Tourism for Tomorrow Awards: Ian Taylor reports on the finalists and judging process
Miller explains awards’ stringent judging criteria
The 15 finalists for the World Travel & Tourism Council’s Tourism for Tomorrow Awards have been subject to a stringent selection process, with up to 70 applicants in some categories whittled down to just three.
But the real judging process begins now with on-site evaluations of the finalists. Lead judge Professor Graham
Miller of the University of Surrey describes the process as “rigorous”, insisting: “I wouldn’t take part in an awards process where I couldn’t go on site and test.” He said: “We have a pool of judges, academics and consultants, people from government and previous winners, with a geographical spread, a gender spread, a spread from the developed and developing world.” The on-site evaluators are
chosen “on the basis of geography, language, diversity and gender”. Site visits take place in February and March, “typically over three to four days each”.
“The aim is not just to congratulate people, but to change something”
Miller said: “In general, one
person visits with a briefing document. Sometimes two may assess a bigger company. “The job of the on-site evaluator
is to test whether what is said in the application is true, that there is evidence of what they claim. It can be they are just good at PR. We’ve had assessors come back and say ‘Over my dead body they win’. “If it is simply a case of who
has saved most carbon, that is easy – check the meter. It’s who is working hardest in the context they are in. It’s easier to recycle if there is a weekly recycling van.” In selecting the finalists, he said:
“The first thing we want to see is something different. Second, we’re looking for scalability. Could this get bigger and have an
MILLER: ‘We see more evidence of measurement and monitoring’
effect on the industry? Third, is it replicable? The aim is not just to congratulate people, but to change something. If the circumstances are unique, you can’t replicate it. “Fourth, it needs to be financially sustainable. Things that are grant-dependent don’t do well as soon as the funds dry up.” Miller insisted: “We don’t favour
an organisation because it is achieving more in absolute terms. “When we get applications from
big organisations we divide their achievements by the resources they have and then look at what a smaller company is achieving. “We should hold bigger
organisations to a higher level of expectation. Some small organisations are achieving relatively a lot more with smaller resources.” Miller said: “I’ve been involved
in the awards for 10 years. It’s hard to say whether standards have risen. What is different is the seriousness with which people are managing sustainability. That has changed, particularly in the last five years. “We see more evidence of
measurement and monitoring. People have more sense of what they are doing and why.” Miller is executive dean of the
faculty of arts and social sciences at the University of Surrey.
WTTC reveals finalists for Tourism for Tomorrow 2018
Virgin Atlantic has been named among the 15 finalists for the World Travel & Tourism Council’s (WTTC) Tourism for Tomorrow Awards 2018. The airline is one of three
contenders for the Innovation Award along with non-profit organisations Transportation Options of Canada and the Pemuteran Bay Coral Protection Foundation (Indonesia). Finalists in all five awards
categories were announced on Tuesday. Meliá Hotels of Spain and Hong Kong Airport Authority are among the finalists for the Environment Award along with nature reserve Chumbe Island Coral Park of Tanzania. Luxury travel firm &Beyond
of South Africa is a finalist in the Community Award category along with Global Himalayan Expedition of India and the Sustainable Development Institute Mamirauá in Brazil. Colombian ecotourism park
Corporación Parque Arví, the Riverwind Foundation of the US, and the Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association of Canada are finalists in the Destination Award category. Heritage Watch (Australia),
the Cayuga Collection of Sustainable Luxury Hotels and Lodges (Costa Rica) and Tree Alliance (Cambodia) are the finalists for the People Award. Awards chairman Fiona
Jeffery demanded the industry “step up and accept its wider responsibilities” when calling for Tourism for Tomorrow Awards entries last September. The winners will be announced at the WTTC Global Summit in Buenos Aires on April 18-19. For more, visit
tinyurl.com/WTTC2018
18 January 2018
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