Ela goes green

Responsible tourism is a key theme at ela 2018. Here LATA Chairman Colin Stewart reveals how he plans to put sustainability in the spotlight “We plan to launch the new LATA Sustainability Charter at ela, promoting 10 key principles of sustainability”

Since being appointed Chairman of the Latin America Travel Association (LATA),

Colin Stewart has made sustainability a priority. Here he tells us what we can expect from this year’s ela event and why the green theme is top of this year’s agenda.

QWhat’s

new for ela 2018?

A: ela has continued to exceed expectations. Since its conception we have shown there is a real need to deliver an event which allows our Latin American partners to meet with suppliers and do business with UK buyers and tour operators. This year we are expecting more exhibitors than ever before, including 30 newcomers. Every year we oversubscribe, which demonstrates the demand for such an event that has become the number one Latin American show in Europe.

QIs

there a focus you are pushing?

A: This year we are pushing the sustainability element. It’s one of the commitments I made when I was appointed Chairman and something I feel strongly about. ela gives us the perfect platform to drive this message within the Latin American regions and our members.

We plan to launch the new LATA Sustainability Charter, which will promote 10 key principles of sustainability and encourage the travel industry and all of our members to adopt these principles.

QHow

will ela go green?

A: We have created a new ‘green’ logo this year to identify that we have aspirations to becoming as green as we can be. To support this we have eliminated plastic cutlery at the event, will reduce food wastage and introduce a zero collateral footprint policy – this means getting our partners to think about the amount of marketing materials they bring to the event. How we preserve and sustain the environment is so important.

QWhat

trends are you predicting for travel in Latin America?

A: The experience of getting to Latin America has vastly improved compared to just 10 years ago. These are destinations that were not on the radar then and are only starting to be discovered now. We see trends forming in places such as Costa Rica, Brazil, Chile and Argentina.

QWhich

destinations are experiencing growth in 2018?

A: It’s an exciting time to be travelling to Latin America and year-on-year more travellers are looking to discover more countries in the region. Also, a lot of investment has been pumped into tourism and governments seem to be realising just how crucial the tourism industry is for their economies. Colombia alone has registered a 50% increase in tourism. Additional air capacity has helped boost arrivals and the economy there is already improving. Register for ela at: experiencelatinamerica.travel