The 2011 WTMWRTD video features local communities benefiting from tourism, it can be viewed on line

Our goal is to be realistic and reliable. A source of balanced, accurate and easily understood information that is both beneficial and practical as well as offering inspiration, integrity and hope for the future success and sustainability of international travel and tourism.

Tuesday 8 November 2011

The Business Case For Taking Responsibility For Ensuring Access For All
There are significant numbers of people with disabilities who wish to travel, the diversity of disabilities is often still not recognised. It is not just about wheelchair access. Four panellists will share their experience of the issues and why it makes business sense to provide holidays for disabled people. It is challenging but it makes good business sense.

Chairperson
John de Vial, ABTA

Craig Grimes, The Experience Community
Keith Richards, Director, Raleo Ltd
Jennifer Littman, Chief Executive, T ourism for All UK
Magnus Berglund, Disability Ambassador

Download the presentations

Are Tourism Jobs Good Jobs? Tourism and Livelihoods
The tourism industry is often perceived as providing low paid casual employment, too often people dismiss tourism jobs as frivolous and undesirable. The industry has done little to challenge this widely held prejudice. Panellists will share examples of good quality jobs in tourism and of the opportunities for progression in an industry where experience and in-service training can provide worthwhile careers and promotion opportunities.

Chairperson Mark Tanzer, ABTA

Costas Christ, Editor and Columnist, National Geographic Traveler (copyright issues mean that this presentation cannot be included)
Faye Chua, Head of Research, People 1st
Nicole Häusler, Responsible Tourism Consultant, Mascontour – Sustainable Tourism-Consulting & Communication AND Associate of International Centre for Responsible Tourism AND WTM WRTD Advisory Panel Member
Márcio Favilla, Executive Director in charge of Competitiveness, External Relations and Partnerships , UNWTO

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What is the Role of Government in Making Tourism More Sustainable?
Tourism takes place in destinations, tourists, the tourism industry and local communities interact in places where local communities live out their lives, some working in tourism most earning their living in other ways. Governments exist to manage public space, provide security and public services, to plan, encourage economic development and make better places for people to live in. What can governments do, at national and local level, to ensure the negative impacts of tourism are minimised and its power to contribute to making better places to live in is maximised.
Chairperson Ransford Smith , Deputy Secretary General Commonwealth Secretariat
Commonwealth Secretariat Sponsored

Hon. Richard Skerritt , Minister of Tourism St Kitts / Chairman Caribbean Tourism Organisation
Deirdre Shurland, UNEP , Global Sustainable Tourism Partnership
Rasheen Singh, South African Tourism
U.V. Jose, Department of Tourism, Kerala, India

Making Destinations More Sustainable – a report on work in progress in Egypt, India and Sri Lanka
Achieving sustainable tourism in destinations requires partnerships. Partnerships in which government and the private sector work together to take responsibility for making tourism more sustainable for the benefit of local communities their culture, local economy and environment. Drawing on examples from Egypt and India this panel will explore what outbound tour operators, national, state and local government can do make better places for people to live in and better places for people to visit.

Chairperson Harold Goodwin, Professor of Responsible Tourism Management, Leeds Metropolitan University & ICRT

Hisham Zaazou , Senior Assistant Minister of Tourism, Ministry of Tourism – Egypt
Nikki White, Head of Sustainability and Destinations , ABTA
Srilal Miththapala, Project Director , SWITCH Asia Greening Sri Lanka Hotels Project, Ceylon Chamber of Commerce
Ms. Dhanya M R, President of Kumarakam Panchayat
U.V. Jose, Department of Tourism, Kerala, India

How Responsible are All-Inclusives?
The debate about how responsible all-inclusive holidays are rages on. Critics argue that by discouraging holidaymakers from venturing out of resorts local businesses and communities loose out, others argue that some forms of indulgent holidaying are best done away from local communities. Operators point to extended seasons and occupancy rates, increased spend in the local supply chain and the interest that all-inclusive resorts have in encouraging their guests to venture out rather than eating and drinking in the hotel. This seminar, with panellists with very different perspectives will seek to shed light on these issues which fuel this heated debate.

Chairperson Harold Goodwin, Professor of Responsible Tourism Management, Leeds Metropolitan University & ICRT

Adama Bah, Project Manager - The Gambia, The Travel Foundation
Jane Ashton, Director of Group Sustainable Development , TUI
Tricia Barnett, Director , Tourism Concern
Wayne Cummings, Director, Business Processes & Administration, Sandals Resorts International

Wednesday 9 November 2011

Official WTM WRTD Opening
Harriet Lamb, Executive Director of the UK’s Fairtrade Foundation - an organisation that has dramatically transformed shopping habits and improved the lives of millions across the globe – is to officially open WTM World Responsible Tourism Day.

Video of the Opening with Fiona Jeffery and Harriet Lamb

Fairtrade Tourism SABC News at WTM

The Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Awards

Presentation of the Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Awards 2011, the largest awards of their kind in the world. Organised by responsibletravel.com sponsored by Virgin Holidays and in partnership with Metro Newspaper, World Travel Market and Geographical.

The Awards Ceremony can be viewed on line
For an indepth report on the judges reasons Progress in Responsbile Tourism

On the Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Awards website

WRTD Hot Seat
Leo Hickman, author of the thought provoking book ‘The Final Call’ takes the HOTseat with BBC World’s Stephen Sackur. Audio file | Video

Progress in Responsible Tourism
So what has been achieved? Is the industry making progress? Four individuals will give their personal assessments of how much progress we have made in encouraging individuals and companies to take responsibility for making tourism  more sustainable...

Chairperson Harold Goodwin, Professor of Responsible Tourism Management, Leeds Metropolitan University & ICRT

Taleb Rifai, Secretary General, UNWTO Audio Document
Heidi Keyser, Cape Town South Africa Audio
Michael Horton, Chairman and Founder, ConCERT Audio Document
Ruth Holroyd, Group Head of Sustainability Thomas Cook Audio

Who Profits From Tourism? WTM WRTD DEBATE
Tourism businesses argue that they deserve support from government seeking tax breaks and assistance with marketing, rarely does the industry address the question, who benefits from tourism? Business argues that the sector is big, “the world’s largest industry” and that they need help from government, and critics ask if they are so successful why they need government subsidies.
This panel will debate the question “who profits from tourism?” Can tourism demonstrate that it contributes to making better places for people to live in? The motion “This house believes that the main beneficiaries of tourism are the industry and the consumers and that there is too little benefit for communities and their environment’

The debate is available on YouTube

Moderator Harold Goodwin, Professor of Responsible Tourism Management, Leeds Metropolitan University & ICRT

For the motion:
Richard Sharpley, Professor of Tourism & Development, University of Central Lancashire
Adama Bah, Project Manager - The Gambia, The Travel Foundation
Julia Bishop, Director , Zanzibar Association of Tourism Investors

Against the motion
Luke Pollard Head of Public Affairs, ABTA – The Travel Association
Ruth Holroyd,Group Head of Sustainability Thomas Cook
Noel Josephides, Managing Director, Sunvil Holidays

WTM WRTD Networking Reception
An unrivalled chance to meet and share views on responsible tourism with experts and those who are new to responsible tourism or are considering responsible tourism activity within their business for the first time.

Thursday 10 November 2011

Corporate Social Responsibility in the Meetings and Hospitality Industry
Having corporate social responsibility credentials is becoming a source of competitive advantage, and in some cases a requirement to trade, in the meetings industry. From international conference tourism destinations seeking to secure large scale events, to smaller venues aiming to differentiate their product with local sourcing and sustainability values, the requirement for CSR accountability is increasing to communicate your brand and destination values, and part of supplier screening within requests for prices. What implications does this have for the meetings and hospitality industry, and for the conference tourism markets?

What implications does this have for the meetings and hospitality industry, and for the conference tourism markets?

Chairperson
Dr Xavier Font, Leeds Metroplolitan University & ICRT

Deborah Sexton , FASAE, President and CEO, PCMA
James Boardman, Leeds Metropolitan University and Smyle Creative
James Mark, Services & 2012 Games Director , ExCeL London
Malcolm Johnson, Engineering Services Manager , Barbican
Rebecca Saunders, Sustainable Events Limited and Meeting Professionals International (MPI)

Business and Human Rights: Challenges and Opportunities for Tourism

This event marks the exclusive launch of a new industry briefing by Tourism Concern making the business case for taking a human rights approach to tourism. The event is a unique opportunity to learn about and discuss major new thinking around business and human rights. You will hear from business leaders.

Chairperson Ian Taylor, Executive Editor, Travel Weekly Group

Keith Weed, Chief Marketing and Communications Officer, Unilever
Peter Frankental, Economic Relations Programme Director, Amnesty International UK
Sabine Loetscher-Ehrler, Project Manager in Corporate Responsibility (CR), Kuoni Group
Tricia Barnett, Director , Tourism Concern

Securing the Commercial Advantage from Responsible Tourism Through Marketing

Consumers expect tourism businesses to take responsibility for their health and safety, the quality of their holiday and to provide information about their destination to enable them to get the most out of their holiday. Consumers want an increasingly authentic experience, they want to get closer to the people in the destination and to their culture and environment – the Responsible Tourism agenda can reassure the client about your business’s commitment and ability to deliver the best experiences, leading industry marketers will share with you how they use the sustainability agenda and gain market advantage.

Chairperson Harold Goodwin, Professor of Responsible Tourism Management, Leeds Metropolitan University & ICRT

Christian Cull, Communications Director , TUI UK Presentation Audio
Justin Francis, ResponsibleTravel.com Presentation Audio
Rachel McCaffery, Virgin Holidays Presentation Audio
Dr Xavier Font, Leeds Metropolitan and ICRT Presentation Audio

Managing Responsible Tourism at World Heritage Sites

With rapid growth in tourism as the flow of holidaymakers continues to rise in the traditional originating markets now joined by rapidly growing numbers from India, China, Russia and South America some World Heritage sites are under mounting, perhaps intolerable, pressure from the impacts the tourists and tourism businesses inflict on our most important cultural heritage sites. Experts will discuss how these impacts can be managed and what tourism business can, and should, do to help.

Chairperson Dr Simon Woodward , Leeds Metropolitan University & ICRT

Guillaume Bacquet, General Manager, Versailles Tourist Board
Heidi Keyser , Cape Town South Africa
Seif Al Rashidi, WHS Co-ordinator, Durham, UK
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WTMWRTD Around the World

Cape Town