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Sustainability at forefront on first day of WTM London
Sustainability was the key theme for day one of World Travel Market London, as travel experts, ministers, and tourism firms gathered in the ExCeL exhibition centre.
Other themes for panellists included accessible travel, how technology can improve the experience for travellers, diversity and inclusion – and how responsible tourism is good for business.
The industry needs to come together and work towards standard science-based targets, delegates were told during sessions dedicated to sustainability.
Shannon Guihan, Chief Sustainability Officer for The Travel Corporation, incorporating 40 brands, stressed success in carbon reduction should not be seen as a competitive advantage for individual companies but rather ‘something we need to do together as an industry’.
EasyJet Sustainability Director Jane Ashton said the airline is putting details of how it is meeting decarbonisation targets into the public domain and urged more airlines to do so.
Speakers on the ‘Landscape of Travel in 2030 and Beyond’ panel agreed sustainability is the key travel trend for the 2020s.
Fahd Hamidaddin, Chief Executive at the Saudi Tourism Authority, said climate change has been ‘factored into’ the destination’s 2030 vision.
Peter Krueger, Chief Strategy Officer at TUI AG, highlighted how tourism is a ‘force for good,’, acting as a ‘value transfer from wealthy countries to less developed destinations’.
Julia Simpson, President and Chief Executive at the World Travel and Tourism Council, highlighted the importance of investing in sustainable aviation fuels (SAF.
Additionally, travellers in the future will be able to pay for their holidays with crypto, according to Rohit Talwar.
He also urged travel companies to consider developing experiences in the metaverse to cater for younger people and new audiences.
Sustainability was another issue for businesses.
He urged them to see it as ‘an investment for the future’, not a cost.
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