FINALISTS
Click finalist name to review their application
- Shebs Alom – Broadcaster, Travel Writer & Podcaster
- Allie Bahn – Founder and Consultant, Miss Allergic Reactor
- Tami Fairweather – Travel Communications, Media Relations, and Events Consultant, The Fairweather Experience
- Oregon Coast Visitors Association
- Jeny Pokharel – Founder and CEO, SASANE Sisterhood Trekking & Travel
- Julia Cohen Ribeiro – Director of Afro Travel, Lunfarda Travel
- Sherry Rupert – CEO, AIANTA
- John Sage – Founder and CEO of Sage Traveling, Accessible Travel Solutions, and Sage Inclusion
Finalist Name: Shebs Alom
Title/Organization: Broadcaster, Travel Writer & Podcaster
Website: https://shebsthewanderer.com/
Reasons for Nomination: I have been an unparalleled voice championing inclusion within the travel industry for years. This year, I have been working to help the halal tourism sector grow. My dedication, visionary leadership, and achievements have not only challenged existing norms but have also created significant, measurable progress towards a more diverse and equitable travel landscape.
As a news editor for Halal Travel Network, I’ve inspired others and helped get collaboration, consistently challenging the status quo to advance inclusion. This has included:
Continuously writing articles and securing major external media coverage (both written and broadcast) to promote halal tourism and its importance.
Actively working with tourism boards to build crucial partnerships and hosting impactful events that drive industry dialogue and collaboration.
My work directly contributed to Halal Travel Network’s recent wins at the Women in Travel Awards, demonstrating tangible success.
Hosting three TV shows in Sri Lanka for the Islam Channel, showcasing a commitment to promoting halal tourism internationally.
As highlighted by Sadia Ramzan, a speaker at “Icons of Inclusion,” my efforts directly created her opportunity, as everyone spoke about my work at the event. I inspired new voices within the sector, proving my unparalleled influence.
2025, I have consistently, passionately, and measurably contributed to transforming the landscape of inclusive travel, making me an outstanding candidate for this recognition.
Links/Media:
https://mailchi.mp/globetrender.com/halal-tourism
https://halaltravel.network/blog/sri-lanka-a-destination-poised-for-halal-tourism-growth
https://www.lsnglobal.com/markets/article/32122/halal-food-futures
Finalist Name: Allie Bahn
Title/Organization: Founder, Educator, and Consultant, Miss Allergic Reactor
Website: https://missallergicreactor.com/
Reasons for Nomination: I have dedicated my work to making travel more inclusive for the 33 million Americans and over 220 million individuals living with food allergies worldwide, which is an often-overlooked accessibility need. Through Miss Allergic Reactor, my consultation services, freelance writing and a community of over 60K travelers on multiple platforms, I empower individuals and families to explore the world with confidence. I also partner with destinations, resorts, and brands to advocate for systemic change, helping the industry recognize food allergies as an inclusion issue. By combining personal experience with professional expertise, I’ve inspired thousands to not let fear stop them, while working to advance a more inclusive vision of travel.
Links/Media:
Miss Allergic Reactor Website – Founder of Miss Allergic Reactor, a trusted resource since 2008 for traveling with food allergies, featuring guides, tips, and personal stories. https://missallergicreactor.com
Allergic Living – Travel Expert, News Contributor, and Instagram Collaborations– Featured as a travel expert for Allergic Living, sharing practical advice and inclusive travel strategies in articles, as well as creating educational stories and reels offering allergy-safe travel tips, reaching thousands of viewers. https://www.allergicliving.com/author/allie-bahn/ and https://www.instagram.com/reel/DC1ilvaJOwh/
Healthline Partnership – Video campaign collaboration sharing food allergy travel insights with a global health audience. https://www.healthline.com/health/video/food-allergies-stories-and-facts#1
Facebook Community Leadership – Founder of an engaged 25K+ member group supporting allergy travelers worldwide. https://www.facebook.com/groups/allergytravels
Conference Speaking Engagements – Presenter at national food allergy conferences on topics including content creation, authenticity, and inclusive travel. https://www.foodallergyawareness.org/media/user/di-summit/2024%20FAACT%20Digital%20Influencer%20Summit_Agenda_FINAL_1.0.pdf
Consultations & Courses – Creator of 1:1 allergy travel consultations and digital courses helping individuals and families travel safely and confidently. https://missallergicreactor.com/individualized-consulting-sessions/
Instagram Platform – Active social media presence sharing authentic allergy travel tips, stories and resources with an engaged audience. https://www.instagram.com/miss_allergic_reactor/
Additional Information: For over 15 years, I’ve worked to bridge the gap between the food allergy community and the travel industry, ensuring that people with life-threatening allergies are included in the broader conversation around accessibility. What began as sharing my personal experiences abroad has grown into a global platform, professional consultation services, and collaborations with destinations, brands, and organizations. My mission has always been to show that food allergies should never be a barrier to safe, enriching travel. By combining personal lived experience with professional expertise, I continue to push for an industry where all travelers are seen, supported, and welcomed. Thank you for your consideration!
Finalist Name: Tami Fairweather
Title/Organization: Communications, Media Relations, and Events Consultant, The Fairweather Experience
Website: www.tamifairweather.com/
Reasons for Nomination: Leadership & Commitment:
Tami has been committed to and leading through advocacy, influence, and collaboration for a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive travel industry for many years, often behind the scenes.
Her efforts as a contractor, consultant, and the former Director of Media Relations and Strategy at the Adventure Travel Trade Association (ATTA) have served as an example and an influence in helping others see the ways that they can effect change within their own unique spheres of influence, and prove that one doesn’t need to be in the C-suite to make an impact.
Tami says, “People tend to socialize and relate to others who are similar to them, which can lead to insular communities. When opportunities arise in our professional lives, we often consider someone we already know. One of the keys to changing this is recognizing who is missing and widening and intersecting our circles.
Having people of marginalized identities represented or present is the very point of diversity and inclusion work: To break down the social and historical barriers and power structures that have “othered” people. Instead, we can recognize our shared humanity while learning from and celebrating our differences–which is exactly what we in the travel industry champion about travel itself.
What I’ve noticed in my time doing this work is that, like travel, it’s an experiential endeavor. This is especially relevant now, given the pushback on language and initiatives promoting inclusion. It takes individuals like those in Travel Unity and my fellow nominees to use our influence and access, wherever that might be, to bring others to the table, shine the light, and share opportunities.”
Impact & Achievements
- As leader of the Adventure Travel Trade Association’s (ATTA) media program from 2016 to 2024, she recognized that to increase the diversity of journalists and content creators at their international trade conferences, people from communities who were underrepresented needed to be aware of the opportunity to apply. Her consistent presence and participation in affinity group travel events and conferences like NOMADNESS Fest, Travel Unity Summit, Women’s Travel Fest, and Essence Fest served as a strategy to forge personal connections and share opportunities for people to be part of the ATTA’s global community.
- After increasing the diversity of qualified media applicants for events, she encouraged and collaborated with host destination partners to make selections for a more diverse delegation to reach different audiences and traveler markets through distinct story narratives and platforms.
- Her work on 40+ global conferences, 5,000+ media applications, and 1,500+ individual media professionals at ATTA events resulted in 6.2 billion earned media impressions globally. The representation of diverse, non-dominant identities in participating media at ATTA events increased by 32% from 2018 to 2024.
- These efforts also increased the diversity of representation in the ATTA’s image bank, video productions, storytelling, conference speakers, and membership, and did so in an organic, non-tokenizing way as the selected media had become part of the community through their participation and connected to other opportunities through fellow members.
- As the director of local experiences in New Orleans for Wanderful’s first Wanderfest event in 2022, Tami actively recruited small, local, women-, Black-, brown-, and minority-owned businesses to offer exclusive pre-event excursions and onstage entertainment. She also assembled a local steering committee comprising culture bearers and business owners to guide the programming (https://www.wanderfestevent.com/steering-committee). 81% of the money spent to produce the festival went directly to locally-owned businesses, the majority woman- and Black-owned.
- Collaborations with Janna A. Zinzi of WanderWomxn Travels in 2025 have included the co-production of events for out-of-town groups, utilizing all local, women-owned, and/or Black-owned suppliers from New Orleans, as well as custom visitor guides for conference attendees, focusing on local experiences and businesses in the city.
- In 2025, she was selected to serve in a volunteer cohort of community leaders in New Orleans with the Common Ground Collective Memory Project, researching the histories of several areas (New Orleans East, the 6th & 7th Wards, and the River Parishes) and implementing projects that highlight these histories to the Greater New Orleans community.
- In the past year, she has supported several local entrepreneurs in the creation of new, custom event activations for her client’s conferences taking place in New Orleans, which have since been developed into new products. For one such out-of-town corporate client hosting an event for which she was a consultant, 100% of their spend was with 14 independent, locally owned businesses, 85% of which were led by women and people of color.
- As the new Program Director for the Women in Travel Summit (WITS), she leads the development, management, and execution of the WITS 2026 program, with the mission of delivering a compelling, community-centered schedule that reflects the diversity and values of the Wanderful community of travelers and content creators redefining travel for women worldwide.
- As co-captain of a New Orleans Mardi Gras (Carnival) “krewe” (social, parade-marching group) dedicated to the Godfather of Soul, James Brown, she helped implement a foundational model in 2022 for an equitable and inclusive krewe that honors the spirit of Mardi Gras in subverting dominant power structures based on race and class. This initiative offered a sliding scale and voluntary contributions to a subsidy fund.
- Tami consistently participates in and contributes to events that champion values-minded education, professional development, and community building, which in the past year has included the Black Travel Summit, The World Tourism Day Forum, the Louisiana Rural Tourism and Byways conference, BLD Southeast (B Corp gathering), the Women in Travel Summit, Hospitality Hued, The Future of Black Tourism Leadership Conclave, The National Trust for Historic Preservation National Summit, and Travel Unity Summits.
Links/Media:
https://www.tamifairweather.com/events
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1hljpnex2j8ZSOHZzhepeSfrRIiW4mmbz/view?usp=sharing
https://www.linkedin.com/in/tamifairweather
Finalist Name: Oregon Coast Visitors Association
Title/Organization: Oregon Coast Visitors Association
Website: https://visittheoregoncoast.com/
Reasons for Nomination: We are nominating the Oregon Coast Visitors Association (OCVA) as a deserving recipient of the Inclusion Champion Award. We had the privilege of working with OCVA to produce a series of video stories to support their ongoing efforts to make the Oregon Coast an accessible and inclusive place for community members and visitors to pursue their passion for the outdoors and nature.
Recognizing the unique position of a tourism organization as an agent of change at scale, OCVA has strategically built a network of local stakeholders committed to expanding and improving access to the outdoors for all in their region. By partnering with leading organizations in the accessibility sector, including Travelability and Wheel the World, OCVA has acted with purpose to bring positive change to the Oregon Coast. From our perspective as storytelling partners, we were most influenced by their approach to their work over time. Listening, learning and collaborating with local leaders, experts and most importantly, residents with lived experience who could speak directly to their needs and solutions. While we always learn from our film partners, we can say as a team that our work on behalf of OCVA has significantly influenced our approach to future work with other destinations and outdoor recreation organizations. We listened and learned from OCVA and our film characters, and continue to be grateful for the opportunity to have had our perspectives expanded and to consider more fully the impact that stories can have in helping to bring positive change.
Public lands are for the public and everyone deserves as unfettered access to these natural spaces as possible. We salute OCVA for their commitment to making “The People’s Coast” a lived truth and not just a tourism slogan. As an organization they have made a positive impact on the region and continue to advocate and work for ongoing change.
Links/Media:
Additional Information: As filmmakers, we are often in the position of asking people…stangers…to share their stories with us and engage with unseen audiences on camera. It is an act of trust. Having been guided by the OCVA team and connected with local community members and advocates, it was clear that OCVA had built a network of stakeholder trust. It made our work a bit easier and brought a depth to the stories that can only come from a shared space and belief in the work.
Finalist Name: Jeny Pokharel
Title/Organization: Founder and CEO, SASANE Sisterhood Trekking & Travel
Website: ttps://sasanesisterhoodtrek.com/
Reasons for Nomination: By the age of 30, Jeny Pokharel, a visionary leader from Nepal, has transformed the lives of 375 female survivors of human trafficking through travel. Growing up in a patriarchal society with limited opportunities for women, she faced deep-rooted social resistance; local vendors, partners, and communities were reluctant to recognize survivors as guides, hospitality staff, or culinary experts. Travelers often questioned the higher costs of ethical travel, yet Jeny persisted with patience, advocacy, and unwavering leadership to create acceptance, trust, and collaboration.
She founded SASANE Sisterhood Trekking & Travels, a pioneering social enterprise that gives survivors a voice and platform, training them as certified tour/trekking guides, hospitality staff, porters, culinary experts, and motivators for other survivors. Beyond individual empowerment, she has developed 10 trafficking-prone communities through homestays and tea-stalls, providing alternative incomes and contributing to a 73% reduction in trafficking rates since 2011.
Jeny’s advocacy has also reshaped policy: she has contributed to inclusive travel policies at the Ministry of Women, Children, and Social Welfare and worked across 14 districts in 7 provinces to ensure survivors obtain citizenship by birth, unlocking their access to tourism-based training and employment.
Expanding internationally, she is now launching Voices & Flavors in Germany, empowering immigrant and refugee women to share their culinary heritage, foster inclusion, and gain economic independence.
Through resilience, innovation, and measurable impact, Jeny Pokharel exemplifies leadership that inspires, challenges the status quo, and turns travel into a transformative force for inclusion, empowerment, and social change.
Links/Media:
Official Website – https://sasanesisterhoodtrek.com/
This platform showcases the enterprise’s mission, impact, and the transformative journeys you’ve facilitated for survivors of human trafficking.
Facebook Page – https://www.facebook.com/SasaneSisterhoodTrekking/
A community hub featuring updates, stories, and testimonials from the women empowered and the travelers who’ve joined the initiatives.
Recognition by UnTours Foundation – https://untoursfoundation.org/about-us/awards/adventure-innovation-challenge/jeny-pokharel/
This award highlights the innovative approach to integrating survivors into the tourism industry, providing them with employment and equality opportunities.
Interaction with Prince Harry – https://sasanesisterhoodtrek.com/news/sasane-interacts-with-prince-harry-duke-of-sussex/
An acknowledgment of the efforts to enhance travel at a systems level, benefiting both the community and the broader tourism industry.
TEDx Speaker – https://www.linkedin.com/posts/jeny-pokharel-78a253176_tedx-gratitude-empowerment-activity-7322290179405156352-Twqs?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAACmu5ZoBlJgsDSzluxyytBiBcZRVtnxbpzQ
TEDx talk underscores the importance of networking and community building, reflecting the commitment to social change.
WTACH Interview – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F1Mw5VEphDA
A conversation where we delve into the journey, challenges, and the impact of the work on empowering women through travel.
ToDo Award Human Rights in Tourism – https://www.todo-contest.org/to-do-award-hr/preistrager/gewinner-innen-2023-sasane-sisterhood/
Recognized for efforts in integrating survivors into the tourism industry, providing them with employment and equality opportunities.
IPD Women Entrepreneurs – https://www.importpromotiondesk.de/en/founded-by-women-powered-by-women/
Highlighting collaboration with IPD since 2019, supporting women in gaining financial independence and protecting themselves from being trafficked again.
Additional Information: The young women Jeny Pokharel works with are not just survivors of trafficking, they are daughters and dreamers who were once forced into unimaginable abuse, often losing hope for life itself. For the past 9 years, Jeny has given them something few dared to envision: a dignified future with employment, economic independence, and respect. Her work restores not only livelihoods but lost dreams, proving that with compassion and resilience, pain can be transformed into power and lasting change. Supporting Jeny means standing beside countless unheard, silenced, and lost women, giving them back their voices and their futures
Finalist Name: Julia Cohen Ribeiro
Title/Organization: Director of Afro Travel, Lunfarda Travel
Website: www.lunfardatravel.com
Reasons for Nomination: Leadership & Commitment
Julia is a trailblazer whose leadership has transformed Argentina’s tourism landscape by centering Afro-descendant heritage in ways that inspire, empower, and include. She began by leading the first Afro-Argentine heritage tour, breaking decades of silence around Black history in the country. Today, as Argentina’s first Afrotourism Director, Julia fosters collaboration with local entrepreneurs, cultural institutions, and international travel networks, building trust and paving the way for sustainable inclusion. Her vision and passion have inspired travelers, guides, and communities alike to see tourism as a powerful tool for justice and representation.
Impact & Achievements
Julia’s impact is concrete and far-reaching. From her work emerged El Tambo Afro, the first Black entrepreneur shop in Argentina, born from travelers’ desire to support Afro-Argentine businesses in tourism spaces where none had previously existed. She helped develop the first Argentine federal map of Afrotourism, creating visibility and access across regions. As a researcher, she is investigating the history of the legendary Shimmy Club, a historic Afro party, reclaiming erased cultural memory. She is also the director of María Presente, the first documentary about Argentina’s Black heroine, María Remedios del Valle, bringing long-ignored stories to national and international audiences.
Her voice extends globally: Julia has represented Argentine Afrotourism as a speaker in Cali and Miami, positioning Argentina within international conversations on race, heritage, and tourism. By challenging the status quo, advocating for systemic change, and building pathways for measurable progress, Julia is not only rewriting Argentina’s story—she is inspiring a new generation of leaders to see themselves reflected in it.
Links/Media:
Additional Information: I don’t think 10000 pages would be enough to convey how powerful and inspiring this woman is. She is rewriting an entire country’s tourism narrative. She deserves infinite accolades.
Finalist Name: Sherry Rupert
Title/Organization: CEO, AIANTA
Website: www.aianta.org
Reasons for Nomination: CEO Rupert’s bio illustrates her work and commitment as an Inclusion Champion:
AIANTA CEO Sherry L. Rupert (Paiute/Washoe) has over two decades of executive-level experience managing and promoting Indigenous Tourism. As CEO of the American Indian Alaska Native Tourism Association (AIANTA), the only national association dedicated to Indigenous tourism, she is the leading voice when it comes to advocating for travel and tourism as a significant economic driver in Native nations. She also holds leadership positions on various national boards including the Board of Directors for the U.S. Travel Association and the National Park Service Advisory Board Tourism Committee. She is a former member of the Business Advisory Council under the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce and a Co-Chair of the America250 Hospitality and Tourism Advisory Committee. In 2024, Sherry joined the inaugural board as a U.S. representative of the newly formed global organization, Destination Original Indigenous Tourism, where she serves as one of three key architects in its creation.
Under her leadership, she has launched the Economic Impact of U.S. Indigenous Tourism Businesses, the first-ever ever study of its kind. She also curates a robust educational program for tribes and indigenous-owned hospitality enterprises around the country. Prior to assuming the role of CEO, she served as President of AIANTA’s Board of Directors since 2012. During that time, she was instrumental in working with Congress to pass the Native American Tourism and Improving Visitor Experience (NATIVE) Act. Sherry previously served as the Executive Director of the State of Nevada Indian Commission, reporting directly to the Governor of Nevada to serve as a liaison to the state’s 28 tribes, bands and colonies and served as the Chairperson on Nevada’s Indian Territory, Nevada Commission on Tourism.
She has won numerous awards and accolades for her work, including for her work in preserving the site of the Stewart Indian School as a museum and cultural center and coordination of the popular Stewart Father’s Day Powwow, the largest three-day Powwow in Northern Nevada. She successfully raised $5.7 million in state appropriations to establish a museum and cultural center at the historic site. She led the development and implementation of the Stewart Indian School Master Plan (Interpretive Plan, Market Study, and Business Strategic Plan) for the State of Nevada. Sherry also created and implemented the award-winning Stewart Indian School Trail, a self-guided cell phone walking tour of the Stewart Indian School campus in 2008. As CEO of AIANTA, the organization has received industry recognition to include the Clyde Warrior Civil Rights Recognition presented by the Native Professional Advancement Center in 2024 and was awarded by Condé Nast Traveler’s 2024 Bright Ideas in Travel list for its partnership with the U.S. Forest Service Community Navigator program. Sherry was also recognized in 2024 by Leisure Group Travel’s Women in Tourism Leadership Spotlight, highlighting her contributions to Indigenous and cultural tourism across the U.S.
Sherry holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a Finance Major from the University of Nevada, Reno and has completed professional training courses and programs to support her work in advancing cultural tourism in the United States.
Links/Media:
1. The Growth Of Indigenous Tourism And Responsible Travel – Forbes, January 2025
https://www.forbes.com/sites/ronaberg/2025/01/28/the-growth-of-indigenous-travel-and-responsible-tourism/
2. Six ways to experience Indigenous cultures in the USA – Wanderlust, June 2025
https://www.wanderlustmagazine.com/inspiration/indigenous-culture-usa-how-to-experience/
3. Travel for All: U.S. Indigenous Tourism is Growing – USA Today, August 2024
https://drive.google.com/file/d/10aeohRJbAzc8qjgm3wwMGcSpPN0DA1X9/view
Finalist Name: John Sage
Title/Organization: Founder & CEO of Accessible Travel Solutions, Sage Traveling, and Sage Inclusion
Website: https://www.accessibletravelsolutions.com/story, https://www.sageinclusion.com, https://www.sagetraveling.com
Reasons for Nomination:
Leadership &Commitment
John Sage is leading the global travel industry in making travel accessible and inclusive for more than one billion people with disabilities. After a life-changing injury, he continued to travel as a manual wheelchair user and saw the same barriers on every trip, missing accessibility details, inconsistent service, and lost opportunities for inclusion. He chose to fix the system, not just a single itinerary.
As Founder & CEO of three accessible travel companies, Accessible Travel Solutions, Sage Traveling, and Sage Inclusion, John plans trips for people with disabilities, helps travel businesses and destinations improve accessibility, and leads the global travel industry to be more inclusive. He is the primary author of WTTC’s Inclusive and Accessible Travel Guidelines and serves on multiple committees and advisory groups, inspiring peers across leisure, business travel, and meetings and events to raise expectations.
Impact & Achievements
- 50,000+ customers, consisting of People with Disabilities (PwDs) and their traveling companions, have booked accessible trips through John’s companies, giving people with disabilities and their families the chance to explore the world with confidence.
- 15+ cruise lines rely on Accessible Travel Solutions as their preferred or exclusive partner for accessible shore excursions in 120+ ports across six continents, representing 87% of the cruise industry’s accessible shore-excursion market.
- Making destinations accessible: In 2025 John led projects in Ras Al Khaimah (UAE) and three Michigan DMOs (Frankenmuth, Great Lakes Bay, Charlevoix), completing 180 physical assessments, 146 web accessibility assessments, accessible hospitality training, and accessibility certification so barriers could be removed to create accessible destinations.
- 13 national and global travel organizations have benefited from John’s leadership in accessibility initiatives, including the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), UN Tourism (formerly UNWTO), the U.S. Department of Commerce, Destinations International (DI), Airports Council International (ACI), Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA), Global Business Travel Association (GBTA), Professional Convention Management Association (PCMA), IMEX America, the Global Diversity Alliance (GDA), the World Sustainable Hospitality Alliance (WSHA), and the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC).
In summary, John Sage has made a significant inclusivity impact on (1) disabled travelers, (2) travel businesses, (3) destinations, and (4) the global travel industry.
Links/Media:
Committees & Guidelines
- U.S. Travel & Tourism Advisory Board (TTAB) — Transcript of June 2023 meeting where John contributed as the Accessibility Committee Chairman advising the U.S. Secretary of Commerce Read the transcript (PDF)
- WTTC’s Inclusive & Accessible Travel Guidelines — Global guidelines authored by John to improve accessibility and inclusion in travel Read WTTC guidelines press release
- UN Tourism’s Accessibility Recommendations for Tour Operators and Travel Agencies — International standards and recommendations that John wrote Download the UN Tourism resource
Speaking & Media
- Brand USA “Talks Travel” Podcast — John shares his personal story and how Sage companies change the accessible travel landscape. Transcript (PDF)
- DMOU (Destinations International) Podcast — John discusses how destinations can address accessibility in practical, scalable ways. Listen here
- Travel Weekly “The Folo” Podcast — Episode on how the industry can make travel truly accessible, featuring John’s insights. Listen here
- Skift Meetings “Rethinking Event Accessibility” — Article and discussion featuring John on accessible events. Read the article
- Speech at WTTC Global Summit— Highlights John’s accessibility advocacy on a global platform. Watch part of the speech
- Interview at Global Tourism Forum — Event highlight featuring John’s inclusion work Watch the interview
John discusses practical truths about accessible travel at Seatrade Cruise Global 2024, including what travelers really need, what the industry should deliver, and how inclusion can become standard.
*Finalists were determined by an internal panel of judges, using the below rubric:
Alignment with Inclusive Practices (15 points):
- Excellent (13–15 points): Strong, demonstrated commitment to inclusion.
- Good (9–12 points): Adequate but not exceptional alignment with inclusive practices.
- Needs Improvement (0–8 points): Limited or unclear alignment with inclusive practices.
Impact (15 points):
- High Impact (13–15 points): Significant, measurable positive impact.
- Moderate Impact (9–12 points): Meaningful impact with some measurable or observable outcomes; may be limited in scope or scale.
- Low Impact (0–8 points): Minimal impact.
Innovation (15 points):
- Highly Innovative (13–15 points): Demonstrates groundbreaking approaches.
- Moderately Innovative (9–12 points): Shows some innovative practices.
- Conventional (0–8 points): Minimal innovation or traditional approaches.