Global Himalayan Expedition

What Global Himalayan Expedition does

Global Himalayan Expedition (GHE) is a for-profit social enterprise founded in 2013 by Paras Loomba and headquartered in Gurgaon, India, with operational roots in Leh, Ladakh. The company delivers integrated sustainable development programs in remote Himalayan communities, deploying self-designed DC solar microgrids, clean cooking solutions, solar-powered smart classrooms, healthcare infrastructure upgrades, and community-owned homestays across 50+ villages in 10 Indian states. Its distinctive model combines on-ground development work with paid impact expeditions, enabling corporate groups, students, women leaders, and individual travelers to participate directly in solar electrification and community projects during adventure travel in the Himalayas. GHE also generates VERRA-certified carbon credits through cookstove deployments mitigating 820,000 tonnes of CO2 annually.

Revenue is generated through four primary streams: individual and corporate expedition fees (e.g., Women Leaders Expedition priced at $2,500 per participant), corporate CSR contracts (with partners including GE Power, Infosys, Welspun, and Tata Group), carbon credit transaction fees, and Mountain Homestay transaction fees. The go-to-market blends direct website bookings, corporate CSR sales, partner tour operator channels, and school partnerships for CAS Programs. Carbon project development is executed with myclimate, while afforestation initiatives are co-developed with Planeterra. Sub-brands include Mountain Homestays, Astrostays, and the recently launched GHE Foundation (2025), a not-for-profit entity supporting parallel community development work.

Name

Global Himalayan Expedition

Legal name

Global Himalayan Expedition

Website

https://ghe.co.in

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Global Himalayan Expedition is an India-based social enterprise that combines paid impact expeditions with sustainable development programs—deploying DC solar microgrids, clean cookstoves, and smart classrooms in remote Himalayan villages—serving corporate CSR partners, schools, and individual travelers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Sustainable Tourism and Impact Expedition Services

NAICS

Tour Operators (56152)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Multi-Activity & Expedition Packages (Guided Adventure Trips) (THAJABAL)

akta.pro secondary industry

Technical Outdoor Guiding Services (Hiking, Trekking, Mountaineering) (THAAALAA)

Keywords

• Impact expeditions
• Sustainable tourism
• Carbon credits
• Mountain homestays
• Solar microgrids

Headquarters

HQ city

Leh

HQ country

India

HQ region

Asia

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Impact Expeditions: GHE charges participants fees to join expeditions that combine adventure travel with hands-on sustainable development work. Expeditions target corporate groups, students, and individual travelers seeking meaningful impact experiences.
2. Carbon Credits: GHE generates carbon credits through clean cooking projects (cookstoves), afforestation, and clean energy deployments. Revenue is reinvested into community development projects.
3. Corporate CSR Partnerships: GHE partners with corporations for CSR initiatives, providing them with ESG-aligned development projects. Corporate partners fund electrification, healthcare, and livelihood programs in exchange for impact credentials and employee engagement opportunities.
4. Mountain Homestays: Community-owned homestays generate tourism revenue for local families while supporting sustainable livelihood creation in remote Himalayan villages.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Global Himalayan Expedition (GHE) designs and sells impact expeditions and sustainable travel experiences to remote Himalayan villages in India, Bhutan, and Nepal, combining immersive tourism with on-ground rural development projects in renewable energy, healthcare, digital learning, and livelihoods. The company operates community-owned Mountain Homestays and Astrostays, and sells VERRA-certified carbon credits generated from solar microgrid and improved cookstove deployments to corporate ESG buyers.

Product overview

Global Himalayan Expedition operates a dual-model platform combining Impact Expeditions with a Sustainable Development Program. The Impact Expeditions product line includes Leaders Impact Journey, Himalayan Impact Expedition, Women Leaders Expedition, Garo Impact Expedition, Student Expeditions, and Corporate Expeditions—offering adventure tourism where travelers participate in bringing solar energy to remote communities. The Sustainable Development Program delivers integrated solutions across Rural Electrification (DC solar microgrids), Healthcare Infrastructure, Digital Learning (smart classrooms), Sustainable Livelihood (homestays, handicrafts, enterprise development), Clean Cooking Solutions, and Afforestation. Supporting offerings include Mountain Homestays (community-owned eco-tourism), Astrostays (stargazing experiences), Carbon Credit Projects, Research & Consulting services, and Space Heating Solutions. The GHE Foundation (launched 2025) serves as the not-for-profit arm advancing sustainable development.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Mountain Homestays: Community-owned eco-homestays in Ladakh's high-altitude regions for responsible travel experiences
• Astrostays
• GHE Foundation

Products and services

• Impact Expeditions A suite of curated, multi-day Himalayan journeys combining trekking and cultural immersion with on-ground exposure to GHE's rural development projects. Programs are tailored for corporate leaders, individual impact travelers, women leaders, students, and Northeast India cohorts (Garo). Participants pay premium expedition fees that fund community projects.
• Mountain Homestays Community-owned homestay accommodations in remote Himalayan villages that provide authentic lodging for travelers while distributing tourism income directly to local households. Bookable directly and through OTAs including Booking.com, Airbnb, and MakeMyTrip.
• Astrostays Astro-tourism lodging product offering stargazing experiences in high-altitude Himalayan villages with dark skies, combining community-owned accommodation with guided astronomy experiences for travelers.
• VERRA-Certified Carbon Credit Projects VERRA-certified carbon credits generated from GHE's rural electrification and clean cookstove deployments, sold to corporate ESG and sustainability buyers seeking high-integrity, community-level carbon offsets for ESG reporting.
• Research and Consulting Services Research and advisory services drawing on GHE's on-ground experience in Himalayan rural electrification, sustainable tourism, and community development, delivered to academic, NGO, multilateral, and corporate clients.

Quantifiable outcome

• 820,000 tonnes of Carbon mitigated annually through clean cooking solutions
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and core.

• Ministry of Tourism, Government of IndiaflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024MOU signed with Ministry of Tourism to advance sustainable rural tourism in India's frontier villages. The agreement aims to develop blueprints and models to transform remote villages into potential destinations for offbeat travelers.
• PlaneterracoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Partnership with Planeterra resulted in planting over 30,000 trees across degraded lands, homesteads and sacred forests in Umswai. The initiative restored natural habitats, revived sacred groves, and strengthened biodiversity through community-led plantation and monitoring.
• National GeographicflagshipGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2016National Geographic shot a documentary on GHE as part of their Breakthrough Series – Season 2. The documentary focused on decentralized solar grids bringing power to remote communities. The documentary has been viewed by millions across 100+ countries and runs on Disney Hotstar.
• World Economic ForumflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2016Jaideep Bansal, CEO of GHE, is a Young Global Leader of the WEF and Aspen Fellow. GHE has formed global partnerships through WEF, amplifying the organization's reach and impact in sustainable development circles.
• IEEE Smart VillagecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2015GHE's first major partnership for the Himalayan Electrification Project established in 2015. This partnership has evolved to include electrification of remote Himalayan villages and monasteries, as well as development of pilot models for digital labs in schools. The collaboration began after a chance meeting with IEEE SV founders in Mumbai.
• NITI AayogcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with NITI Aayog (National Institution for Transforming India) for advancing sustainable development initiatives in rural India.
• UNWTOflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerFeatured as one of the best sustainable tourism case studies from around the world by UNWTO (United Nations World Tourism Organization).
• WTTCflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerGHE featured by WTTC (World Travel and Tourism Council) as a leading sustainable tourism organization, winning the Tourism for Tomorrow Award.
• myclimatecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCarbon project developer partner working with GHE on cookstove projects ensuring high quality project deployments with continuous monitoring structure.
• ATOAIcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerAdventure Tour Operators Association of India partnership, with GHE receiving the 2023 Sustainability Champion Award.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• MakeMyTrip: India's largest online travel agency. Comparable as a domestic tourism distribution channel and potential partner for scaling expedition bookings, though it operates mainstream leisure travel rather than impact tourism.

Direct peers

• Planeterra: Non-profit social enterprise that funds community-tourism enterprises and is a GHE partner. Shares the impact-tourism model and beneficiary-community focus, with overlapping leadership connections through the G Adventures ecosystem.
• Selina: Hospitality and experiential-travel brand targeting digital nomads and impact-oriented travelers with community-immersive stays globally. Comparable in blending accommodation with local experience, though Selina is urban/hostel-led rather than expedition-led.
• G Adventures: Community-based tourism operator running small-group adventure trips worldwide with explicit social impact positioning. Closely matches GHE's combination of experiential travel with community development outcomes.
• Responsible Travel: UK-based travel agency curating only sustainable, locally-owned holidays. Closely aligned with GHE's responsible-tourism principles and community-enterprise model, though operating as a marketplace rather than expedition operator.
• Intrepid Travel: Global adventure travel operator with a strong sustainable-tourism positioning and community-based itineraries. Most directly comparable to GHE in offering purpose-driven small-group trips to remote regions, though Intrepid is far larger and broader geographically.
• Basecamp Explorer: Norway-based sustainable travel company operating eco-lodges and expeditions that combine tourism with conservation and community impact in remote locations — a strong conceptual parallel to GHE's high-altitude expedition-plus-impact model.

Others

• Adventure Travel Trade Association (ATTA): Industry body for adventure tourism operators globally, of which GHE is a member via ATOAI. Relevant as a peer ecosystem/standards-setter rather than a direct competitor, providing distribution and credibility lift.

Emerging players

• The Mountain Institute: International non-profit focused on sustainable mountain development and community resilience in the Himalayas, Andes, and Appalachians. Comparable mission around mountain-community empowerment, with overlapping donor universe.

Regional players

• Ecosphere + Spiti Ecosphere: Indian social-enterprise offering responsible tourism, homestays, and conservation programs in Spiti Valley (Himachal Pradesh). Closest Indian regional analog to GHE's community-tourism-plus-development model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ghe_connect
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC1Zm-NFm47O-HBP_VUASxGQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/GlobalHimalayanExpedition
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/global-himalayan-expedition
• Instagraminstagram.com/globalhimalayanexpedition

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Global Himalayan Expedition