Sustainability and corporate social responsibility

 

At Baja Bikes, we believe that we as a company and all of us are responsible for our environment, our society and our planet. A company that has been around for more than 15 years cannot simply serve the interests of its own shareholders. That awareness ensures that we make choices that are in line with corporate social responsibility and the pursuit of sustainable tourism. We want to use the power of Baja Bikes and the impact we can have for this purpose.

In order not to write down this ambition in vague terms, but rather to make it a concrete reality, we enlisted the help of CSR Netherlands. Together we drew up a roadmap. This roadmap is based on the sustainable development goals of the United Nations. In addition to the roadmap, our goal is to neutralize our carbon footprint.

 

Carbon footprint

Our ambition is for Baja Bikes to be completely Co2 neutral. Step 1 is then to calculate the environmental impact we cause, our carbon footprint. We did this using a calculation model from Carbonfootprint.com that uses the number of employees, office space, flights, fuel and a few other things to calculate your environmental impact. The calculation model gives a result of about 50 tons of Co2 per year.

We then contacted us with Life Terra Foundation (Life Terra Foundation). Life Terra Foundation helps companies and organizations neutralize their Co2 footprint by planting trees. According to the foundation, Baja Bikes needs to plant 250 trees per year to neutralize the 50 tons of Co2 over a 40-year period.

You plant 250 trees on a piece of land that the foundation has arranged to remain pristine for at least 40 years. The trees take 10 years to mature and turn into a small forest. After 40 years, the forest has turned into a full-fledged piece of new nature. The trees need these 40 years to neutralize 50 tons of Co2, which means planting 250 trees every year! To reduce risk of viruses and insects, 8 different types of trees are planted in a forest. We got started in 2021 by signing the contract with the Life Terra Foundation to plant 250 trees every year. 250 trees, depending on the type of tree, is about 0.25 hectares of forest. After 10 years, Baja Bikes will have created 2.5 hectares or 25 thousand square meters of new forest!

 

UN Sustainable Development Goals

The Sustainable Development Goals were adopted by the United Nations in 2015 as the new global sustainable development agenda for 2030. Baja Bikes has adopted and implemented three of these development goals in its operations. They are:

  • Good health and well-being
  • Sustainable cities and communities
  • Climate action

 

Good health and well-being

Companies can support the goal of “health and wellness” by (among other things) making considered choices in what they offer to their customers. We therefore strive to offer only activities that are good for body and mind. For example, because you develop yourself, learn something from it, have fun, relax, discover something from another culture, broaden your horizons and move. Every day these elements are important in the choices we make when it comes to offering our products and services.

The core of experiencing a destination with Baja Bikes is, of course, the bicycle as a means of getting around. This can be during a city tour, a vacation by bike, renting a bike and cycling around at your own leisure or on an electric mountain bike tour in the mountains. When it comes to boosting health during a city break, the bicycle is the ideal mode of transportation.

The ANWB gives as many as 7 benefits of cycling here:

  • Moving turns your body “on”
  • Small pieces also count
  • Cycling more is better for you
  • Cycling is good for your heart and blood vessels
  • Cycling is good for your weight
  • Cycling makes you stronger
  • Cycling stimulates the happiness hormone “serotonin” and has a relaxing effect

 

Sustainable cities and communities

Our thesis is simple: tourist and less tourist destinations cannot perish by their own popularity. Cycling in a city does not burden the environment at all: you are actually being environmentally friendly. Because of the hundreds of thousands of people who cycle with us every year, we encourage the city government to invest more in bike paths and other green infrastructure.

Since Baja Bikes got started in Barcelona in 2005, more than 250 kilometers of bike paths have been built. We don’t pretend that this is because of us, but we have certainly contributed to this process. For example, associations of bicycle tour companies have sprung up to consult with municipalities on infrastructure and on the coexistence of tourism and local residents.

In addition, by booking with Baja Bikes, you stimulate the local economy and we maintain financially moral policies. We are not a multinational company headquartered in a tax haven. In high season, we generate work for more than a thousand locals who earn money through Baja Bikes customers, pay taxes locally and build a life. Three-quarters of the money that Baja Bikes makes move directly into the local economy at the customer’s destination.

 

Climate action

Baja Bikes has been a green company from day one because we do everything by bike. Back then because we thought it was a fun activity, now because, in addition, we believe that bicycles play an important role in fighting pollution in cities. This research has shown that a bus passenger causes an average of 137 grams of Co2 emissions per kilometer. That means an average participant on an average Baja Bikes bike tour (of 12-15 kilometers and 3 hours) saves one and a half to two kilograms of Co2 because that customer is not on a tourist bus. Good!

For example, we choose our product offerings based on non-pollution: bike tours, bike rentals, e-mtb tours, bike vacations and escape tours. We get enough offers to offer other things as well, but based on the above, we choose not to if it does not meet this objective. Climate policy is also a factor in partner choices. For example, we work with a bank that is also focused on sustainability(read more).

 

Finally

Corporate sustainability can always be improved and we can always learn.
Have a great idea, feedback or questions? Feel free to contact us.