An international recognition

PONANT and NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC have joined forces to offer all lovers of exploration, discovery and nature, a unique opportunity to embark on a selection of expedition cruises to some of the most intriguing and remote destinations on the planet. We offer unique travel experiences that aim to inspire people to care about the planet by providing meaningful opportunities to explore it. When you travel with NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC and PONANT, you travel with an unparalleled team of experts: the PONANT expedition team plus one National Geographic Expert and one National Geographic Photographer. This inspiring team of experts will share their knowledge and expertise about the places we visit, accompanying you throughout your voyage. They are ideal companions for your journey of discovery and enable you to see the world through the lens of NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC.

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For many years, PONANT has actively supported Le Cercle Polaire®, a think tank focused on preserving polar environments. To raise awareness among guests, members of Le Cercle Polaire® are regular guests of honour on our polar cruises during which they discuss their projects with guests. In 2020, PONANT offered for the first time to two young special envoys, winners of a competition organised in partnership with the Academy of Rennes and Le Cercle Polaire®, to embark on an expedition cruise to Antarctica to demonstrate the urgency of preserving the White Continent.

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Founded by the navigator and visionary Prince Albert I of Monaco, the Oceanographic Institute, Foundation Albert I, Prince of Monaco has been committed to the ocean for over 100 years, at the interface between marine sciences, political decision-making and raising public awareness. At the cutting edge of environmental mediation to encourage as many people as possible to “love, know and protect the ocean”, the Oceanographic Museum in Monaco is the Foundation’s flagship which woos, wows and mobilises the 650,000 visitors who flock to this venue every year. Meanwhile in Paris, La Maison des Océans has become an “environmental hub” for major players involved in ocean protection and through its events programme. Sailing on a cruise in partnership with the Oceanographic Institute, Foundation Albert I, Prince of Monaco invites you to explore the treasures of the marine worlds in the company of passionate and exciting experts.

For nearly 40 years, GEO has taken us further. Further on journeys, in its journalism, to discover the people, lands and stories of elsewhere. GEO is the promise of discovering the world. Its strength: journalistic savoir-faire that has been recognised for years for its quality and originality, and of course, the exceptional photographs that are testimony to the beauty and riches of the world. Reporters and photographers travel across the globe to satisfy the curiosity of readers and to offer them a very contemporary perspective on the evolution of societies, the environment and the planet’s major geopolitical issues. Over the many years of its existence, GEO has created a relationship of trust and proximity with its readers, thanks to its commitment, rigour and journalistic excellence. Today more than 5 million readers are enchanted each month by this reference for photography, travel and the discovery of the world. Aboard PONANT ships, GEO brings its particular perspective and its expertise through, for example, the organisation of photo workshops, conferences, and the presence aboard ship of Éric Meyer, the editor of the magazine: a unique occasion to find out more about this world of emotions and knowledge.

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All the ships in our fleet carry the Bureau Veritas CLEANSHIP certification label, which attests to reduced environmental impact. This environmental performance has been made possible through a series of real and genuine technological innovations: dynamic positioning, which avoids the need to drop anchor and thus protects the seabed; quiet and economical electric propulsion; an engine that can run on LS MGO (a lighter and less polluting type of diesel); an innovative way of treating waste and waste water, thus limiting discharges into the sea; low energy lighting using LED bulbs; and reduced smoke emissions.

The PONANT Explorers series holds CLEANSHIP SUPER accreditation, which is awarded to ships that meet the requirements of the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL) together with both the International Convention on the Control of Harmful Anti-Fouling Systems on Ships and the Ballast Water Management Convention (covering the emission of polluting substances).

Our ships have also achieved the comfort 1 rating, which is the best level possible in terms of low noise and vibration levels, thus ensuring the comfort of our passengers and respect for underwater wildlife.

*Le Lapérouse, Le Champlain, Le Bougainville, Le Dumont-D'Urville, Le Bellot, Le Jacques-Cartier

PONANT was the winner of the Charte Bleue d'Armateurs de France trophy (French Ship Owner's Blue Charter trophy) in 2016. This distinction was awarded in recognition of the company's proactive approach with respect to social and environmental responsibility: carefully chosen itineraries; innovative ways of limiting air and water pollution; respect for local populations; membership of the associations IAATO (the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators) and AECO (the Association of Arctic Expedition Cruise Operators), and compliance with protocols designed to maintain the biosecurity of the sites visited; environmental protection awareness raising for crew members and passengers both onboard ship and during shore and land excursions; a responsible human resources policy; and active commitment to protecting the polar regions, the oceans and local peoples.

At the "Blue maritime summit Marseille Provence – Cruise Initiatives" conference, organised by the Marseille Provence Cruise Club, PONANT and the other ship-owners histed in Marseille, together with France's Ministry for the Ecological Transition, the Provence-Alpes Côte d’Azur Region and the Aix-Marseille-Provence metropolitan region, signed the "Charte bleue Croisière" (Cruise Blue Charter), a charter committing to a reduction in polluting emissions in the basins of the Port of Marseille and the region.

This charter constitutes a new stage in France's Sud (south) region's "Plan Escale Zéro Fumée" (zero-fume ports of call initiative). There are four main measures incorporated in the charter: the use of shore power connections at cruise terminals as soon as they become available (by 2024); the switch to less polluting fuels, such as 0.1% sulphur marine diesel or LNG, immediately upon entering the port; the promotion of the use of liquefied natural gas and support the creation of a dedicated local sector; and the requirement to keep to a speed of no more than 10 knots when sailing in and out of the ports.

PONANT is the first European cruise line to obtain the Green Marine Europe label (a European certification programme based on North America's Alliance Verte programme).
Assessed and evaluated according to 8 criteria (underwater noise, NOX atmospheric emissions, SOX and PM air pollutants, greenhouse gas emissions, aquatic invasive species, waste management, oily discharges and ship recycling), the charter certifies that its holders have adopted environmentally friendly practices and technologies.

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The German non-governmental organisation NABU (Naturschutzbund Deutschland), a leader in the field of ecology in Europe, has placed PONANT in first place in its 2020 ranking of the most environmentally friendly cruise lines.

This ranking is based on an assessment of overall environmental strategy using eight environmental criteria: adherence to the Paris Agreement, climate strategy, emission-reduction measures, the use of shore power connections, the discontinued use of heavy fuel oil, the use of nitrogen oxide catalysts and the use of soot particle filters.

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PONANT was awarded the French sustainable tourism prize the Prix des Palmes du Tourisme Durable 2020 in the "Voyage" category for completely abandoning the use of fuel oil and switching instead to LSMGO, a step the company took a year in advance of the introduction of international legislation stipulating the use of more environmentally friendly fuels.

In 2021, PONANT signed up to New Zealand's Tourism Sustainability Commitment (TSC), which sets out 12 sustainability commitments designed to encourage the tourism industry to make a positive social, economic, environmental and cultural contribution to the wider community. By signing up to the TSC, organisations commit to having a sustainability plan in place incorporating the requirements of the initiative, and to both setting measurable targets and reporting on progress made in achieving them.

As a result of our commitment to eliminating plastic waste, PONANT was one of the first companies to sign up to the Southern Region's "Zero Plastic Waste" charter. The roadmap concerns the protection of natural environments, the reinforcement of prevention and the management and recycling of plastic waste.

PONANT has been awarded the Ocean Approved label. Launched in 2021, this label is managed by La Fondation de la Mer and is audited by Bureau Veritas. It examines the environmental practices and the continuous improvement approach of companies that aim to reduce the impact on the marine environment as much as possible.

PONANT committed to following the recommendations of the Global Tourism Plastics Initiative, a United Nations programme aimed at encouraging concrete action in the fight against plastic pollution in the tourism sector. Echoing the measures already introduced on Le Commandant Charcot, PONANT has set itself the objective of banning the use of single use plastics across its entire fleet from 2022 onwards.

PONANT has joined the Coalition pour la Transition Eco-Energétique du Maritime (T2EM) led by the Cluster Maritime Français (CMF), a network created in 2006 that brings together key players involved with the maritime ecosystem. The coalition now includes more than 430 entities of various types: companies of all sizes, innovation centres, associations and federations, laboratories and research centres, schools and training organisations, local authorities and economic stakeholders, and the French Navy. The CMF helps and supports its members in developing their businesses and projects in more sustainable, environmentally responsible ways both in France and abroad.

PONANT is working with the Agir pour un Tourisme Responsable (ATR) organisation. Since 2004, ATR has been bringing together travel professionals committed to improving the impact of their activities on the planet and its inhabitants. The organisation is currently made up of the principal travel operators involved in responsible tourism. In addition to organising and maintaining its network of members and managing the Ecocert accreditation scheme, the association also runs a range of responsible tourism related projects and events, such as the Observatoire du Tourisme Responsable body and a world day for responsible tourism, as well as producing responsible tourism related publications and providing training to professionals to help and support them in carrying out their professional activities and evaluating their own practices. As part of their collaboration together, PONANT and ATR are working on introducing a label specifically for cruise operators.

PONANT is one of the active members of the Respect Ocean network. Set up in 2013, Respect Ocean is a network of companies and organisations committed to reducing the impact of their activities on marine and coastal ecosystems and/or helping to keep them healthy and thriving. The organisation's primary objectives are to contribute to promoting solutions and innovation favouring sustainable economic development, to promoting protection and preservation of the ocean and its ecosystems and the highlighting of their intrinsic value, and to fostering joint collaborations between projects in order to contribute to the building of a sustainable ocean economy.

PONANT is a member of the special club of partners and sponsors set up for the purposes of organising the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) World Conservation Congress in Marseille in 2021 by France's Ministry of the Ecological Transition. Held every four years, the congress brings together leaders and decision-makers from government, civil society, indigenous peoples and the worlds of business and academia with the aim of encouraging them to work together to protect and preserve the environment. For the very first time, on the initiative of France, the general public is being invited to take part in the congress through the provision of "Espaces Générations Nature" : an opportunity for more than 350 institutional, private and non-profit project sponsors and organisers to showcase their initiatives and the actions they are taking to protect and promote biodiversity.

In 2022, PONANT hosted on board the M/S Paul Gauguin the first summit of the Blue Climate Initiative, a programme within the framework of the United Nations Decade of Oceanography for Sustainable Development, whose objective is to federate and support actors who develop solutions to protect the oceans, such as renewable energies, sustainable food production and management of marine resources, and the preservation of biodiversity.

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