Being together on the river also means becoming aware of the impact of climate change on the flora and fauna around us. Together, we must adopt sustainable practices both when planning an expedition and during its execution.

To do this we ask our participants to:

• Prioritize biodegradable care and washing products throughout the expedition;
• Encourage carpooling to the group meeting point;
• Use reusable water bottles;
• Prioritize loans as well as used purchases if material is missing for shipping;
• Respect the natural environment in which we will carry out our expeditions.

Desire to Discover is actively committed to:

• Promote Leave No Trace principles both among our participants at the start of the expedition and on our social networks to raise awareness of sustainable expedition practices;
• Provide a shuttle to the river launch for our participants for most of our expeditions;
• Dealing with Quebec-based suppliers for more than 80% of our equipment;
• Have an inventory containing 60% second-hand equipment;
• Carry out efficient waste sorting both in our workspace and in shipping (composting, recycling, waste);
• Use reusable bowls, utensils and food containers when traveling;
• Use biodegradable dish soap;
• Lend all the specialized equipment necessary for a canoe camping expedition to our participants;
• Have an inventory of used clothing, shoes, sleeping mats and sleeping bags to lend to participants in case of shortage or forgetfulness;
• Give a second life to many objects (e.g.: use onion bags to sort recycling, old window cleaner bottles to create scoops, margarine and peanut butter jars to store food);
• Create partnerships with local businesses;
• Do not give any non-reusable promotional items to participants;
• Buy some of the shipping food in bulk or in containers that we can reuse;
• Offering vegetarian and vegan alternatives on expeditions

There is still much work to be done to adopt increasingly sustainable practices. That's why it's crucial for us to set specific and measurable annual goals. We want to set three goals per year for the next five years.

For the 2025 season, Désir de Découvrir is committed to:

• Developing local food partners by doing business with local farms for a majority of our fresh fruits and vegetables in shipment;
• Offer only organic teas, herbal teas and coffees on our expeditions;
• Buying materials made from recycled or compostable materials: using recycled paper for toilet paper, printing paper and our envelopes, having vegetable sponges for washing dishes, etc.