Experts pointed out the need for specialised training for incoming tourism professionals whilst calling out the sector for its current approach towards the climate emergency
As this year’s World Travel Market (WTM) opened in London, speakers cast the spotlight on sustainability in light of recent natural disasters affecting several nations, as well as training a new generation for the tourism sector.
Likewise, the 19th edition of the WTM Ministers’ Summit put an emphasis on industry investment, as well as education for the next generation of professionals.
Delegates heard how public-private partnerships can be effective mechanisms to grow tourism, with ministers from destinations as varied as the Philippines, Kenya and Ecuador sharing how they are using fiscal incentives to attract investment.
Educating the younger generation about the benefits of a career in tourism was also framed as a vital part of the industry’s future success.
Representatives from Greece, Portugal and France offered slightly different approaches to education, but all agreed about the need to have a workforce skilled in the specific needs of tourism as well as the role that the industry should play in promoting tourism as a fulfilling and rewarding career path.
Reimagining tourism with sustainability in mind
WTM London’s Sustainability Conference opened with a session entitled Other Worlds Are Possible: Reimagining Tourism’s Purpose where independent climate action expert Jeremy Smith spoke about reframing tourism’s role within the climate emergency.
Smith suggested travel companies should think not only in terms of reducing emissions but also how they could enable tourists to see and understand the real-world impacts on communities.
He emphatically declared that climate literacy “will come through what we feel, not what we read,” especially in light of natural disasters becoming less exceptional and more of a given in recent years.
He praised companies which were enabling hotels to be staffed by refugees and walking tours to be conducted by people who have experienced homelessness.
As Smith put it: “Tourism shows you other worlds are possible.”
Among tour operators, he highlighted Blue Yonder, which has enabled rice farmers in Kerala, India, to earn a second income as kayak guides on the Backwaters; the same farmers have also been trained in emergency rescue for flooding scenarios.
However, he also called out how the global travel industry tended to look at the climate emergency as little more than a technical challenge, almost like one that could be fixed like rewiring a plug.
Letting communities write their stories
In another session, When Place Speaks Back: Communities Writing the Story, community leaders shared stories from Nepal, the Bahamas, and Africa.
Breaking stereotypes was the overriding theme, with travel marketing and the media blamed for perpetuating cliches.
African Travel and Tourism Association representative Kgomotso Ramothea pointed out that her continent was commonly reduced to “sunsets and safari,” though the experience of these could vary greatly country to country.
She praised tourism businesses that were giving local people a predictable income and sourcing food from nearby suppliers.
Ramothea also highlighted a community banana beer-making experience as a good example of an authentic activity that could be added to a safari.
As she put it: “Storytelling and respect are at the forefront of sustainable tourism.”