ITB’S RIKA JEAN-FRANCOIS TO HOST KEY SESSION AT 2021 SUSTAINABLE TRAVEL CONFERENCE IN PORTUGAL
Rika Jean Francois, Commissioner, Corporate Social Responsibility, ITB, will be moderating a conference session on “The Positive Role of Tourism” at the upcoming “A World for Travel – Évora Forum” event in Portugal.
The new annual sustainable travel industry event will take place on September 16 and 17 of this year. A World for Travel – Évora Forum – has been developed with the purpose of transforming the industry, bringing together stakeholders from the public and private sectors to create a common platform that will reshape Tourism as a more sustainable and responsible activity.
The first edition of the event will focus on key components of the industry where change is mandatory, identifying the steps that need to be taken and consolidating solutions to be implemented. The conference will approach themes intrinsic to sustainability such as economic model variations, climate impact, tourism’s environmental impact, coastal and marine shifts as well as agricultural and carbon neutral policies.
With the aim of creating actionable pledges from all delegates and form a new blueprint for the Travel industry, top specialists in travel economics, environment, city planning, cultural heritage travel, climatology, food development, aeronautic development and cruise will come together for the first time. Over 140 high level speakers from around the world will participate in a stellar line up of workshops and presentations.
Speakers will include Mike Horn, Professional Explorer, Adventurer and Survival Expert with his speech “Courage and Perseverance in Difficult Times”. Mike is globally acknowledged as one of the world’s greatest, modern day explorers. Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne – Secretary of State for Tourism, France; Zurab Pololikashvili – Secretary General, UNWTO and Rita Marques – the Portuguese Secretary of State for Tourism are all confirmed to take the stage.
Rika Jean-François will be moderating the session on Tourism’s Positive Impact on the evolution of society. The session will place the spotlight on equal rights, tolerance, and the deliverance of basic needs such as work, food, shelter, education and medical attention. Impressive case studies will show how such positive impact has been achieved in travel programs around the world. Speakers at the session:
- H.E. Memunatu Pratt, Minister of Tourism, Sierra Leone
- Dalila Dias, Executive Director, Aldeias Históricas de Portugal
- Vincent Fonvielle, President, Agir pour un Tourisme Responsable
- Craig Spencer, Founder, Transfrontiers
The event is run by Eventiz Media Group, the largest travel media group in France, in partnership with the Global Travel & Tourism Resilience Council and with the support of Visit Portugal, the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) and the World Travel and Tourism Organization (WTTC).
Rita Marques, Portuguese Secretary of State for Tourism commented: “The very fact that this summit gathers over than 140 high level speakers is not only testament to the resilience of our industry but also to the commitment and dedication of its leaders to tackle the issues we face without delay. We look forward to welcoming our industry community to Évora and to what we believe will be a ground-breaking event.”
Taleb Rifai, Co-Chair, Global Travel and Tourism Resilience Council commented: “Sustainability is about sustaining life on earth for future generations, no more, no less. We strive to preserve our environment for future generations to live with a good quality of life, therefore, we must address social, economic and political sustainability as well. These models matter as much as the environmental policies in order to sustain a universal quality of life. Sustainability is not only about conservation or preservation. The challenge is one of innovation and management, both are intrinsic to moving forward, to progress with purpose, and grow in a truly sustainable way.”
Christian Delom, Secretary General, A World for Travel commented: “Never has the travel industry been under so much pressure, from the environment, climate, technology, social responsibility, safety and health risks, all at the same time. This event will lead the revolution for the mandatory transformation of the industry for the good of humanity.”
The event will have an in-person attendance limitation of 350 attendees, the ticket proceeds will be mostly channelled to sustainable organisations but will also be streamed live to thousands of virtual delegates for no charge.
To register, visit: https://www.aworldfortravel.org/registration
A full agenda can be found here: www.aworldfortravel.org
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