2009 WRTD Review

For the third year running WTM World Responsible Tourism Day (WTM WRTD), in association with the UNWTO and sponsored by BBC World News provided the travel industry with a challenging and thought provoking programme that expanded across three days Tuesday 10, Wednesday 11 & Thursday 12 November with Wednesday 11 November remaining the key day for the major events and focus.

“The aim of WTM World Responsible Tourism Day is to send out a clear message to consumers - that we’re listening to their increasing demands for a more caring and sensitive approach. Today is the focus of three days of intense responsible tourism activity when we hope to engage and confront issues such as climate change and poverty reduction. Not in a way that merely highlights what is good, but challenges, provokes and asks searching questions to confront the myths and identify deliverable answers” said Fiona Jeffery Chairman of World Travel Market.

Click here to read more of Fiona Jeffery’s WRTD opening speech.

The WTM WRTD Opening Ceremony saw Andrew Mitchell, Founder of Global Canopy & senior advisor to His Royal Highness Prince of Wales Rainforest Project urged the travel and tourism industry to support the Forest Footprint Disclosure Project, which asks firms to disclose how their operations and supply chains are affecting forests and what is being done to manage those effects responsibly.

Read more about the WTM WRTD opening and Andrew Mitchell

Other Highlights include: Respected BBC journalist Stephen Sackur and present of current affairs programme HARDtalk Stephen Sackur put Peter Long, Chief Executive of TUI Travel, Europe’s largest tour operator, in the ‘Hot Seat’. Click here to view the outcome. Other sessions throughout the day focused on Tourism’s Responsibility for Climate Change, making better places for people to live in and the hugely popular networking reception rounding off the day. View the full 2009 event programme

Once again the highly popular Virgin Holiday’s Responsible Tourism Awards, the most prestigious awards of their kind, attracted a huge crowd. The awards were handed out by Justin Francis, managing director of responsibletravel.com, organisers and founders of the Awards, and Amanda Wills, managing director of Virgin Holidays, headline sponsor of the Awards.

Once again the highly popular Virgin Holiday’s Responsible Tourism Awards, the most prestigious awards of their kind, attracted a huge crowd. The awards were handed out by Justin Francis, managing director of responsibletravel.com, organisers and founders of the Awards, and Amanda Wills, managing director of Virgin Holidays, headline sponsor of the Awards.

The panel of judges declared Whale Watch Kaikoura the overall winner for developing a tourism initiative from the ground up. The judges said: "Rarely do we see a tourism initiative developed from the ground up by a local community to such a successful and grand scale – growing from modest beginnings to securing in a joint venture with Sea World on the Gold Coast of Australia to provide their whale watching.

An additional 13 awards were presented in a range of categories which included Best for Poverty Reduction, Best Volunteering Organisation, Best Personal Contribution and Best Large Hotel/Accommodation.

Click here to view the 2009 awards winners