Small-group touring specialist Rabbie’s has achieved B Corp certification.
The business, based in Edinburgh, Scotland, was founded in 1993 and uses small vehicles to venture off the beaten track and immerse clients in local communities, support small businesses and spread tourism spend to out-of-reach villages.
The tour operator joins the likes of Inside Travel Group, Explore Worldwide, Not in the Guidebooks, Travel Trade Consultancy (TTC), HF Holidays, and AE Expeditions, which have also achieved B Corp status this year.
B Corp is seen as the most globally recognised and validated environmental certification globally.
Companies are rigorously assessed across areas such as governance, workers, community, environment and customers to measure their social and environmental impact in a process that takes at least a year. The process must be repeated every three years.
Rabbie’s said its values have always been closely aligned with the B Corp movement as it has been committed to high standards of social and environmental responsibility.
Chief executive Hazel Rickett said: “At Rabbie’s, we’ve always thrived by working closely with local suppliers and small businesses in the communities we visit on our small group tours.
“Supporting these communities is at the heart of everything we do, and we’re committed to giving back however we can.
“Becoming a Certified B Corporation has been an incredibly proud moment for our team, as it connects us with a global movement driving positive policy and economic change. For us, this means investing in local partnerships, minimising our environmental footprint, and safeguarding the places we all love to explore.”
The company has had a long-standing, self-imposed carbon tax of £10 per tonne of fuel used across its operations to mitigate its fuel use. The funds are reinvested into the community through donations to projects including forest regeneration, path building and community groups.
Community projects that have benefitted from Rabbie’s carbon tax include Portree and Braes Community Trust and Staffin Community Trust (Urras an Taobh Sear).
Portree and Braes Community Trust has been supported by Rabbie’s for five years, with funding provided for new picnic benches, festive village lighting, help to develop its path network and community allotments and work with the local primary schools.
Fiona Thomson, development officer at the trust, said: “Rabbie’s has been such a valuable source of support to the Trust over the past five years. Their [funding] awards have made a real, visible, impact on the local environment and have made Portree a more welcoming and connected place.”
Saffin Community Trust has worked with Rabbie’s for eight years and had help to combat flooding and damaged paths, restore damaged vegetation and promote sustainable tourism.