03 November 2009

Tourism for Tomorrow Awards judges confirmed

Judges for the 2010 Tourism for Tomorrow Awards run by the World Travel & Tourism Council have been unveiled.

Twelve judges have been announced as the organisation seeks entries to be recognise best practice in sustainable tourism.

The deadline for applications is December 2.

The judging process includes a thorough review of each application followed by an on-site evaluation of all finalists conducted by a global panel of experts in sustainable tourism.

The panel will review and select a shortlist of finalists in each of the four award categories to move to the second stage of the judging process, during which on-site inspections will take place. Following the third stage of judging, a final panel will choose the winner for each category.

The judges on the Finalist Selection Committee for 2010 are:

• Tony Charters, principal, Tony Charters & Associates, Australia
• Jena Gardner, president, JG Blackbook of Travel, and President, The Bodhi Tree Foundation, USA
• Erika Harms, executive director for sustainable development, United Nations Foundation - World Heritage Alliance, USA/Costa Rica
• Marilú Hernndez, president, Fundación Haciendas del Mundo Maya, Mexico
• Dr Janne J Liburd, associate professor and director of research, Centre for Tourism, Culture and Innovation, University of Southern Denmark, Denmark
• Mahen Sanghrajka, chairman, Big Five Tours & Expeditions, USA/Kenya
• Kaddu Kiwe Sebunya, chief of party, Uganda Sustainable Tourism Program, Uganda
• Mandip Singh Soin FRGS, founder & managing Director, Ibex Expeditions (P) Ltd, India
• Shannon Stowell, president, Adventure Travel Trade Association, USA
• Jamie Sweeting, vice president, environmental stewardship and global chief environmental officer, Royal Caribbean Cruises, USA
• Albert Teo, managing director, Borneo Eco Tours, Malaysia
• Mei Zhang, founder, Wildchina, China

Members of the winners' selection committee are:

• Costas Christ, chairman of the judges, Tourism for Tomorrow Awards, USA
• Graham Boynton, group travel editor, Telegraph Media Group, UK
• Fiona Jeffery, chairman, World Travel Market & Just A Drop, UK
• Michael Singh, CEO, ministry of tourism and civil aviation, Belize

Christ said: "There is no doubt that what we are witnessing today may be the most significant transformation in the history of modern travel - the emergence of sustainable tourism principles and practices across the full spectrum of travel and tourism from small and medium-sized businesses to large-scale hospitality and travel corporations."

He added: "With each passing year the Tourism for Tomorrow Awards continue to set new standards in recognising the highest level of sustainable tourism innovation in the travel and tourism industry.

"At the heart of the awards is an expert judging panel representing countries from all around the world and an on-site evaluation process of award finalists to document their sustainable tourism practices in action."

by Phil Davies