Tel. +44 (0)1273 600030 (UK)
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We are committed to the local environment and community where we live and are members of ECEAT (European Centre for Ecological agriculture and Tourism) and the Fair Travel association of Finland.
We compost organic waste on site, paper and cardboard are taken to Puolanka central waste station for recycling, and we use plastic bags (which are biodegradable in our shops) as little as possible. We collect rain water from the roof, our water comes from our own well and we only have showers. Washing in the lake is prohibited!
We use ECO-energy supplied by the power company Kainuun Sähkö and low energy light tubes and bulbs. We have a store of timber in our warehouse, so we do not need to buy any new material so far. If we have to, there is a village carpenter in the neighbourhood who uses sustainable wood. We feed birds in the Winter, our garden is organic and we grow our own herbs and berries. Mushrooms grow wild around the property and in the courtyard. We use our own garden produce and herbs and wild berries, elk and reindeer meat upon request.
We are fully capable of teaching ecological and nature subjects and guiding in the wilderness. We also tell about the history of our region and guide our guests to cultural events. We have a library of approx. 5000 books and nature magazines also available to our guests.
We use our internet site for bookings and correspondence. All waste paper is recycled. We have no brochures so far, only visiting cards, which are made of recycled paper and printed with environmental friendly ink. They are hand-made by a friend arts teacher.
When necessary we hire local youth from the employment office and other local workshops. We have a local purchasing policy and use Puolanka’s services on the daily basis e.g. food is local and organic. For special furniture and machines, we have to find a supplier from outside our community.
We introduce our guests personally to the community of Puolanka and to all its services and activities e.g. summer theatre, concerts, sightseeing by organizing joint adventures with other tour and program providers of the region (e.g. bear watching, dog and skidoo sledging).
We support Puolangan luonnonystävät (Puolanka’s Friends of Nature) as members taking part in nature conservation actions. We support Puolanka High School with a scholarship to a student with special interest in environmental subjects.
Also, we have collected names to an address for retaining the High School in Puolanka, since it was recently in jeopardy. Furthermore, last summer we supported the Puolanka Music College with a donation.
We are members of the following of the Nature Protection Association of Finland (Suomen Luonnonsuojeluliitto), Amnesty International and Greenpeace Nordic Org. We have godchildren in Plan International and support continuously the Solidarity Fond of Finland, protected by our President Tarja Halonen.
We invite every traveller who books a holiday via us to send in a review. Because we don't run the holidays they're completely independent and unedited... remember to read between the lines though, as two people on the same holiday can have different views!
