Berber HomeStay Vision Environmental and Social Sustainability Policy

We aim to provide travellers a unique cultural experience and the locals an alternate source of income. Our mission is to promote sustainable tourism in Berber villages in Morocco. We do that by protecting cultural heritage, implementing environment friendly practices in our homestays, sourcing products locally and engaging local staff to provide economic benefit to local communities and inspiring people to travel responsibly.

Policy aims

We also aim at reducing migration from Berber Villages, not only do we provide the alternate livelihood to the host families but also supporting the local communities.

Economic responsibility

1) All staff are recruited locally.
2) We do encourage local suppliers to employ local people.
3) Our meat and vegetables are bought locally as are most services
4) Our Berber Homestay did support a local project in Outakherri village to install a solar panels for drinking water. the village used to use electricity to pump water and with our help they switched to solar panels.

1) In our office, we recycle waste and have introduced efficiency measures, including energy efficient light bulbs, digital conferencing and moving towards using renewable energy. Our brochures have gone digital.
2) We always ask our visitors to reduce the use of water in our homestays.
3) We do provide our visitors with a reusable bottles to limit the use of plastic bottles.
4) Our visitors are provided with the following suggestions to minimize damage to the environment:-
- Limit deforestation – make no open fires and discourage others from doing so on your behalf. Where water is heated by scarce firewood, use as little as possible. When possible choose accommodation that uses kerosene/gas or fuel-efficient wood stoves.
- Remove litter, burn or bury paper and carry out all non-degradable litter. Graffiti are permanent examples of environmental pollution.
- Keep local water clean and avoid using pollutants such as detergents in streams or springs. If no toilet facilities are available, make sure you are at least 30 meters away from water sources, and bury or cover wastes.
- Plants should be left to flourish in their natural environment – taking cuttings, seeds and roots is illegal in many parts of the High Atlas.
5) In our homestay tours we visit a local projects with direct environmental benefits.
6) At our homestays no single use Plastic is used.
7) We reduce our carbon emissions by using local transport where feasible.
8) Most of our veggies and fruits are bought from the local farmers.

Social responsibility

1) Our visitors are provided with accurate pre-trip information on the social and political situation in each val-ley.
2) Our visitors are provided with suggestions of ways to minimise negative impacts on local cultures like:
- When taking photographs, respect privacy - ask permission and use restraint.
- Respect religious and cultural places - preserve what you have come to see, never touch or remove religious objects.
- Giving to children encourages begging. A donation to a project, health centre or school is a more constructive way to help.
- You will be accepted and welcomed if you follow local customs. Use only your right hand for eating and greeting. It is polite to use both hands when giving and receiving gifts.
- Respect for local etiquette earns you respect - loose, lightweight clothes are preferable to revealing shorts, skimpy tops and tight fitting action wear. Hand holding or kissing in public is disliked by local people.
3) We do ensure that our guide accompanies all group visits to local communities.