The Adventure Green Alaska program has awarded certification to six new members and thirty-nine certification renewals in the fall 2024 cohort. Adventure Green Alaska certified companies subscribe to the belief that outstanding businesses can be sustainably operated to benefit employees and visitors, and have voluntarily met standards for certification.
Adventure Green Alaska welcomes Alaska Storytellers, Great Alaskan Lumberjack Show, Seldovia Nature Tours, LLC, Shearwater Cove, Tutka Tours, LLC, and University of Alaska Museum of the North as new certified Adventure Green Alaska businesses!
Additionally, Adventure Green Alaska congratulates thirty-nine businesses on completing the steps for renewal as AGA-certified businesses!
Our Sustainability Spotlight series is aimed at broadening the conversation surrounding sustainable tourism for visitors and businesses by sharing the stories of our Adventure Green Alaska certified businesses. To learn more about Adventure Green Alaska certification please visit our about page.
About Seward Ocean Excursions
Seward Ocean Excursions was founded in 2016 by a local Seward family, Bixler and Krystin McClure. Bixler has strong family ties to Seward spanning multiple generations, and Krystin has roots in Fairbanks, Alaska. Bixler has an M.A. degree in Environmental Geography from the University of Hawaii at Manoa. His thesis was on the environmental and social impacts of SCUBA diving in several locations around Hawaii, and he worked as a researcher for several sustainable tourism groups through the University. Krystin has an M.S. in Ocean and Resources Engineering from University of Hawaii at Manoa, which focused on the sustainable use of the ocean’s resources. Their education and work experience fostered an interest in sustainable tourism.
Bixler and Krystin dreamed for years about sharing their beautiful neck of the woods (and ocean) with visitors, and in 2016 they decided to give it a go and started Seward Ocean Excursions. In 2016 Seward Ocean Excursions was just Bixler and Krystin and one boat. Over the course of several years, they expanded to three boats and a handful of other captains. Seward Ocean Excursions offers year-round small group (a maximum of 6 guests per boat) wildlife and sightseeing tours in Seward, Alaska.
How long has your business been implementing sustainable practices?
We have been implementing sustainable practices since the very beginning, even before purchasing our first boat. We wanted to share the small group experience on a very fuel-efficient boat. We conducted a lot of research, ran a lot of Excel spreadsheets, looked at a lot of boats, and talked to many boat builders before finally deciding on the boat that met our criteria. Since starting operations in 2016 all of our other practices have been in place (i.e. recycling, being open year-round, providing donations, conducting beach cleanups, etc.)
What advice do you have for businesses that are beginning their sustainable journey?
Brainstorm ideas on how you can lessen your impact from your operations. Never forget that it isn’t just the natural environment we are talking about. Be sure to keep in mind your impact on the social, cultural, and economic environments that you operate in as well.
What sustainable practice is your business most proud of?
While we are proud of everything we do, we are most proud of our positive impact on the community. From running free trips for local families, to involving the community in beach cleanups, to donating to countless local causes, Seward Ocean Excursions is a positive and impactful member of the local community. While all our other practices are important as well, we believe helping the community that we live and operate in has a great effect, especially being located in a small town.
Which pillar of the Adventure Green Alaska program aligns most with your business?
It is hard to pick one, but if we had to, we would say the environment. The environment (living and non-living) is why people come out on the water with us. They want to experience all the amazing aspects our beautiful waters and land have to offer. Besides having fun and enjoying the views, we share tons of information with our guests and hope to instill in them the inspiration to learn more about the natural world. Also, we hope to plant in them both the importance of sustainable practices in their future tours and travel, as well as in day-to-day life, to make sure future generations have the same opportunities that we do.
Collaboration with the Adventure Green Alaska program
Besides Adventure Green Alaska showcasing companies like ours and other responsible local operators of many different branches of Alaskan tourism, being a part of Adventure Green Alaska has helped us codify and grow our sustainable practices.
Our Sustainability Spotlight series is aimed at broadening the conversation surrounding sustainable tourism for visitors and businesses by sharing the stories of our Adventure Green Alaska certified businesses. To learn more about Adventure Green Alaska certification please visit our about page.
About Sockeye Cycle Co.
In 1987 company founder Thom Ely moved to Haines full-time and bought an existing bike shop and Sockeye Cycle was born. In 1988 the first tours were offered in Haines, then expanded to the neighboring Northern Lynn Canal community of Skagway in 1992. Since that time, Sockeye Cycle has continued to develop daily tour and bike rental operations out of two retail bike shops in Haines and Skagway along with extended tours around the region. In 2019, the business was sold to long time General Manager Dustin Craney who continues Sockeye Cycle’s mission to share the joy of experiencing nature on a bike. Today, we are the oldest operating full-service bicycle business in Alaska. We take pride in the high quality sales, service, rentals and tours that we provide in the communities of Haines and Skagway, and throughout the North. Our staff is always welcoming and ready to help you with all your cycling needs.
How long has your business been implementing sustainable practices?
We consider cycling itself a sustainable practice and have been cycling focused since day one. Our business encourages travelers to see a new place by bicycle and helps locals get bikes on the road by offering service and bicycle sales.
What advice do you have for businesses that are beginning their sustainable journey?
Put your money where your values are and invest in sustainable alternatives from the beginning. Tourism in Alaska is rooted in nature. You won’t have a business for long if sustainable practices aren’t in place to protect the product we’re selling.
What sustainable practice is your business most proud of?
Our tours are active and require us to provide water for all of our guests. We offer a compostable water bottle to each guest on tour that features a formline design of a Sockeye salmon drawn by a local Tlingit Alaska Native. Water bottles are free to use, but if our guests would like to keep them as a souvenir, we sell the bottles for a $3 donation. Donations are collected throughout the season and proceeds benefit the Tlingit Native Language revitalization efforts in our local areas as well as various conservation efforts in Southeast. Sockeye Cycle matches all guest donations and is able to donate about $20,000 each year to these initiatives.
Which pillar of the Adventure Green Alaska program aligns most with your business?
Our business aligns with all of the program pillars of Adventure Green Alaska but certainly most closely with the environment. We believe that more people riding bikes both leisurely and as a form of transportation has tangible value on the environment. A close second would be Alaska history and culture. We provide a rigorous training program to our guides that covers the Klondike Gold Rush which is near and dear to Skagway as well as local Alaska Native Tlingit history and culture.
Collaboration with the Adventure Green Alaska program
We’re proud of our effort to promote sustainable tourism and are grateful to belong to a network of tour operators that hold the same values. We appreciate that Adventure Green Alaska connects like-minded businesses to each other.
