Sustainability Policy

POLICY DOCUMENT

This document is foundation for all sustainable actions, taken in the company Atlas Express d.o.o., Portoroz. It is also a foundation that all partner suppliers look up to and is the basis for all cooperations and relationships taken further with suppliers, local stakeholders, communities, guides and tourists.

Mission Statement

Atlas Express d.o.o., Portoroz wants to become a good example in our area of business, and become leading in communication to all supplier partners and guests, to enjoy their holidays and act sustainable. We am working to become an organisation that is setting an example to our community and partners. Through internal management, we would like to reduce our energy use and waste practices.

Vision

We strive to more locally themed tours and excursions, to promote local crafts and acknowledge tourists about supporting local.

Principles

We want to have an innovative, yet transparent and continuous improvement in organising tours and excursions. We want to include sustainability and local stakeholders to improve tourism and local economy and provide chance for local suppliers.

Important Issues

As our tours and excursions are involved in local communities, we want to improve some issues which need to be involved in development and actions. Especially in improvement of guide services as they are the first mediator between tourists, who are providing them with information about their actions and consequences.

Our Commitment

This policy will apply for all our tours and excursions. All employees and supplier partners are expected to uphold objectives under this policy to the fullest extent possible.
We acknowledge we have limited influence over third parties, but nevertheless, we shall educate them of our policy and encourage them to align operating practices with policy objectives.
Our attention to environmental, social and economic responsibility includes working within the law on the issues that are important to us and our stakeholders. We commit to strive for quality services and environment for our employees, suppliers, stakeholders and guests.

Objectives

We commit to:
1. Minimize negative social and environmental impacts in the areas of waste and energy in internal management and provided tours and excursions.
2. Ensure our supplier partners has responsible social and environmental practices.
3. Educate and improve our guides and guiding services, to communicate responsible actions to the tourists.
4. Local representatives and guides, contracted by the company, are appropriately qualified.
5. Always give advantage to local suppliers and vendors. Local food and beverages are used in the office as well on the tours.
6. Create innovative approach with local stakeholders to responsible create and develop tourism that will improve local economy without degradation.
7. Any disturbance of natural ecosystems or exploitation of natural resources is minimized and acted against it by law.
8. Promote local buying and support local vendors.
9. Educate and improve sustainable knowledge and actions of the employees.
10. Avoid all supplier partners who are acting against human rights and are engaged in any kind of exploitation of their employees and resources.
11. Our action plans will be distributed to all employees and encouraged to implement them accordingly.
12. We will report on our progress once per year.
13. We will encourage all our suppliers to take a detailed insight to our report and try to improve sustainability actions accordingly.
14. All tour leaders, guides, local representatives and other parties contracted by the company, are working in accordance with all legal requirements.
15. All employees in the company, or contracted staff, are working in accordance with to provide quality life, to not be exploited, have a minimal required wage by law and to respect human rights in all matters.
16. Reduce use of disposable goods, using more emails instead of printing notes, use re-usable bottles instead of plastic bottles, reuse pens, reduce garbage bags. Atlas Express d.o.o., Portoroz shall sort all the waste in the office in specific waste disposal (paper, glass, plastic and other waste), all such specific disposal should be signed and instructed to waste bins. There shall be reminder and limited number to all employees, to use less waste, especially plastic and unrecycled packages.
17. Use locally produced food and beverages and promote local purchasing when on tours and excursion. Give advantage to local suppliers and to those who are working within sustainable principles.

18. Reduce energy waste, especially with heating and air conditioning and lighting. Atlas Express d.o.o., Portoroz ensures that the heater/cooler is turned off after the working hours.All computers are switched off after working hours as well and the lighting in the office are not turned on when there is no need to use them (natural light, after working hours). All computers do not have screensavers and the monitors are set to sleep after 5 minutes of inactivity. On all energy wasting consumption there are notes with reminders that all energy consuming devices, should be turned off.
19. Encourage employees to use recyclable paper and encourage the re-use of paper for other, if not entirely damaged. Atlas Express d.o.o., Portoroz is encouraging all employees to limit the paper use and increase usage of emails and online notes, to pass the news and briefings for all employees, as well to communicate with supplier partners. All marketing actions shall be increasingly using electronic devices for all promotions and publicity, all brochures and printed material shall be issued and published without dates, so they can be mused. Regarding paper, all employees are encouraged to print less and use default printer settings to ensure more economical and ecological printing settings.
20. All transportation used for excursions and tours shall be appropriately selected, according to the number of the tourists and reach for the goal, that all buses and coaches will make an efficient way towards destination, to drop less fuel emissions and engage more often buses that are using MAN Pure Diesel concept, in which is associated with maintenance savings and reverse materials.
21. Promote sustainable mode of transport to customers, when possible or when route is easy to be reached with bikes, which can be rented by company.
22. Promote sustainable destinations and tours and communicate sustainability altematives to customers.
23. Communicate sustainable requirements to suppliers and providers at tours and excursions.
24. Offer training materials to guides and local representatives about sustainable principles and objectives.