We are Committed to Sustainability
As a tour operator close to Denali National Park, we take our role as environmental stewards seriously.
- All staff are familiarized with the principles of Leave No Trace.
- Staff educate tour participants about wildlife & wilderness safety using the same guidelines used by Denali National Park.
- Recycling bins are provided for all staff and staff sort and transport recyclables to the transfer station as needed.
- We encourage the elimination or minimization of the use of plastic bottles by requesting guests and guides bring drinks in reusable containers. Trash and Recyclables are difficult and very expensive to transfer so the less we generate, the better!
- We encourage the use of cold water for laundry to conserve energy.
- Paper is reduced by encouraging guests to sign policy agreements digitally.
- Most cleaning supplies and sundry items are sourced from reputable companies that use environmentally friendly products.
- We try to reduce waste by purchasing products and supplies in bulk.
We proudly support Denali’s Zero-Landfill Project. The zero-landfill project is a partnership between the National Parks Conservation Association, Subaru of America, the National Park Service, and park concessionaires who are working towards a better way to manage & reduce waste generated in the National Parks. It’s working. Since 2018 at least 30% of the waste typically collected in the area’s local landfill was recycled or composted instead. #Don’tFeedTheLandfills
Reducing waste is easy! Here are some tips to help.
- Use paperless options for tickets and receipts
- Travel with reusable water bottles & coffee mugs
- Use reusable bags or no bags at all when purchasing souvenirs
- Take the extra step to find a nearby recycling bin
- Let others know #Don’tFeedTheLandfills
We are also stewards of our community. We do our best to be good neighbors. Our staff are encouraged to volunteer with the Denali Education Center. We donate to and some of our staff volunteer on our local volunteer fire department. They provide a priceless service to our remote community, responding to urgent calls at all times of the day or night.
Preserving the landscape and the ecosystem as best we can and making as little impact as possible when operating our tours on that landscape is foundational for all at Denali Photo Guides. This includes visual aesthetics, wildlife, plant life, sounds, smells: everything you can see, touch, hear, or taste (mmm, berries!). We accomplish this by keeping our group sizes small, so not to disturb wildlife and plant life. Implementing and educating staff and guests on the wildlife etiquette protocol created by the National Park Service and Leave No Trace tenants. At an operational level we are paperless as far as possible, we maintain a very high level of vehicle maintenance to improve emissions and do our best to not be wasteful of resources. At our office and property/staff housing we reduce, reuse and recycle. Lighting has been upgraded to LED, and anything that consumes power has been upgraded to be energy efficient where reasonable.
We greatly respect and are mindful of those who came before us who were stewards of this land for thousands of years. We seek to preserve their legacy for the generations forward. Denali is at the intersection of the traditional lands of five different native groups: the Ahtna, Dena’ina, Koyukon, Upper Kuskokwim, and Tanana peoples. They understand the lay of the land, what comes with this territory, and what it takes to live and thrive here. We are honored to be part of this community, and we love and are grateful to our Alaskan guests. We appreciate their business and the openness with which they have welcomed us as we embrace their home state and honor their local culture and businesses. Traveling closer to home is a greener option as anytime we avoid air travel we’re lowering our carbon footprint. We offer promos to Alaska residents because we know it can be difficult to find affordable activities during the summer tourism season. Alaskans and military personnel based in Alaska can use promo code SHOWUP4AK to receive a discount.
We promote shopping locally. While “shop local” is a great idea to support the local economy, it is also true that Alaskan’s provide the best goods and services. Our guests who experience the best Denali has to offer are those who eat at locally run cafés, restaurants and coffee shops; and get the best excursions and activities from locally run outfitters.
We work hard to help Alaska prosper through our commitment to sustainable tourism practices, promoting local goods and services, minimizing our impact on the ecology and natural beauty of the landscape, and honoring the original stewards of this land we love.
Our Top Ten Practices for Protecting the Earth
- Small Group Sizes. Keeping our maximum tour size to 4 guests helps reduce the impact tours have on the local environment. This enables greater interaction and education between guides and guests. When our guests choose to venture off road we promote “spanning” which prevents trail formation.
- Promote and Follow the Wildlife Etiquette protocol created by the Park Service. Our guides are trained in wildlife etiquette which focuses on respecting wildlife and their homes. This includes never feeding or approaching wildlife, maintaining a safe distance, avoiding loud noises or other disturbances of wildlife while observing them in their natural environment, maintaining awareness and being educated on how to react during wildlife encounters.
- Practice Leave No Trace. All our guides and staff members are trained and certified in the 7 principles of Leave No Trace.
- Prioritize Resource Management. Keeping the resources that we have in top condition helps minimize their environmental impact. We maintain a very high level of vehicle maintenance to reduce emissions.
- Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. We make the most of the resources that we have by minimizing waste, promoting reusable bottles and bags, recycling, upgrading to energy efficient appliances, conserving energy, and going paperless as much as is practical and possible.
- Use Eco Friendly Products. From our dish detergent to our personal care products, we choose products that are earth friendly whenever possible.
- Shop Local. We are a small local business that recognizes the importance of supporting other local business. Where possible we shop local, and we promote other local businesses. We are members of Buy Alaska. A great resource for finding local businesses to support, and understanding the difference made when choosing to support locally.
- Respect Those who Came Before Us. Denali is at the intersection of the traditional lands of five different native groups: the Ahtna, Dena’ina, Koyukon, Upper Kuskokwim, and Tanana peoples. We acknowledge and respect the original stewards of this land that we love and seek to help preserve their legacy. This includes respecting and preserving the ecology and natural beauty of their lands.
- Promote Responsible Tourism. Our guides are trained in sustainability practices. They are your best resource for where to find the best of all things local. They love to share their knowledge with our guests to help raise awareness of our environmental responsibility and steps to take that will lessen our impact.
- Education. Environmental stewardship is highly important to us. Everything we do is guided by a simple principle: good for people and good for the earth. We educate our staff and guests on practical ways to enjoy and explore without leaving a mark.