Chief executive Michael Heath said offering “responsible, respectful travel” had always been part of the brand’s “DNA”.
B Corp businesses meet “high standards of social and environmental performance, transparency and accountability” and “have made a legal commitment to balance purpose and profit”, the expedition line added.
Heath said: “[Becoming B Corp Certified] is a natural next step for us. Sustainability is a key focus for the business. We’re proud to join the B Corp community.
“If we can inspire others to pursue a purpose-driven approach, we will welcome them.”
He added: “Through this process we have learned that sustainability is so much more than our environmental impacts, though these play a hugely important part.
“Much of the work we were already doing in other areas such as policy and governance has also been formalised, and we are now meeting a higher level of accountability, ensuring we consider the impact of business decisions on all stakeholders.”
Heath noted how the mission to become B Corp Certified business started three years ago, adding: “It was a rigorous process. I joined the business when we were around 12 months into the project.
“For me, it was about supporting the team as much as I could. It was an area that the business had already identified as being important.”
Heath also hailed the efforts of UK managing director Jos Dewing and his team in the UK market, saying: [They] are doing a tremendous job. The UK market is an important strategic market for us.
“We recently enhanced the roles of some of the team – Andy Tait will now help agents in the Middle East and Africa as well as Europe and the UK,” Heath added.
“Katie Harber was promoted to senior business development manager, UK and Ireland.”
When asked about expanding AE Expeditions’ fleet, Heath said: “We will have some news to share in the coming months. We will be launching a third ship at the end of next year.”
TTG Media became one of the first B2B media companies in the UK to become B Corp Certified last month, while Exodus Adventure Travels became B Corp Certified after a year-long scrutiny process to make sure it was meeting the highest environmental and social standards.
