The event will be held onÊMonday 06 November at Platinum Suites 3 & 4 from 2.45 to 4.00 pm. and is open to all registered delegates at WTM.
The theme isÊÒTourism Ð A Catalyst for PeaceÓÊand Dr. Taleb Rifai, Secretary General UNWTO, will be he the main Guest of Honor and featured Keynote speaker.
Supported by ÒIncredible IndiaÓ and the UNWTO, the Awards are sponsored by Cox & Kings and will be hosted by Anita Mendiratta, Managing Director CACHETÊConsulting and Special Advisor to the Secretary General UNWTO.
This will be IIPT’s 19th consecutive year having a featured event at World Travel Market. The IIPT Ambassadors of Peace Awards were first held at World Travel Market during its 25th Anniversary event and now for the second time as IIPT begins the commemoration of its 30th Anniversary since its First Global Conference, Vancouver 1988. The event also builds on the success of the ÒCelebrating HerÓ awards for Empowered Women in Tourism that IIPT has been conducting at ITB Berlin since 2016.
Speaking on the rationale of the Awards, Ajay Prakash President of IIPT India says,
ÒTourism and Peace are inextricably linked. Such a large industry has the power to shape the world and it is time to focus this power and harness the collective financial, political and moral resources of the travel & tourism industry and make it count. But for this to happen, the concept of tourism as a vehicle for peace has to be integrated into the core business philosophy of every stakeholder Ð tourism companies, host destinations, tourists and all service providers. And because tourism is such a people-centric activity it’s important to recognize and felicitate people who have devoted their energies to champion sustainable tourism practices that go beyond the commercial interest and embrace the higher paradigm of tourism Ð to nurture and save the planet and its people, tapping into the collective resources and social reach of the travel and tourism industry.”
Founded in 1986 by Louis D’Amore, IIPT is built on two very simple but powerful premises: That tourism, perhaps the biggest industry in the world, can become the world’s first global Peace Industry and that every tourist is potentially an Ambassador of Peace. Through global summits, conferences, the IIPT Global Peace Parks initiative, IIPT Travel for Peace Campaign, consultations with governments and the UNWTO and a regular monthly newsletter, IIPT has worked conscientiously over the last 30 years to make peace an integral part of the tourism ecosphere.
The IIPT Global Ambassadors of Peace Through Tourism 2017 are:
1.ÊÊ ÊHRH Princess Dana Firas of Jordan Ð Chairperson of the Petra National Trust
2.ÊÊ ÊFiona Jeffery Ð Director, Just a Drop Foundation
3.ÊÊ ÊAnita Mendiratta Ð Managing Director, CACHET Consulting, Tourism author & thought leader
4.ÊÊ ÊCostas Christ Ð Managing Director Beyond Green Travel and Consulting Editor National Geographic Traveller
5.ÊÊ ÊGeoffrey Lipman Ð Director, SunX Foundation
Each one of the chosen Ambassadors has had an illustrious and successful career in tourism and each, through their lives and work, embodies the founding principles of IIPT. Capping the ceremony, IIPT will confer the Lifetime Award on Dr. Taleb Rifai, Secretary General UNWTO as a ÒGlobal Man of Peace Through Tourism.Ó
Louis D’Amore, Founder and President of IIPT stated,
ÒIIPT is privileged and grateful to pay tribute to Dr. Taleb Rifai for his global leadership these past eight years. We have been most honored to have Dr. Rifai grace the stage at IIPT World Travel Market events as our featured keynote speaker over the past several years Ð and to have his unwavering support for IIPT initiatives in our mission to make the travel and tourism industry Ð the world’s first global peace industry. We look forward to a continuing relationship with him in the years ahead as we join hands in efforts to promote the transformative role of tourism in Ômaking the world a better place.”
Commenting on the awards, Peter Kerkar Group CEO of Cox & Kings, presenting sponsors of the IIPT Global Ambassadors of Peace Through Tourism awards says,
ÒCox & Kings is the longest established travel company in the world, having marked its 250th anniversary in 2008 we’ve come a long way through all kinds of times. The world has changed enormously over the last 250 years but the basic human values of love, hope, happiness and harmony are constant. Tourism has the power to connect people and can be a powerful tool for global peace. Cox & Kings is proud to partner with IIPT in this initiative to acknowledge some of the finest people in our industry.Ó
