Real Africa participates in the Tourism Industry Carbon Offset Service (TICOS). Through this we offset all carbon emissions from our own staff travel and support projects in Africa that also improve the lives of local people.

TICOS say:
The outbound tourism industry recognises that it has to play a key role in the development of programmes to reduce and offset the effects of carbon produced from the holidays and other travel services it sells. Although the primary responsibility for the global impacts of aviation rest with the airlines, tour operators and other travel businesses also need to take action as a part of the holiday supply chain. The Tourism Industry Carbon Offset Service (TICOS) is an industry wide programme to stimulate collective action by all operators and travel businesses selling holidays and associated services, which include air or other forms of travel. TICOS uses offset funds to develop projects that both reduce carbon emissions and have wider socio-economic and environmental benefit.

The offset money is currently being channelled towards Solar stoves for poor township areas of South Africa:

BVCO-SunFire Solutions Solar Stoves, South Africa

The main objective of the project is to help reduce poverty and alleviate the difficult energy situation that South Africa is currently experiencing. The project provides subsidised solar and fuel-efficient stoves to poor communities, allowing families to move away from open-fire cooking which requires enormous amounts of wood fuel and often leads to smoke-related illnesses. The project provides immediate environmental, economic, health and social benefits and is based on a business model that engages local communities and encourages grass-roots entrepreneurship.

The project focuses on communities that are currently struggling to meet their energy needs and have limited economic opportunities.

Additional sustainable development benefits:
• Reduced smoke-related health problems in recipient households
• Reduced incidence of cooking-related burn injuries
• Job creation
• Workshops and demonstration days increase knowledge and understanding of efficient cooking and the use of solar and fuel-efficient stoves
• Reduced deforestation and habitat degradation in the surrounding area. This will help safeguard regional biodiversity and reduce soil erosion and associated silting of rivers and water courses
• Reduction in coal emissions

We will plan and run our safaris in a way that gives the best long-term economic benefit to the local communities, whilst also maintaining and the environment.

- We will use local suppliers in the countries we visit wherever possible. We will employ local guides and drivers on all our tours.

- People who work for Real Africa should be treated fairly and paid a fair wage.

- We will try to develop long-term relationships with our suppliers and guides so that the benefit to these local people is continuous.

- We will try to improve and teach new skills to our local staff, allowing them to develop.

- We try to ensure that our style and size of tourism is appropriate to local conditions and does not strain the local facilities.

- We will study economic, cultural and environmental issues when planning new products. If we believe a destination will be damaged by our visits, we will not go.

- We will minimise water wastage and atmospheric pollution from our tours to the best of our ability.

- We will not litter.

We will try to run our holidays in a way that promotes positive cultural exchanges:

- We should understand the customs and culture of the countries we visit so that we do not offend our hosts.

- We will encourage our clients to act in a socially responsible way.

- We will attempt to give our clients a genuine insight into the culture of the country they are visiting through our guides and staff.

We will attempt to integrate responsible tourism throughout Real Africa:

- We will run our offices in a responsible manner by and where possible reducing, our energy usage, as well as recycling.

- We will provide guidance in the principles and operation of responsible tourism to all our employees.