Great Himalaya Trail

The Great Himalaya Trail promotes sustainable and responsible tourism across the Himalaya. We began with developing a Code of Conduct for trekkers 10 years ago (https://www.greathimalayatrail.com/ght-code-of-conduct/ ) and expanded the idea to travel companies. However the industry was not prepared to become more sustainable back then, so we focused on educating tourists through a guide book, maps and information that stress sustainability in decision making.

Since 2019, we have again focused on operators. We only recommend companies that are certified by Travelife (https://www.greathimalayatrail.com/trekking-companies/ ) and they started asking for tools to better understand the imapct of their operations and tours. So, we have developed a carbon calculator for trekking and mountaineering companies to use to assess their CO2, energy, water and waste impacts of activities (https://www.greathimalayatrail.com/the-impact-of-your-trek/ ). We have also pioneered a social impact assess system (MyGHTi) for tourism activities (https://www.greathimalayatrail.com/myghti/ ).

In combination, our impact assessment system covers 15 SDGs and we try to guide tourists to make more informed decisions before and during their journey. Our system is backed up by imperical, peer-reviewed research and has led to a number of papers printed in international literature, including the World Heritage Site 50th Anniversary (UNESCO due out later this year).

Our overall GHT vision of sustainability is to develop world-class tools for MSMEs to assess, manage and offset their footprints in ways that promote inclusion and empowerment across the Himalaya.

The MyGHTi Vision:

Empowering communities to provide transformative experiences along the Great Himalaya Trail by promoting thriving female-owned, sustainable, regenerative micro-enterprises.

MyGHTi Goals:

1. Empower female-owned enterprises to control and manage tourism within their communities and distribute profits to local causes.

2. Host-communities are recognised as the primary custodians and guardians of fragile Himalayan landscapes, cultures and traditions.

3. Be world-renowned for offering unique transformative experiences in exceptionally scenic, remote and diverse landscapes.

4. Work towards permanent protection for all Himalayan landscapes, as well as keeping them well maintained and effectively managed.

5. MyGHTi will achieve its goals through enhancing the strength and commitment of community groups, staff and volunteers, and the broader adventure travel community.

Further details can be on the website:

https://www.greathimalayatrail.com/the-impact-of-your-trek/

https://www.greathimalayatrail.com/myghti/