SUSTAINABLE POLICES

We commit to sustainability management, practiced by the following actions:

• Appoint an Individual who is responsible for sustainability coordinator tasks
• Communicate the sustainability mission statement to customers, partners, and suppliers
• Maintain an accessible, written sustainability policy that outlines our strategy for managing the social, cultural, economic, and environmental impacts of our operations, while also addressing employee health and safety measures.
• Collaborate with organizations that share our commitment to the sustainable development of the destination.
• Conduct an evaluation of the company’s performance in sustainable practices.
• Maintain a sustainability action plan with clear targets, actions, measures, responsibilities, and a timeline.
• Demonstrate the company’s sustainability best practices by public reporting and communication
• To ensure that all staff under Luxurious Lanka are fully aware of our Sustainability Policy and are committed to implementing and improving it
• We commit to complying with all national legislation, regulations, and codes of practice.

We commit to sustainable internal management by having a clear written and well-communicated social policies that includes the following principles:

• Ensure that all employment contracts include labor conditions in line with national labor laws, along with a comprehensive job description.
• Wage rate is to be mentioned in the contract
• Grant employees fixed paid annual leave, sick leave, and unpaid annual leave allowances, as applicable. Maternity leave will be provided in accordance with the Maternity Benefits Ordinance of Sri Lanka.
• Access to first aid accessible
• Ensure compliance with the nationally accepted minimum age for employment.
• Have a health and safety policy for employees which complies to national legal standards

We commit to practice environmental protection and enhance community relations by ensuring the enforcement of following practices:

Paper

• Implement zero-paper policies by eliminating the purchase and use of paper and printers wherever possible.
• Reduce paper consumption by using e-brochures for promotional purposes and electronically filing all documents whenever possible.
• Gather customer feedback exclusively through digital platforms such as TripAdvisor and Google Reviews to ensure authenticity.

Energy

• Commitment to measure, monitor and reduce energy consumption;
• Invest in energy-efficient equipment, goods and services and increase energy performance by design enhancements.
• Promote wherever possible renewable and sustainable energy sources, leveraging local resources.
• Reduce the CO2 emission by prioritizing Hybrid Vehicles and set off remaining CO2 emissions through carbon credits.
• Switching off lights and equipment when not in use, using automatic switch on/off system with timers or wifi and setting equipment by default in the energy saving mode, where feasible
• Reduce transport related impacts by tele-work, tele/video meetings, work-at-home policies, or other means communicated to staff through ‘Agile Working Policy’.

Waste 

• Actively reduce the use of disposable and consumer goods.
• Ensure the recycling of disposable and consumer goods in accordance with the National Solid Waste Management Policy
• Reduce the use of non-refillable plastic drinking water bottles in office operations.
• We ensure better waste management by fully embracing the 5 R principle: Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Repurpose, and Recycle, across all our operations, continuously seeking innovative ways to minimize waste and promote a circular economy.

Water 

• Availability of water filters with reusable gallon bottles to facilitate drinking water for office use
• Availability of water filters with reusable water bottles for clients on tour.
• Installing water saving equipment in toilets

Training and awareness

• We provide periodic guidance and information to all staff members regarding their roles and responsibilities in internal environmental practices. 

Local cultural sites. 

• Contribute to the protection and preservation of local historical, archaeological, culturally, and spiritually important properties and sites.

Procurement 

• Purchasing of office material and gifts.
  We are committed to purchase best, available, sustainably sourced products through constant research:

-Buying from local vendors without any medium

-Recycled materials

-Locally produced/ sourced goods

-Fair trade

-Organic materials

-Low carbon footprint in operation

-Eco-labelled

We are committed to this:

• Prioritizing the most sustainable transport options while considering price and comfort, including public transportation where feasible
• We ensure our vehicle fleet is well maintained and fuel efficient.
• We actively work to reduce the carbon footprint of our fleet in line with our annual mileage and business growth.
• We are committed to maintaining a carbon neutral status for our fleet.
• We promote eco-friendly driving habits among our chauffeurs through regular knowledge-sharing sessions.
• We prioritize partnerships with suppliers of hybrid and electric vehicles.

We aim to achieve a tourism supply chain that is fully sustainable. The partner accommodations play an important role in achieving this and are stimulated and motivated to adopt sustainable practices.

• Prioritize accommodations that meet strict sustainability and quality standards. We focus on water and energy efficiency, effective waste management, comprehensive staff training, and robust CSR initiatives, ensuring that our partners hold reputable sustainability certifications such as Travelife, NSTC, and ISO 14001.
• We collaborate with locally owned and managed accommodations, prioritizing those that employ local communities and source local food products.
• top-selling accommodations must sign a sustainability addendum enforcing strict measures against child labor, corruption, and bribery, along with protocols for waste management and biodiversity protection.
• We encourage accommodations to complete our sustainability compliance contract, which provides valuable insights into their current sustainability status and enables us to grade our suppliers based on their sustainable practices.
• We clearly communicate our sustainability objectives and requirements to the accommodations most in demand by our customers. To ensure the rights of children are protected throughout our supply chain, our Sustainability Compliance Contract includes a dedicated clause enforcing a zero-tolerance policy toward the sexual exploitation of children. This clause also empowers our travel company to immediately terminate the contractual agreement if an accommodation supplier fails to implement adequate measures to prevent such exploitation.
• We encourage accommodations to offer locally and sustainably produced souvenirs that reflect the history and culture of the area.
• In cases where contracted accommodations clearly violate the provisions of our Sustainability Compliance Contract, we will terminate our cooperation.
• Offer incentives to accommodations which engage actively in sustainability

We value animal and community welfare extremely highly and aim for tours that only leave a minor footprint. We are safeguarding the authenticity of the communities and the natural environment and are strongly against harming wildlife and polluting the environment.

• Having an inventory of environmentally or culturally sensitive excursions which are offered in each destination
• Advising guests on behaviour standards during excursions and activities with a focus on respecting the local culture, nature, and environment
• Communicating our sustainability objectives and requirements to contracted and other relevant excursion providers by distributing this information via code of conducts, representative agents, social media, email, discussions, and/or meetings, to minimize negative visitor impact and maximize enjoyment
• Not offering any excursions that harm humans, animals, plants, natural resources such as water and energy, or which are socially and culturally unacceptable
• Not offering any excursions in which wildlife is held captive, except for properly regulated activities in compliance with local, national, and international law
• Avoid partnerships with companies that harvest, consume, display, sell, or trade wildlife species unless their activities are legally regulated and demonstrably sustainable.
• Employing skilled and/or certified guides to lead guests through cultural, heritage, or ecologically sensitive sites.
• Promoting and advise our guests on excursions and activities which directly involve and support local communities by purchasing services or goods, traditional crafts and local food production methods, or visiting social projects
• Promoting and advising our guests on excursions and activities which support local environment and biodiversity such as visiting protected areas or environmental protection projects.

We focus on recruiting local talent in the tourism business and are committed to providing a fair, safe working environment that supports and respects local communities. Although our current recruitment numbers are modest, our commitment to empowering local talent remains steadfast.

We commit to this by:

• We commit to prioritizing local tour guides and chauffeurs, providing necessary training.
• Paying tour guides, chauffeurs and other local staff whose services obtained by us a service fee that is equal to or above the relevant industry standard.
• Ensuring that our tour guides, chauffeurs and other local staff whose services obtained by us are qualified
• Ensuring that our local tour staff are informed on relevant aspects of our sustainability policy and comply with it, through training and information sessions.
• Training the local tour staff on sustainability and communicating the role expected from them during the tour.
• Having local tour guides inform clients on relevant sustainability matters of the destination
• In the destination (e.g. protection of flora, fauna, and cultural heritage, resource use), social norms and values (e.g. tips, dressing code and photography) and human rights (e.g. sexual exploitation)
• Prohibiting the purchase of souvenirs containing threatened flora/fauna species, illegally obtained historical/archaeological artifacts, or illegal substances.

• We prioritize sustainable products and services in all purchases. When selecting providers, we favor products that carry recognized environmental or sustainability certifications or demonstrate proven sustainable qualities. Specifically, we give preference to locally produced products, source from local suppliers whenever possible, and collaborate with vendors known for their commitment to sustainability.
• For key product purchases, we follow a sustainable purchasing procedure that evaluates our choices based on the five R’s: Reduce, Repair, Repurpose, Reuse, and Recycle. We assess sustainable alternatives based on price, quality, and availability, selecting those that align with our sustainability standards.
• Key products include, but are not limited to, electric devices, cars, electricity, furniture, cleaning materials, and other essential products.