With the Harana Surf School on-site and access to local boat operators, beginners and experienced surfers can find their wave of choice no problem. Harana has been instrumental in bringing the ISA to Siargao to train instructors as well as supporting SISA in strengthening the quality of surf instruction and surf etiquette around the island with code of conduct posters at the main breaks and at the resort. Instructors not only receive training from the fire department and coastguard for Red Cross medical courses, they also undergo a five-day theory lessons and the info from these classes are available for guests to review if they want to learn more in addition to the video breakdowns of each wave. The GM of the surf school, Wilmar, is also the head of the Siargao Island Surfers Association (SISA) and is a WSL-sanctioned judge so you know you’re in good hands.

Besides not cutting any coconut trees during construction, Harana has donated more trees than they used from local Lawa-an hardwood timber farms. After a day of surfing a couple different breaks via local pump boats, grab a seat on a bamboo stool and sip on a smoothie from their reclaimed boat wood bar. Dance during a live show under efficient light fixtures wrapped in natural materials from the island, dine on community-made mats in the restaurant, or relax in some furniture made of renewable and recycled materials.

Using the STOKE standard before they put a shovel in the ground, Harana prioritized sustainable design features from day one. A Filipino heritage architect was commissioned to utilize design features unique to Siargao and from around the Philippines and then modernized the traditional Mindanao Folk architecture into the beautiful buildings you see today. The vernacular architecture incorporates passive solar design which maximizes views and natural light for afternoon reading nooks while consideration of wind patterns in the architecture keep you cool and protects the buildings during storms. The family that used to live there is now the caretaker of the property and part of the village council—another testament to sustainable development.

Harana Surf sponsors teachers who help local students with homework and English lessons once a week through GromNation Siargao—a nonprofit that incentivizes kids to attend school by providing boards and teaching them to surf. Stoked on voluntourism? Well, they have a whole page on various local NGOs that visitors can support (http://haranasurf.com/voluntourism-2/), including Siargao Masaya, which is a scholarship program for over 200 students on the island. In 2017, Harana Surf raised and donated over $155K in Philippine Pisos to several education and health-based causes throughout the country.

Besides team building with their staff basketball team, Harana Surf sponsors local surfers for travel to surf competitions in the PSCT (Philippines Surfing Championship Tour). As a firm believer in the surfing’s power to change lives, the resort supports seven riders on the Harana team with sustainable surfboards from Firewire and training in the water and on land in the boxing gym. Only those surfers who demonstrate great promise in the surf and good community standing on the island are able to wear the Harana flag in the lineup locally and abroad.

We know that surfers would never align their business with child labor, sex tourism, or other forms of modernday slavery, but the awful truth is that someone in the resort’s supply chain may indirectly or directly support such acts of exploitation. There are many factors that influence how and why this underground industry still exists, but the surf tourism industry can do its part to help eliminate it on a global scale. Beyond implementing an internal policy against commercial exploitation, Harana followed STOKE’s best practice resources for communicating this policy with their suppliers and requiring them to sign an agreement that they are in compliance with international labor laws. Harana Surf has also been vigilant locally in reporting suspected individuals who perpetuate this awful industry.

Feel embedded into the Filipino culture with distinct pillow designs, local wood carvings, and surf heritage photos from local photographers throughout the property. The restaurant's Benigs (floor mats) under the dining tables are handwoven in different regions of the country where each tribe has its own pattern and a story behind the pattern as shown in the Harana Welcome Mag. Want to take a piece of Siargao home responsibly? Harana will tell you where to find it or you can support their small gift shop which showcases products from Grom Nation, Nature Kids, and SEA Movement.

Not only has Harana built a sustainability page on their website to list all of their initiatives and responsible travel tips for visiting the island, guests can now enjoy a beautiful magazine about the resort’s practices, how it was built, the community, and Filipino folklore! Working with local designers and different experts in the local geology, geography, and cultural heritage, Harana Surf has created a masterpiece for their Welcome Magazine. Furthermore, guests will find interpretive signs around the property about their sustainable building practices, native flora and fauna, cultural distinctions, and ocean responsibility (SEA Movement’s fight against plastic). If you’re looking for a guided tour, the mangrove and lagoon tour is rich in information and jaw-dropping vistas that is not to be missed.

Going above and beyond protecting sacred sites, Harana Surf helped fund the renovation of a chapel on the island and transferred relics from the previous chapel all in collaboration with the church. In case you want to visit the church or just want to explore respectfully in general, the resort shares a list of cultural do’s and don'ts for their guests to ensure respect to the locals and their customs. The resort also supports POPI—”a social enterprise benefiting native wildlife, indigenous cultures and local communities”—who creates plush toys of native Filipino animals that showcase Filipino indigenous weaves. Each toy is lovingly made in the Philippines by Filipino communities and are shown throughout the resort so feel free to support the cause and take one home for your little ones!

Priding itself on Filipino culture and the wide array of wonderful experiences guests can have on the island, Harana Surf welcomes you to celebrate in and out of the water. From Spanish Catholic Fiestas that honor different patron saints in each village, to local bands and DJs featured almost weekly at “Harana Sound”, to pop up shops and pop up dinners with local chefs at the resort, you’ll never feel left out of the fun. Guests are encouraged to learn the language with songs that align with the resort’s environmental ethos as well as via Filipino translations on signage around the property. Not to mention the Modern Filipino fusion menu that features new takes on classic dishes that are to die for.

Not only has Harana built a sustainability page on their website to list all of their initiatives and responsible travel tips for visiting the island, guests can now enjoy a beautiful magazine about the resort’s practices, how it was built, the community, and Filipino folklore! Working with local designers and different experts in the local geology, geography, and cultural heritage, Harana Surf has created a masterpiece for their Welcome Magazine. Furthermore, guests will find interpretive signs around the property about their sustainable building practices, native flora and fauna, cultural distinctions, and ocean responsibility (SEA Movement’s fight against plastic). If you’re looking for a guided tour, the mangrove and lagoon tour is rich in information and jaw-dropping vistas that is not to be missed.

Harana Surf recognizes the threat of climate change to their island home and its community. On a combination of grid power and diesel generator backup along with staff taking motorcycles to work, there are greenhouse gas emissions that the resort is still trying to minimize while they search for an economical renewable energy solution for their remote location. In the meantime, Harana tracks their emissions with the STOKE carbon footprint calculator and offset their 2018 footprint with a REDD+ peat swamp forest project in Indonesia—Katingan Mentaya—that protects the land against the threat of conversion to an acacia plantation. The VCS and Triple Gold Certified project in Borneo also benefits 34 communities and 45,000 people to continue to use the land in a way that does not threaten their precious resources and carbon sinks.

Located on a picturesque island with coral reefs, forests, and other biodiversity hotspots, Harana Surf appreciates their home and wants to preserve and enhance the natural environment that its staff and guests enjoy. Siargao’s tourism numbers have skyrocketed in the last few years and the community faces many threats, but thanks to businesses like Harana and NGOs like the Siargao Environmental Awareness (SEA) Movement, the island strives to balance responsible development. For example, bonfires are no longer allowed on the beach and turtle hatcheries are protected and highlighted via signage and monitored by staff and volunteers. The SEA Movement, which a few Harana staff are on the Board of, helped pass a plastic free ordinance on the island and the two organizations lead beach cleanups bimonthly. Their latest joint initiative includes planting mangroves in habitat restoration zones to sequester carbon, support marine habitats, and protect the island from storm surges.

Sustainable supply chain management has its challenges when you’re on an island, but Harana Surf doesn’t use that as an excuse. Enjoy natural bathroom products in bulk from Manila by Aromatika, Messy Bessy, and Human Nature which gives back to Gawad Kalinga communities (where Harana has also volunteered). Savor delicious ingredients from Surigao City that are grown in Cagayan de Oro all within 200km of the island and sleep well in sheets and linens that are washed with natural detergents. A mix of local and imported coffee, wine, and craft beer can be sampled from reusable cups and metal straws—nothing to go or disposable. Guests have access to filtered water with reusable glass bottles or branded bottles as well as tote bags to borrow when shopping around town. Ask reception for a map of where to fill up on the island!

While Harana Surf continues to work with other businesses, the SEA Movement, and local politicians to get a proper waste management center on the island, the resort does its best to sort and divert as much waste from the landfill as possible. Plastics are up-cycled through a community livelihood project called Nature Kids Recycling Art Studio, which manually shreds plastic and turns the pellets into bean bags and pillows which the local resorts buy and use. Don’t feel bad about not finishing your meal—food is composted on-site or given to local pigs.