Born and raised in Nairobi, Kenya, Joss Kent is ever the outdoorsman. The former lieutenant in the British Armed Forces spends his free time windsurfing, scuba diving, and playing polo. Exploration and adventure has dictated his professional life as well. After graduating from Harvard University with an MBA, Kent became the CEO of luxury travel company Abercrombie & Kent, and in 2012, he joined andBeyond as its CEO, which currently owns and operates 29 lodges and camps in Africa’s safari. Kent’s time working as a professional guide throughout the continent suited him for the luxury experiential travel company. In fact, because many in the management and leadership teams were former guides themselves, it has become “a golden thread that runs throughout andBeyond today,” and one that has encouraged Kent to export the business model to other areas of the world, including South America and South Asia. Within the 26-year-old company’s sustainably constructed and maintained properties, guests “are not only having life-changing experiences but helping us care for the land, wildlife, and people in these pristine wilderness areas,” says Kent. “Something that we continuously witness with our guests is that people want to do well and do good, and that is what we do and what we stand for.” Take, for example, the Silvio Rech-designed andBeyond Ngorongoro Crater Lodge in Tanzania, which looks out over the UNESCO World Heritage Site sheltering “a spectacular wildlife haven.”
Here, Kent talks shooting guns in the middle of the desert, what makes the hairs on the back of his neck stand up, and the future of sustainability.
How do you incorporate sustainable elements in your lodges?
When we rebuilt andBeyond Sandibe Okavango Safari Lodge in Botswana in 2014 [the architectural handiwork of Michaelis Boyd’s London office and Nick Plewman Associates from South Africa], we removed more than 500 truckloads of concrete during construction, and as much material as possible was reused. Situated in a remote area without easily available electricity, instead of relying on a generator to supply the lodge’s extensive energy needs, [we looked to] the lodge’s combined solar electricity and solar hot water systems. This translates into saving an equivalent of 4,232 tree seedlings grown for 10 years, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
In a similar vein, andBeyond Xaranna Okavango Delta Camp [also in Botswana from Fox Browne Creative] is now powered by a solar photovoltaic power plant and a Tesla Powerpack battery energy storage system; generator runtime has been decreased from 24 hours to four hours. To ensure the lightest footprint on the sensitive wetland area, no concrete was used in the construction of the plant and, if necessary, the entire system can be relocated or removed with no permanent impact to the land.
From our greater conservation model down to the tiniest details of the activities that take place in our lodges every day, every decision we make revolves around our core ethic of caring for the land, the wildlife, and the people. These values have become an intuitive part of the way we operate and, increasingly, are part of the reason why our guests find their experience with us so rewarding. In the context of our business, [we aim] to minimize our physical footprint and the impact that our operations have on the environment. The design teams we work with to create our lodges, and ultimately much of the guest experience, are chosen because of this shared passion for the environment.
Do you have a favorite lodge?
AndBeyond Serengeti Under Canvas [another Fox Browne Creative design]—mobile camping is still the real deal. It is sensory overload to be camping right in the midst of the mighty migration, to sit by the campfire at night and hear a lion roaring in the inky blackness just out of sight. If that does not make the hairs go up on the back of your neck, I’m not sure what will.
How is lodge design evolving, and is it here to stay?
Where we are focusing our energy and time is trying to make sure that we build sustainably and, at the same time, don’t lose the creative edge that differentiates the guest experience. For us, less is often more. We want the field experience to not be overwhelmed by the lodge design or the arms race that seems to exist in people building ever more opulent, ever more over-stylized camps and lodges.
How do you see the lodge of the future?
It has a light footprint and uses 100 percent renewable energy. It uses no plastic, has a zero carbon offset, and a sensitive design with a strong sense of place. It is small and community centered. Conservation and voluntourism activities form part of the main day-to-day activities, as opposed to just game drives. Holistic wellness is built into the design and food, and there are many more activities offered, such as walking, cycling, canoeing, and riding. These will become par for the course.
What are some interesting adventures you’ve experienced?
[I was once] driving from London to Nairobi through the Middle East with a photojournalist friend. [We had the] rare privilege to visit Yemen and cross the deeply inhospitable Empty Quarter with the local Bedouin. It is a harsh, romantic, unforgiving, prehistoric landscape, and the people reflect that. There are not many places left in the world that are untouched by technology, progress, and globalization. We made makeshift gunnery ranges in the middle of the desert so the Bedouin could showcase their shooting and hunting skills. As an ex-army officer, I was happy to oblige. Later, to fall asleep under a canopy of stars that wraps around you like a natural (and spiritual) blanket, listening to the Bedouin delicately sipping the last of their hot, sweet tea and bantering in Arabic about their strange and eccentric travel companions, now that is experiential travel.
