity, etc. The second is that we always have meetings with the representatives or even assemblies of the local communities to define what we can do and what we cannot do and what's the expected behavior from us within the community. So that is something which is particularly important in Rapa Nui, in the Sacred Valley and in Bolivia, in Uyuni. So we have these meetings and we define what is expected from us and what is expected from the travelers and the limits of what we can do or even what we can tell about the local culture and the local patrimony. And we are very strict in that Our guides go through every year through a training session that may last up to two months so that they are prepared to do what they have to do in terms of respecting the local community and behaving and also, you know, like guiding our travelers to behave in the appropriate manners. The second is that we try to work in collaboration with the local communities for the protection of their own patrimony.

Speaker 1: 30:52

We are, as I said, becoming 30 years now.

Speaker 1: 30:56

We have witnessed the impact of tourism and we have also participated in the impacts of tourism, especially in Todos de Paine or Atacama, which is the places where we have been for 30 years and many times the results that we have seen are not the best and definitely far from what we would expect to be with our current ties.

Speaker 1: 31:21

Probably 30 years ago people might have not been that aware of the impacts of tourism, but nowadays we are, and what we see sometimes is not what we would love to see. So we understand that we need to get involved and that we need to work collaboratively with the local communities to preserve what they have. It's not only good for the sake of being good. It's the only way our business can survive. So if we want the business to survive, if you want to look at it from a utilitarian perspective, if you want the business to thrive, you need to take care of your asset, and your asset in this case is not yours. It's from the local communities, from the humanity, or even not the humanities, from all the species, because we're talking of the ecosystem.

Speaker 1: 32:12

So we need to work collaboratively and understand how we can work together to restore or conserve the local patrimony, and we also understand what we need to work in collaboration with other tourism companies. You know like it's no good if we try to make a good effort for conserving or working collaboratively, but all the others don't. So we need to push towards this and that's why we have become a B-certified corporation, because we want to somehow work with other businesses so that we all together impact in a positive way.

Speaker 5: 32:53

There's one project in Torres del Paine that for us was so relevant. We didn't know at the very beginning. But for example, in Torres del Paine one of the main challenges we have is people that work with livestock, because when you protect the puma, the puma for them is a problem because it's the one that eats the livestock. So there's a kind of conflict between conservation and some of the locals that are not into conservation. So we decided to do a project related with regenerative grazing for the livestock, which is a way to grow, to have livestock, feeding them in a way that, as a consequence of how you feed the animals in the fields, you accelerate the restoration in the fields, you accelerate the restoration of the ground.

Speaker 5: 33:59

This is a technique that is becoming more popular. But once we started to do that, we proved that livestock and conservation are not antagonists. They can survive, they can be together and economical activities are not against conservation or conservation against economical activities. And once we started we started to have more and more people that come to visit on how and just come to visit on how and just come to visit to our property to see how we plan this movement of the animals and how we measure and we start to to share with them this technique and slowly we are creating like a better relationship with these people that, at the very beginning, was like the most aware about the conservation activities in the area and that, for me, is one of the best proof on how you can work together with the community with the same objective.

Speaker 3: 35:08

Hmm, yeah, yeah, collaboration is key, for sure. So I feel like we've touched a little bit upon your different lodges, but I would really love to understand, when you're building these lodges, what's the architecture or like, the design or the daily practice that you're incorporating into the lodge to keep in mind sustainability throughout your daily operations?

Speaker 1: 35:37

Oh, that's a very critical question, you know, and within our environmental and social management system, we have defined aspects that are material to our operation and in terms of the environment. One of them is water, where we take water from nature. What are the uses of those waters and how do we dispose of that water in the best way? Being in remote areas, you just don't get tap water. You need to pump it many times and you use it and then it will go somewhere. So we are very strict in terms of how we pump the water from the land in a sustainable way and also what are the disposing methods of this water. And within all our operations, we have water treatment plants which function with biological systems so that we ensure that the water is released or disposed back to the nature in the best way.

Speaker 1: 36:48

Another one is our carbon footprint. You know, we are aware of climate change. We are aware of climate change, we are aware of our contribution and, again, many of our hotels are quite I won't say old, but they are aged, you know, and they were built in years in which they were not that conscious about the effect of fossil fuels in the global world. But nowadays we are, and we are implementing a program to transit into green energy, but we are still using fossil fuels and the most of the energy we use in our hotels is for heating, you know. So we are very strict in terms of energy saving, in terms of being very careful on how we use the heating systems and the amount of hours and the temperatures, etc.

Speaker 1: 37:46

And also we have our vehicle fleet. As we provide explorations and we sometimes need to use vehicles to go to the different starting points of hikes or whatever. We have projects that aim to transit into an electric or at least a hybrid fleet of vehicles, but that is going to take a while as the market develops in this line. And then the other one is waste. You know like waste management is critical. It is many times hard to do adequate recycling in the cities. You can imagine how hard it might just to be used in 30 minutes and then to dispose that. Can you need to go all the way back for 3,000 miles, 5,000 kilometers, back to a recycling facility.

Speaker 1: 38:58

So we are on our way and our plan is to work hard to become a zero waste company in the following years. I cannot give you a date now, but I assure you we're working hard for that, so that we adequately compost our organic waste and we diminish as much as we can the waste we generate that is inorganic, and also we recycle as much as I can. We have got rid of all you know disposable amenities and we want to get rid of many other, you know, like packaging systems, so that we generate the least amount of waste possible. And then comes biodiversity. You know we are in biodiversity relevant areas and that's where the work of Romina takes greater importance.

Speaker 1: 39:55

It's not only taking care of the endemic species, but it's also acting in terms of the threats of those species being human-related or exotic species coming to live. There are many threats to endemic species coming from species that have been introduced, and also there is the greater risk as climate change, you know like increases. There is the greatest risk of fires and we have witnessed how fires have disastrous effects impacts in the Patagonia area and sadly the risk for fires is greater and greater as the weather, you know, as the heat increases in the planet. So we are working collaboratively again to prevent fires and to do all we can to eventually fight those fires and prevent disastrous consequences from them.

Speaker 5: 40:56

Connected with what Juan says, that we've learned along the history, or our history.

Speaker 5: 41:03

The first explorer was built more than 30 years ago and nowadays we are building little buildings in the conservation reserve and in this case, what we are doing little buildings in the conservation reserve and in this case, what we are doing is or we restore buildings that already exist, buildings that are more than 80 years old, or we are building in areas where there's no vegetation.

Speaker 5: 41:33

So, for example, we are building this little hotel in the middle of a wood and as there's not enough area without trees to build and we don't want to cut any of the trees, what we did is we divided the hotel in two and we connected the hotel with a bridge in order to do not impact and to build where there's no trees but at the same time, surrounded by trees, and also the buildings are on top of pillars. That way, the water can run freely together with the animals and there's less impact. There's no barrier for the animals to keep moving and, at the same time, what we've been doing in the last two lodges is that we build them in the cities and we transport and we finalize the buildings in the property, but in that way the impact is smaller because we have less time, the workers in the place, we have no wet materials, it's just you put the parts no, and that's more efficient and more clean and that way we protect the areas where we are building.

Speaker 1: 42:53

And also small is beautiful. You know, like we started with lodges, which are 50 rooms, Now our greatest projects are 20 rooms. We are getting a bit smaller because that's easier to manage. And we obviously intervene less the local areas where we are.

Speaker 3: 43:12

You both just shared so much and I appreciate it. What I kept finding coming up for me as you both were talking was this idea of what does luxury and what does comfort mean to the traveler when you're traveling? And specifically, juan, your story of the soda. Can it's like, sure, like having a soda maybe with your dinner? Like is a luxury and to some people it might also be a comfort thing to other people. So it's like does that soda can really have to travel all of those miles to get to the hotel? And if people are coming for that luxury experience, maybe the answer is yes.

Speaker 3: 43:58

But then, romina, you're telling this story about small lodges that maybe are like in the forest and surrounded by trees and again, to me that's like screaming luxury and how gorgeous is that to be in with nature. So it's really cool to kind of hear these stories of how you all are thinking about Explora as a luxury travel brand, but also, I mean rooted in every conversation that you're having with me and I'm sure, throughout, like your whole existing as a company is like nature is first and foremost and I love that, like that's the most important stakeholder and that's why, as B Corps, like we all took that pledge, like planet and people come before profit, and it's so like, it's so obvious to me that you, you fully believe that through your story.

Speaker 1: 44:51

So I love it Absolutely. We have developed the concept that we work with the luxury of the essential, you know, and the essential is a nice bed, obviously, a warm room you know you don't want to freeze A good shower and then a good meal, and this is debatable. But a good shower and then a good meal, and, well, this is debatable. But a good bar some say a good wine, you know like, or some spirits, but you don't need, like, the whole variety of things.

Speaker 1: 45:23

Actually, if you go to the explorer bars or to the restaurants, you will find that we try to enhance the local ingredients, to create preparation based on local sourcing, and obviously in small economies.

Speaker 1: 45:37

You know, in the Easter Island you've got only 6,000 people living in there, so the economy is very small and you find only a few things, but we try to get the most of them. And obviously we have to source from outside some things which will not be produced in the area, but we try to make the best use of the local resources in the places where we are. And again, the luxury is not inside our lodges, it is mostly outside, and the luxury of a hike with a knowledgeable guide, with a warm host or with an empowered and passionate ranger. What you can learn from that, what you can experience from the contact with these people, is what is going to be most unforgettable about your stay at Explora, and we really want that to be the highlight of your stay. And everything within our lodges is designed to encourage you to go out and explore. That's why we are Explora.

Speaker 3: 46:45

Yes, it makes so much sense. Romina, my question is directed towards you and I'm wondering what advice would you offer to other luxury travel brands, maybe looking to enhance their sustainability efforts and minimize their environmental footprint, like you all?

Speaker 5: 47:03

have with your own people. For me, it's beautiful when you have people from the hotels I don't know the cleaners or the guides or the drivers and they come to you suggesting things that we should do to be better. So if you have your whole community committed to do the things in better ways, that's the best step that you can do. Then the rest it goes. But you need to start with your own people, otherwise it's so difficult or it's greenwashing. So once you have everybody committed to do the best and to take care of, to minimize the use of water, to minimize the fuel, to minimize.

Speaker 5: 47:59

We have big operations, so we need a big cultural change to make things work in the most efficient or in the cleanest way. In the most efficient or in the cleanest way, I mean, for example, for a driver, the best is to go fast to get home earlier. But if they understand that driving in the national park at that speed is dangerous for the animals of the park or because with the dust that they are making they are, you know, putting all the dust on the trees or the stones that fly, they start to understand which is the consequence of driving. And I can give you infinite examples, but I think your own community will also educate the guests and the neighbors and the families once they go home. That's my advice.

Speaker 3: 49:04

Juan, I know this question was directed towards Romina, but do you have anything that you want to offer as advice?

Speaker 1: 49:11

Well, I would say that the pandemic obviously taught us many things, but one of them might be that people travel for a purpose and they are searching for something, and the search for nature and for human contact probably went into the highest, you know, like places of their, of their ranking list. In people's, you know like goals when traveling. So design experiences and focus on the, on the greatest value of connecting people with each other or providing a nice experience, and also connecting the people with the destinations where you are. And the movement towards sustainability might start with the executive team. It might start. So you need to educate your executive teams, that's for sure, and make them as we believe. You need to go out with them and live experiences, but it is definitely empowered by the whole staff. So what?

Speaker 1: 50:22

Romina was saying is crucial. We need to work with everyone in the different positions so that they understand in which way what they are doing is intended to be, or to have a better impact, and they must be able to see that if they do things in a certain way, it might have a negative impact for the planet or for the society, but if they do things in a different way, it might have or end up having a positive impact, and they must be able to choose that positive impact path.

Speaker 1: 51:00

And then the other thing I would say is that, as tourism workers, we definitely are working with something which is not ours, with something which is not ours. You know the beauty of a place, the stunning. You know, like all that someone might get when being out in the nature or when being in contact with a powerful culture is not from a company.

Speaker 1: 51:27

It is common ground, you know, and somehow that entails a responsibility from us tourism companies to take care and work collaboratively with those, with the other stakeholders living in that territory, in that area, so that we together take care of what is creating, in the end, the profit for everyone you know, yeah, yeah, I totally hear you, romina.

Speaker 3: 52:00

You mentioned, as we were talking and prepping for the interview, that you all have a partnership with the Nature Conservancy, and I would love for my final question to be asking you if you could give us a little bit of an overview of what that partnership has has meant to you all and what you've really done, um, in collaboration with the nature conservancy of course, and at the very beginning, when explorer decided to do conservation um, that was beautiful, a big, big challenge.

Speaker 5: 52:33

We all get excited. But we said how we are going to do conservation? We are experts in tourism and in hikes and horses and bicycles and food and in beds and hotels. From where do we start? So we realize that, even though we've done efforts in the last 10, 12 years in conservation, we need to work with the conservation specialist and our vision is to best explorations company in the world. That's what we want. We want to be the best as we can and for that Explora said okay, we need serious organization in conservation and that's how the Nature Conservancy appears.

Speaker 5: 53:28

The Nature Conservancy has presence in 75 countries around the world and they are already in Chile and in Argentina. So we started to talk with them to see if we could find things in common. And we would find a lot of things in common. But also they find in us something which is not in common and could be very helpful for them, something which is not uncommon and could be very helpful for them. They say through you we can get to people that we don't usually get. So through Explora, the Nature Conservancy can have a new window to explain and to show the conservation. That's what they get and what we get from the Nature Conservancy is how to do conservation.

Speaker 5: 54:16

So, together with them, we started the conservation plan on Torres del Paine and we did a conservation plan because to write it we do at least four workshops with the community where they have the chance to say what's important for them to put in our conservation plan.

Speaker 5: 54:51

And we are not doing a conservation plan with the Nature Conservancy only for our reserve but, yes, for the whole biosphere reserve, which is approximately 600,000 hectares. We have 6,000. So we are working with the whole community to build this conservation plan in a collaborative way, even though we know that that will go slower and will take bigger efforts, because to take decisions together with a big number of people take a lot of patience, you know, a lot of understanding and talking and discussions. So that's one of the main messages that the Nature Conservancy gave to me is we could do the best conservation we can, but if the community is not with you or is not in this conservation plan, you will be by yourself and you will be a little island in the middle of nowhere, and they believe that and that's where we have a big connection with them, and they are the experts.

Speaker 3: 56:17

And I know I said that it was the last question, but I'm thinking as a just a nice little way to end the podcast here for all of our listeners Can you maybe share what future initiatives or future goals Explora is pursuing as you keep up with your ongoing commitment to conservation, sustainability and responsible tourism?

Speaker 1: 56:33

Well, you said a little bit of what's in the future. You know Romina mentioned it, but very briefly, that we want to impact a million hectares in terms of conservation. I might say that we are launching partners of the Glasgow Declaration for Climate Action in tourism so that we are committed with climate change.

Speaker 5: 56:59

I mean we are looking for more properties to create the conservation reserves, but that's it. That's our goal in the maybe 10, 12 years to have reserves for 1 million hectares.

Speaker 1: 57:18

Yeah, I don't know. I mean it shows that the drive for a greater impact, you know, because there is a need for greater impact and we have the drive, you know. So we want and we understand that this doesn't end with 6,000 or just, you know, like with a couple of sustainability actions. You need to have a greater impact.

Speaker 3: 57:40

Thank you both so much for joining me today. You all have shared a ton about what Explora is doing and it's really fascinating to hear your perspectives and to learn about your insight and your perspective on this topic. So thank you so much.

Speaker 5: 57:56

Thank you very much.

Speaker 2: 58:13

Thank you for joining us on Responsibly Different a Campfire Consulting Initiative. We hope today's conversation has sparked new ideas and inspired action towards purposeful leadership and sustainable choices For insights and strategies that elevate your brand story in a meaningful way. Visit us at campfireconsulting. Don't forget to subscribe, rate and share, as every interaction helps spread the warmth of responsible living. Until next time, keep the fire of curiosity alive and embrace the power of being responsibly different.