From tree-top tents to a fully insulated eco-lodge, Willow’s Retreat offers a serene sanctuary for wildlife watchers and wellness seekers alike.

Nestled in a secluded valley, Willow’s Retreat offers guests the chance to disconnect from daily life and immerse themselves in nature. With options ranging from a fully off-grid eco-lodge to private campsites like Glossy Heights, the retreat caters to hikers, horse riders, birdwatchers and those seeking a quiet, restorative escape.

Spanning 50 acres of pristine bushland, pastures, cliffs and walking trails, the property is home to a rich diversity of wildlife, including eastern grey kangaroos, swamp wallabies, wombats, gliders, koalas and over 80 species of bird life. As a designated ‘Land for Wildlife,’ Willow’s Retreat actively contributes to conservation initiatives, collaborating with local wildlife organisations such as WIRES, BirdLife Australia and WPSA to protect native species and restore habitats.

With a longstanding commitment to sustainability, Willow’s Retreat sought to formalise and strengthen its practices by leveraging funding from Destination NSW to complete the Strive 4 Sustainability Scorecard. In collaboration with Ecotourism Australia and Tourism Australia, Destination NSW provided eligible visitor economy businesses with free access to the pre-certification tool. This initiative empowered operators to benchmark their sustainability performance, identify areas for improvement and plan for meaningful long-term change.

“We’ve always believed in sustainability, inclusion and conservation – in fact, part of the reason for setting up Willow’s Retreat was to ensure this beautiful, private valley continued to maintain these values,” co-founder Phil Janson explains. “We were expecting these values to be reinforced by the scorecard, and they were; however, it also highlighted the things we can do to streamline our processes and build on our foundations.”

 

The Strive 4 Sustainability Scorecard provided Willow’s Retreat with insights tailored to a small, hands-on operation.

“With being a very small team (just the two of us!), our documentation has been minimal, relying on shared decision making and often waiting to discuss options with the other,” said Janson, referring to co-founder Lyndel Taylor. “The scorecard highlighted the things we can do to catalogue and ensure continuity (e.g. preferred suppliers for sustainable consumables), develop business plans that would allow us to outsource and share the load, and gave some useful insights into areas we hadn’t considered.”

 

Achieving a clear picture of their sustainability practices has helped Willow’s Retreat plan future improvements.

“Whilst the scorecard gave us a great starting point, we hope to start the ecotourism certification process soon. As a totally off-grid property, harvesting rainwater and solar-powered, we definitely have an advantage in the sustainability stakes. We’ve also been living without rubbish collection for 20 years, so are well versed in sorting for reuse, recycling and compost,” said Janson.

 

The team’s next steps focus on upgrading systems to improve energy usage, engaging guests in waste reduction, and expanding conservation efforts. Current projects include mange treatment in wombats with WPSA, Tree Troff wildlife watering systems for arboreal species with WIRES, and work with glossy black and gang-gang cockatoos in partnership with BirdLife Australia. Efforts are also underway to gradually replace barbed wire with safe fencing to protect wildlife.

“We also need to expand the detail of this on our website and social media, to fully include our guests (past, current and future!) in this adventure,” Janson added.

 

Completing the Strive 4 Sustainability Scorecard has not only validated Willow’s Retreat’s long-standing environmental commitments but also provided a structured roadmap for ongoing improvement. By formally assessing their operations across Sustainable Management, Environmental Impacts, Socio-Economic Impacts and Cultural Impacts, Willow’s Retreat has strengthened both its operational sustainability and its capacity to engage guests in meaningful, eco-conscious experiences.

Through this process, Willow’s Retreat demonstrates how even small, remote tourism businesses can leverage targeted support and certification tools to enhance sustainability, protect biodiversity and provide unforgettable, responsible experiences for visitors.

Click here to learn more about Willow’s Retreat’s sustainable efforts, and book your stay: https://willowsleap.com.au/willows-retreat/

Willow’s Retreat completed their Strive 4 Sustainability Scorecard on 7 April 2025 and is a snapshot of their current sustainability practices. The scorecard is not a certification and is valid for 12 months upon completion.

[Images courtesy of  Willow’s Retreat © 2025]

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From a 1960s cattle property to a modern eco-retreat, Kangarutha Farm values lasting sustainability.

Just minutes from the iconic beach town of Tathra and bordering the coastal Bournda National Park, Kangarutha Farm offers secluded camping and a unique nature-based venue surrounded by native forest, open paddocks and scenic dams. With a handful of tranquil campsites ideal for campfires and quiet connection to nature, Kangarutha is a place to unplug, recharge and immerse yourself in the environment. 

Kangarutha Farm was recently among the many businesses that used funding from Destination NSW to complete Ecotourism Australia’s Strive 4 Sustainability Scorecard. In collaboration with Ecotourism Australia and Tourism Australia, Destination NSW provided eligible visitor economy businesses across the state with free access to this pre-certification tool. This initiative demonstrated a strong commitment to empowering operators to improve their sustainability practices, and importantly, to create the breathing space needed for small businesses to make sustainability a genuine operational priority. 

For co-founders Lisa and Tom Hamilton, the grant support made the decision to undertake the Scorecard much easier. 

“In a small business, every cost counts,” Lisa explained. “Especially when there’s uncertainty about whether we would ‘pass’ or not. Having the Destination NSW grant really helped with the decision-making.” 

Lisa shared that their motivation to complete the Scorecard stemmed from years of inspiration. 

“We have been interested in pursuing eco-tourism certifications for a while now, as we were inspired by other local eco-tourism businesses such as Navigate Expeditions and Tanja Lagoon Camp. We were finally spurred into action to undertake the Strive 4 Sustainability Scorecard because of our participation with the landmark Bega Circular Valley initiative, which is focused on transitioning the Bega Valley to a more circular economy.”  

Kangarutha Farm has been in Tom Hamilton’s family since the 1960s, with generations acting as custodians to protect its forested areas from development, preserve the property’s natural beauty, and establish a lasting legacy of environmental stewardship that reflects their deep connection to the land. In 2017, Tom and his partner Lisa returned to the farm to pursue their dream of creating an eco-tourism venture that honoured this legacy. Completing the Strive 4 Sustainability Scorecard provided them with more than just a benchmark – it offered a meaningful opportunity to reflect on their sustainability practices and chart a thoughtful path for the farm’s future. 

“Participation within the program allowed us to pause for a bit and really think about our business broadly – thinking about our environmental, social and cultural, and governance measures and impacts. It highlighted (even just to us) all the good things that we are doing that easily get lost in the chaos! Finally, it increased our focus on sustainability, and this will likely be reflected in our continual improvements to our business as we move forward. ” 

Completing the Scorecard also gave Kangarutha Farm a clearer pathway toward the future. 

“After going through the scorecard process, we have a much better sense of what is required for full certification, and so we feel that once we tick off a few sustainability objectives within the business, we can progress further with the certification!” 

For Kangarutha Farm, completing the Strive 4 Sustainability Scorecard wasn’t simply a compliance exercise – it was a chance to reaffirm their values, honour a multi-generational legacy of land stewardship and lay the foundations for their next chapter in sustainable tourism.  

Click here to learn more about Kangarutha Farm’s sustainable efforts, and book your stay: https://kangarutha.com.au/sustainability/

Kangarutha Farm completed their Strive 4 Sustainability Scorecard on 5 Aug 2025 and is a snapshot of their current sustainability practices. The scorecard is not a certification and is valid for 12 months upon completion.

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In a world that rarely slows down, Into The Wild Escapes creates sanctuaries where simplicity, serenity and sustainability go hand in hand.

Co-founded in 2017 by Celeste Giannas, Into The Wild Escapes emerged from a deep longing to reconnect – with loved ones, with nature and with the present moment. After experiencing the profound calm that came from stepping away from screens and immersing in the natural world, Celeste became fascinated by the science behind this shift. This curiosity led her to discover the concept of rewilding, a holistic approach to conservation that restores ecosystems and revives our connection with the natural world. Inspired by these insights, Into The Wild Escapes was born to offer restorative wellness retreats through a collection of 60 minimalist, eco-conscious tiny houses thoughtfully nestled across Australia’s most pristine and nature-rich landscapes. From secluded bushland to picturesque wineries and farms, each retreat is thoughtfully designed with premium features, catering to couples, families and even their four-legged friends.

Born from a deep appreciation of Australia’s regional landscapes, it’s no surprise that Into The Wild Escapes places environmental sustainability at the heart of its business. But now, with funding support from Destination New South Wales, the company has taken a significant first step on its sustainability journey by completing the Strive 4 Sustainability Scorecard.

“We saw the Strive 4 Sustainability Scorecard as a way to benchmark our business against national sustainability standards and identify where we could push further,” comments Senior Marketing Manager, Renee Kidd.

“Sustainability is core to how Into The Wild Escapes operates – from protecting nature on private land to supporting regional communities. The scorecard provided a structured, transparent way to evaluate our impact and guide future improvements.”

Built upon Ecotourism Australia’s globally recognised certification standards, the Strive 4 Sustainability Scorecard offers businesses and tourism operators a comprehensive snapshot of their sustainability journey at a given moment. It enables organisations to assess their operations against 50 detailed criteria spanning four key pillars: Sustainable Management, Environmental Impacts, Socio-Economic Impacts and Cultural Impacts.

“It gave us a measurable, credible framework to assess and communicate our sustainability performance,” explains Kidd.

“Achieving an 80% score – including 95% for Environmental Impacts and 100% for both Sustainable Management and Socio-Economic Impacts – validated the work we’ve done to date. However, receiving 25% for Cultural Impacts highlighted an area we’re now actively focused on deepening.”

Delighted by their impressive results, Into The Wild Escapes are inspired to further advance their sustainability journey.

“The Scorecard process made it clear how close we are in many areas and outlined the path to Certification. For us, formal certification is the logical next step – not only to strengthen our credibility with guests and partners, but to ensure we stay accountable as we scale. Our ambition is to help lead the shift toward regenerative tourism in Australia, and Certification would be a powerful part of that journey.”

Into The Wild was among the many businesses that leveraged funding from Destination NSW to complete the Strive 4 Sustainability Scorecard. In collaboration with Ecotourism Australia and Tourism Australia, Destination NSW provided eligible visitor economy businesses across the state with free access to this pre-certification tool. This initiative demonstrated a strong commitment to empowering businesses to improve their sustainability practices and create the space needed to make sustainability a genuine priority.

“[Completing the scorecard] had definitely been on our radar, but the Destination NSW grant was the catalyst that moved it from the “someday” list to a clear priority. Their support – both financial and in terms of guidance helped us dedicate the time and resources needed to complete the process properly. We’re incredibly glad we did. The scorecard has already become a valuable tool for tracking our progress and driving ongoing improvement.”

Looking ahead, Into The Wild Escapes is committed to building on this momentum by pursuing full certification and embedding sustainability even deeper into every aspect of their operations. As they continue to grow, their focus remains clear: to create meaningful connections between people and nature while championing regenerative tourism practices that protect and celebrate Australia’s unique landscapes and communities. With a strong foundation, clear goals and the support of key partners, Into The Wild Escapes is poised to lead the way in sustainable travel experiences – inviting guests not just to visit, but to truly belong in the wild.

Discover more about Into The Wild Escapes here.

Into The Wild Escapes completed their Strive 4 Sustainability Scorecard on 14 Jul 2025 and is a snapshot of their current sustainability practices. The scorecard is not a certification and is valid for 12 months upon completion.

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