Purpose

The company is committed to promoting sustainable tourism and minimising environmental impact. The purpose of this policy is to establish guidelines and practices that support responsible travel by reducing carbon footprint, conserving local ecosystems, and supporting local communities. This policy applies to all operations, services, and activities conducted by Footfalls Walking Holidays. This Policy does not apply to third-party vendors and contractors who operate independently outside the company’s direct control. The Sustainability Coordinator is responsible for implementing the company’s sustainability policy.

Sustainability management & legal compliance

Sustainability commitment

Footfalls Walking Holidays leadership is wholly committed to the company’s sustainability performance and endorses the company’s sustainability mission statement and policy. We will use the Travelife platform to report on our sustainability progress and to monitor and evaluate progress. We arecommitted to (publicly) communicating our sustainability performance (by means of the Travelife report) every two years.

Sustainability management & legal compliance

Footfalls Walking Holidays commits to continuous improvement of sustainability practices, including the ongoing monitoring and evaluation of our sustainability policy, with dedicated personnel and resources to achieve our sustainability goals. Footfalls Walking Holidays follows all local, regional, national, and international regulations as they relate to human resources, human rights, children’s rights, land rights, environmental management, wildlife, and land use. We follow a strict Code of Ethics, including a zero-tolerance policy for corruption, bribery, forced labor, and discrimination.

Internal management: social policy & human rights

Employees

• We recognize that our employees are our biggest asset for delivering meaningful travel experiences to our customers. Therefore, we maintain a clear human resource policy to ensure:
  • Legal compliance in all regards
  • A safe, healthy, and welcoming workplace
  • Fair contract conditions including fair compensation
  • Training opportunities including trainings on topics of sustainability, sexual harassment and exploitation in the workplace and in the industry
  • Participation in the sustainability planning activities

• Inclusion and equal opportunity for all employees, particularly with regard to compensation, promotion, distribution of benefits, and professional development opportunities.

Internal management: environment

Environmental management of office operations

• We are committed to keeping the direct footprint of our business operations as minimal as possible and actively follow environmentally-sound principles. We have the following measures in place:
  • Follow all local and national regulations concerning environmental law
  • Measure, monitor, and evaluate use of all commodities and products purchased, especially in terms of water, waste, energy, and carbon
  • Procure office locally, seasonally, fair trade, in bulk, with limited packaging, sustainability certified whenever possible
  • Print only when absolutely necessary, and when printing, always print double-sided on Paper must always be FSC or equivalent certified, with preference for the highest percentage post-consumer materials
  • Energy saving measures are in place in all common areas
  • All equipment and lighting is energy-efficient and turned off/unplugged/on sleep mode when not in use
  • Water saving measures are in place in all common areas and restrooms, including water capture in external areas
  • Waste is separated into the following categories: plastic, organic, paper products, hazardous, e-waste, waste to landfill and is disposed of properly by a private company.
  • Noise, light, and air pollution is

Carbon management of office operations

• Footfalls Walking Holidays is committed to reducing our carbon footprint and endeavour’s to reduce the amount we travel as much as possible by:
  • Reduce the amount we travel as much as possible
  • Monitoring and measuring carbon footprint with the aim to reduce as much as possible and offset remaining amounts.
  • Encouraging remote work whenever possible, and when it is not possible, making it easier for employees to limit their carbon footprint by use of eco modes of transportation.
  • Implementing procedures such as g. following proper maintenance for vehicle fleet.
  • Installing energy efficient equipment and appliances where possible

Land use

• Footfalls Walking Holidays offices are located in a rural area and abides by all local land use laws, respects local cultural and natural resources in our business operations and favour’s sustainable architecture and

General suppliers policy

• Footfalls Walking Holidays is committed to sourcing its products and services responsibly, avoiding harmful impacts on society, culture and nature as much as possible. We expect the same level of engagement and commitment from our suppliers.
• Footfalls Walking Holidays prefers to work with partners that share the company’s commitment towards sustainability. This means that we prefer partners that have a written sustainability statement as an integral part of their business policy and/or a clear sustainability policy in place.
• Footfalls Walking Holidays prefers to work with suppliers in the destinations that are locally owned or managed, use local and seasonal products and services and benefit the local community by hiring locally and equitably and by providing fair working conditions.
• Whenever possible, Footfalls Walking Holidays prefers to select partner companies that comply with tourism-specific, internationally recognized (GSTC-accredited) certifications, or other sustainability certifications like B Corp or ISO.
• Footfalls Walking Holidays offers incentives for partners that are actively engaged in sustainable
• Footfalls Walking Holidays expects its suppliers to adhere to a Code of Ethics, that includes the following responsible business practices:
• Complying with all local, regional, national and international regulations
• Respecting all human rights including labour rights, children’s rights, and women’s rights
• Committing to fair employment conditions
• Following anti-corruption, anti-bribery, anti-extortion, and anti-discrimination policies
• Actively preventing and reporting all forms of child exploitation and abuse, including sexual exploitation of children in tourism
• Protecting the environment and natural resources
• Acting in the best interest of local communities
• Protecting the interests of Footfalls Walking Holidays

Our complete supplier Code of Ethics is available here: https://walkinghikingireland.com/sustainability/

• Following a zero-tolerance policy, Footfalls Walking Holidays will immediately terminate any relationships with suppliers that violate our Code of Ethics, specifically through acts of bribery, corruption, discrimination, and violation of human rights.
• Footfalls Walking Holidays raises awareness amongst its suppliers to adopt sound social and environmental practices, and to minimise their carbon footprint.
• Footfalls Walking Holidays actively collaborates with suppliers to improve their sustainability We encourage our suppliers to continuously learn about sustainability and provide/support this learning whenever possible.
• Footfalls Walking Holidays maintains open lines of communication with our suppliers and partners and encourage feedback from our stakeholders at any time and on any topic, particularly sustainability.

Inbound partner agencies

• Footfalls Walking Holidays only works with partner agencies that adhere to the company’s Code of Conduct
• In the entire process of developing and operating our travel packages, Footfalls Walking Holidays expects partner agencies to act in the best interests of the surrounding communities and environment as well as our
• Footfalls Walking Holidays provides partner agencies opportunities for sustainability learning and management, including free access to the Travelife online learning and reporting platform.

Transport 

• Footfalls Walking Holidays only works with transport providers that adhere to the company’s Code of Conduct
• When selecting transport for guests and business related travel, Footfalls Walking Holidays commits to choosing the most environmentally friendly options available for travelling to, from, and within the destination – taking into consideration distance, price, route, and comfort.
• Footfalls Walking Holidays has implemented clear guidelines for reducing GHG emissions from transport and selecting the most environmentally friendly transport options, including the following measures:
• Preferring ground transport over air transport for short-haul travel destinations
• Avoiding in-destination flights as much as possible
• Offering rail-and-fly transport to and from the airport
• Using public transportation options in the destinations
• Using appropriate vehicle sizes for group sizes and purchasing most efficient vehicles available
• Training drivers on eco-driving techniques
• Footfalls Walking Holidays endeavours – and has a system in place – to measure and compensate for the unavoidable GHG emissions produced from transportation. Compensation costs are either included by default in the package price or compensation is actively promoted to the clients as a booking option.

Accommodations 

• Footfalls Walking Holidays only works with accommodations that adhere to the company’s Code of
• In the accommodation selection process, Footfalls Walking Holidays considers the sustainability practices of anaccommodation by taking into account their sustainability management and social and environmental
• Footfalls Walking Holidays favours the selection of accommodations that respect and protect land use, as well as respectfully highlight elements of local architecture, customs and traditions

Activities & Excursions

• Footfalls Walking Holidays only works with excursion providers that adhere to the company’s Code of Conduct
• All excursions and activities run by or on behalf of [company] respect local customs, traditions, cultural integrity, and natural resources.
• Footfalls Walking Holidays commits to not offering any excursions that harm humans, wildlife, environment, or natural resources such as water and energy.
• Footfalls Walking Holidays gives preference to excursions and activities that benefit local communities, respect animal welfare and support environmental protection.
• Footfalls Walking Holidays has clear guidelines/Codes of Conduct in place for environmentally and culturally sensitive excursions offered by or on behalf of the These guidelines are actively communicated to guests as well as distributed and implemented by excursion providers and guides.
• Footfalls Walking Holidays provides excursion and attraction providers opportunities for sustainability learning and management, including free access to the Travelife online learning and reporting

Tour leaders, local representatives, and guides

• Footfalls Walking Holidays commits to hiring qualified local guides, porters, drivers or other local staff, paying them living wages and providing safe and fair working We expect the same from our suppliers that are hiring local staff on behalf of Footfalls Walking Holidays.
• Footfalls Walking Holidays understands that guides are the intermediaries between the guests and the socio-cultural and environmental context of the destination, conveying the appropriate behaviour to them. Therefore, we make sure that all guides hired by or leading tours on behalf of [company] are trained regularly and knowledgeable in the sustainability topics of the destination.
• Our guides are specifically trained on the critical issue of sexual exploitation of children in
• Footfalls Walking Holidays provides guides with learning opportunities on sustainability topics including providing free access to the Travelife online learning platform.

Destinations

 Sustainable destinations

• Footfalls Walking Holidays prefers to work in destinations that have committed to sustainability as an integral part of community and destination development.
• Footfalls Walking Holidays aims to send visitors to secondary or lesser-known tourist areas to avoid
• Footfalls Walking Holidays does not support destinations that have a questionable human rights track

Contribution to local communities / local economic network

• Footfalls Walking Holidays commits to positive contribution to the destinations in which we operate, by:
• Sourcing locally and responsibly, and supporting local and traditional arts and culture
• Encouraging guests to shop responsibly and educating them about illegal/prohibited/forbidden souvenirs
• Collaborating with other local tourism stakeholders including local government, other tourism businesses, academia, community groups to further the sustainable tourism development of the destination
• Respecting and advocating for all human rights (i.e. children’s rights, women’s rights, labour rights, etc.) as well as land rights

Local Charitable Support

• Footfalls Walking Holidays may support and, where appropriate, recommend carefully selected local non-profit organisations connected to our destinations. Any information provided to guests regarding donations is entirely voluntary and upon request. All recommended organisations must demonstrate transparent governance, financial accountability, and measurable environmental or community impact, aligned with our sustainability principles.

Environmental stewardship in destinations

• Footfalls Walking Holidays commits to environmental stewardship in the destinations in which we operateby:
• Ensuring natural resources remain intact
• Educating guests about the principles of responsible travel and responsible visitor behaviour

Customer communication and protection

Privacy

• Our customer protection is our Therefore, we maintain a clear privacy policy https://walkinghikingireland.com/privacy-cookies/ to ensure
• Legal compliance in all regards
• Customers and their data are protected
• Customers know how their information is being used

Marketing and communication

• Footfalls Walking Holidays strives to be truthful in all situations and at all We offer products and services that do what we claim in our communications.
• We honour our explicit and implicit commitments and
• We are anti-greenwashing and stand behind our sustainability claims 100%.
• We endeavour to be inclusive and representative in our marketing, and to always take into account cultural, religious, and ethnic sensitivities.

Sustainability communication

• Customers are informed about the social and environmental impact of their journey, and are educated about the sustainable choices they can make, including transparent communication on:
• Certified accommodations
• Compensation of their trips CO2 emissions
• Activities and excursions that benefit the local communities and environmental protection
• Responsible shopping and illegal souvenirs

Customer experience

The company aims for all customer experiences to be positive, and follows strict health and safety, marketing,and excursion policies to ensure customer satisfaction. These policies cover specific topics of (but not limited to):

• Health and safety
• Emergency procedures
• Privacy
• Group numbers
• Greenhouse Gas emissions and offsetting
• Transport
• Shopping
• Sexual exploitation
• Children in tourism
• Satisfaction and complaints
• Footfalls Walking Holidays maintains open lines of communication with our customers and encourages feedback at any time and on any topic, particularly sustainability.

Contact / Responsible person

All staff are responsible for the ownership and undertaking of this policy. All staff are responsible for the promotion and implementation of this sustainability policy within their departments. The implementation of this policy will be lead by the Sustainability Coordinator, Philip Stacey, who can be reached at philip@footfalls.ie

Definitions 

Footfalls Walking Holidays Ltd is defined as Footfalls Walking Holidays throughout this document.

Effective date

This policy is effective from 5th November 2025.

Revision history

This policy was revised on 5th November 2025

The GREENMark is an independent 3rd party environmental certification programme and we have voluntarily joined it to enable us to improve our overall sustainability approach.  The GREENMark requires us to follow and implement a number of standards which can be found here www.greenmark.ie

We have committed to implement and maintain these standards whilst we are certified members of GREENMark and invite all stakeholders to engage with us if they identify opportunities for us to improve our sustainability approach.  Should any stakeholder feel that we are not implementing and upholding a GREENMark standard we invite them to notify GREENMark at info@greenmark.ie