Source: UN Tourism

"To engage the media and to recognize the work of journalists in the coverage of wildlife and sustainable tourism." This is the ultimate goal of the Media Award announced by the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) on the occasion of Wildlife Day celebrated on 3 March. The UNWTO/Chimelong Initiative aims to promote the value of tourism for wildlife conservation and also includes training to tourism administrations and to media on the theme.

The UNWTO/Chimelong Media Award seeks to recognize the most committed and original purveyors of news and stories related to wildlife conservation and tourism.

"The engagement of media is as important as that of governments and private sector to address the role of tourism as a driver to foster wildlife conservation. Much of our activities in this area are focused in Africa and Asia. The African continent for example is a unique case with regard to wildlife and tourism. Supporting the role of tourism in wildlife conservation is critical for socio-economic development and the achievement of the SDGs and the Agenda 2030 in Africa" said UNWTO Secretary General, Zurab Pololikashvili.

The UNWTO/Chimelong Initiative is being implemented between 2017 and 2019 and aims at engaging key stakeholders like the media and tourism administrations in fostering sustainable tourism as a means to protect wildlife. Seven African countries (Republic of Guinee, Niger, Republic of Congo, Botswana, Benin, Gabon and Democratic Republic of Congo) hosted in 2017 activities of the UNWTO/Chimelong Initiative. Over 100 tourism officers and 50 media professionals have enhanced their capacities and understanding on wildlife through these activities.

The Jury of the Media Award is integrated by representatives from UNWTO, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), UN Environment and Lonely Planet.

John Scanlon, Secretary General of CITES commented "we welcome the initiative of UNWTO on occasion of the World Wildlife Day to highlight the role of the media in raising awareness of how well-managed tourism can support wildlife protection. Journalists can inform and educate the general public, and thereby help generate a positive change in how we view wildlife and sustainable tourism, both within governments and with the private sector". Scanlon invited journalists worldwide to take part in the competition, "join us in advancing the global cause for wildlife by participating in this years' Media Award on Wildlife and Sustainable Tourism", he said.

The role of sustainable tourism in fostering wildlife protection is stressed by Tom Hall, Editorial Director of Lonely Planet and member of the Jury of the UNWTO/Chimelong Media Award. "I'm pleased to be a part of the UNWTO/Chimelong Media Award judging process as the protection of wildlife and advocacy of sustainable tourism is vital to the positive future of travel," he said.

The Media Award welcomes articles, reports and interviews addressing the topic of wildlife and sustainable tourism published between January 2017 and June 2018 in any of the five UNWTO official languages (English, French, Spanish, Russian and Arabic).

The deadline for submissions is 15th July 2018. The awardee will be designated at the Awards Ceremony that will take place in September 2018.

About UN Tourism

The World Tourism Organization (UN Tourism) is the United Nations agency responsible for the promotion of responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism.

As the leading international organization in the field of tourism, UN Tourism promotes tourism as a driver of economic growth, inclusive development and environmental sustainability and offers leadership and support to the sector in advancing knowledge and tourism policies worldwide.

Our Priorities

Mainstreaming tourism in the global agenda: Advocating the value of tourism as a driver of socio-economic growth and development, its inclusion as a priority in national and international policies and the need to create a level playing field for the sector to develop and prosper.

Promoting sustainable tourism development: Supporting sustainable tourism policies and practices: policies which make optimal use of environmental resources, respect the socio-cultural authenticity of host communities and provide socio-economic benefits for all.

Fostering knowledge, education and capacity building: Supporting countries to assess and address their needs in education and training, as well as providing networks for knowledge creation and exchange.

Improving tourism competitiveness: Improving UN Tourism Members' competitiveness through knowledge creation and exchange, human resources development and the promotion of excellence in areas such as policy planning, statistics and market trends, sustainable tourism development, marketing and promotion, product development and risk and crisis management.

Advancing tourism's contribution to poverty reduction and development: Maximizing the contribution of tourism to poverty reduction and achieving the SDGs by making tourism work as a tool for development and promoting the inclusion of tourism in the development agenda.

Building partnerships: Engaging with the private sector, regional and local tourism organizations, academia and research institutions, civil society and the UN system to build a more sustainable, responsible and competitive tourism sector.

Our Structure

Members: An intergovernmental organization, UN Tourism has 160 Member States, 6 Associate Members, 2 Observers and over 500 Affiliate Members.

Organs: The General Assembly is the supreme organ of the Organization. The Executive Council take all measures, in consultation with the Secretary-General, for the implementation of the decisions and recommendations of the General Assembly and reports to the Assembly.

Secretariat: UN Tourism headquarters are based in Madrid, Spain. The Secretariat is led by the Secretary-General and organized into departments covering issues such as sustainability, education, tourism trends and marketing, sustainable development, statistics and the Tourism Satellite Account (TSA), destination management, ethics and risk and crisis management. The Technical Cooperation and Silk Road Department carries out development projects in over 100 countries worldwide, while the Regional Departments for Africa, the Americas, Asia and the Pacific, Europe and the Middle East serve as the link between UN Tourism and its 160 Member States. The Affiliate Members Department represents UN Tourism's 500 plus Affiliate members.

Rut Gómez Sobrino
Principal Media Officer
(+34) 91 567 81 60
UN Tourism