Hurtigruten Expeditions has announced its plans to donate 1 percent of the total cost of each Alaskan cruise sold during Earth Week to Alaska Wilderness League through its Hurtigruten Foundation.
According to the cruise line, this will help protect the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, located in Alaska’s northeast corner, as well as other wildlife reserves.
“Sustainability is an integral part of Hurtigruten’s DNA and our priority any day of the year. From introducing the world’s first hybrid electric-powered expedition ship, the MS Roald Amundsen, a few years ago, to most of our ships soon operating with biofuel from organic waste and battery power, we can confidently claim we have the greenest fleet in the industry,” said John Downey, president of Hurtigruten Americas.
“Another important aspect of our everyday focus on the environment we operate within is working closely with all the local communities in the destinations we serve to help empower them for the future. Our mission is that you arrive as a guest but leave as a friend, as you get to know and understand the local indigenous population. In Alaska, we take you further and closer to the remote communities than any of the large ships can ever get,” added Downey.
According to Hurtigruten, 27 Alaskan and Norwegian cruises are on sale on Apr. 19-26 with up to 40 percent off for guests.
The Executive Director of Alaska Wilderness League, Adam Kolton, said that the NGO “stands with the many people and organizations that believe in a sustainable future for Alaska.”
“We also honor and respect the cultures of Alaska Natives whose way of life remains deeply connected to the state’s land, water, and wildlife,” Kolton said.
“Alaska, with its rapidly rising temperatures, increases in wildfires, thawing permafrost, receding glaciers, eroding coastlines, and disappearing sea ice is ground zero in the climate crisis in the United States. Alaska Wilderness League is committed to confronting the causes and impacts of climate change and defending America’s last great wild public lands and waters, and are happy to have the support of companies like Hurtigruten and their customers that are dedicated to conducting business in an environmentally responsible way and committed to respecting local Indigenous cultures,” he added.
Hurtigruten Expeditions said that it is the only major cruise operator in Alaskan waters to be certified by Adventure Green Alaska, a certification program that defines sustainable tourism as travel to natural areas that benefits local economies, respects the environment, and is sensitive to indigenous cultures.
