Aurora Expeditions, the award-winning leader in small-ship adventure travel, today announced a significant shift in its sustainability journey, moving away from traditional carbon offsetting toward a circular impact model focused on decarbonisation and regeneration.

Instead of simply compensating for emissions after they occur, this new approach prioritises:

• Reducing emissions at the source through smarter operations, cleaner technologies, and responsible decision-making. Examples include ships purpose built for low-impact, fuel reduction and increased biofuel testing; and

• Regenerating the environments and communities we touch, by supporting conservation, restoration, science, and circular practices that give back more than we take.

"This new model moves beyond neutralising harm and centres on actively creating positive environmental and social outcomes,” said Sasha Buch, Sustainability Manager at Aurora Expeditions.

Ocean Regeneration Program

The Ocean Regeneration initiative is designed to actively restore ocean ecosystems while removing harmful waste.

For every passenger who joins an expedition, including staff and special guests, Aurora Expeditions funds the planting of one unit of marine life and the removal of one kilogram of ocean-bound waste. Based on 2026 forecasts, Aurora will support the planting of more than 7,000 units of kelp, seagrass and coral, while preventing more than 7,000 kilograms of waste from entering the ocean.

These efforts are delivered in partnership with global organizations including Seatrees, Veritree and CleanHub, connecting expeditions directly to positive impact in the destinations Aurora visits:

• Kelp forests in Canada and Portugal
• Seagrass meadows in Spain
• Coral restoration in Indonesia and Costa Rica
• Plastic waste recovery in Indonesia's Coral Triangle and other coastal communities

“The partners we've chosen for this program were selected because they all work with local communities. We value the knowledge they bring and want to ensure economic prosperity for these communities along with long-term environmental protection.”

“The locations we've chosen complement our existing polar sustainable partnerships* as Aurora expands from polar to global expedition,” said Sasha.

Aurora Expeditions is also a certified B Corporation™, meeting high standards of verified social and environmental performance, accountability and transparency. Alongside regenerative partnerships, its purpose-built expedition ships – the MV Greg Mortimer, MV Sylvia Earle and upcoming MV Douglas Mawson - feature the pioneering Ulstein X-BOW® design to reduce fuel consumption and emissions, virtual anchoring to avoid seabed damage, and single-use plastic-free initiatives across all operations.

By aligning every voyage with measurable positive impact, Aurora Expeditions continues to lead the industry in redefining what sustainable travel means - turning once-in-a-lifetime journeys into opportunities to regenerate the planet's life support system.

For more information, visit www.aurora-expeditions.com

Existing Polar Sustainable Partnerships

• Whale Research with The Friedlaender Lab
• Pengion research with Oceanites
• Underwater biodiversity surveys with Reef Life Survey
• The Polar Collective for Citizen Science
• Oxen Network for Inuit Community Engagement

For all media enquiries, please contact:

Jocelyn Black

Communications and Content Manager

jblack@aurora-expeditions.com

Notes to Editors

About Aurora Expeditions  

Aurora Expeditions is an award-winning Australian-owned adventure travel company that has pioneered experiential travel for over 34 years. A Certified B Corporation™️, a commitment to the protection and preservation of our planet is at the heart of each experience.

Founded on the guiding principles of adventure and endless exploration, our carefully curated small-ship voyages offer immersive activities, more time off ship and thoughtful enrichment programs in some of the planet's most remote and incredible places.

Aurora's two purpose-built small ships, Greg Mortimer and Sylvia Earle, are designed for global discovery. The company's third ship, Douglas Mawson, will set sail in December 2025.