GSTC Members Win the 2018 WTTC Tourism for Tomorrow Destination Awards

WTTC has announced the 2018 leaders in sustainable tourism at the 2018 Tourism for Tomorrow Awards ceremony. The Awards, which were presented at a special ceremony during the 18th WTTC Global Summit in Buenos Aires, Argentina, celebrate inspirational, world-changing tourism initiatives from all over the globe.

GSTC Member Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association (British Colombia), has been declared as the 2018 Tourism for Tomorrow Awards winner in the Destination category.

Riverwind Foundation (Jackson Hole, Wyoming, USA), a longtime GSTC Member and a GSTC Eary Adopter, was chosen as the Finalist in the Destination Category.The 2018 Awards winners are highly commended and recognised for business practices of the highest standards that balance the needs of ‘people, planet and profits’ within our sector. This year’s winners are industry leaders who promote inclusive growth, and work toward a greener future as a result of their proactive contributions to sustainable development and the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).  

The Awards are judged by a panel of independent experts, led by Graham Miller, Executive Dean, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences at the University of Surrey. Academics, business leaders, NGO and governmental representatives all join forces to whittle down the finalists to just five Winners. Becoming a Tourism for Tomorrow judge is not a task to be taken lightly – the stringent, three-stage judging process includes a thorough review of all applications, followed by on-site evaluations of the Finalists and their initiative.

The winner of each category is determined by the winners’ selection committee which is chaired by Fiona Jeffery OBE, Tourism for Tomorrow Awards Chair, and composed of: Sandra Howard Taylor, Vice Minister of Commerce, Industry and Tourism of Colombia; John Spengler, Director of the Centre for Health and the Global Environment of the Harvard School of Public Health; and Darrell Wade, Co-Founder and CEO of Intrepid Group.

For more information: Tourism for Tomorrow Awards winners and finalists.

Full List of Winners and Finalists:

Destination Award

Community Award

  • WINNER – Global Himalayan Expedition, India
  • FINALIST – &Beyond, South Africa
  • FINALIST – Sustainable Development Institute Mamirauá, Brazil

Environment Award

  • WINNER – Airport Authority Hong Kong, Hong Kong
  • FINALIST – Chumbe Island Coral Park, Tanzania
  • FINALIST –Melia Hotels International, Spain

Innovation Award

  • WINNER – Virgin Atlantic, UK
  • FINALIST – Parkbus – Transportation Options, Canada
  • FINALIST – Yayasan Karang Lestari Teluk Pemuteran (Pemuteran Bay Coral Protection Foundation), Indonesia

People Award

  • WINNER – Cayuga Collection of Sustainable Luxury Hotels and Lodges, Costa Rica
  • FINALIST – Heritage Watch, Australia
  • FINALIST – TREE Alliance, Cambodia