A chat with Christina Margarita Tunnah, World Nomads

Hi Christina, thanks for giving a sneak preview of your responsible travel session at WYSTC coming up a WYSTC later this month.

You’re welcome – happy to do it and thank you for the opportunity! World Nomads is looking forward to WYSTC, as always.

Tell us, what will you cover during your WYSTC session “Responsibility at the core: Building a responsible travel business”?

The session will step through the five key ingredients that are the engine behind World Nomad’s path to becoming a global responsible travel business. You can’t support responsible travel if you’re not a responsible business. These ingredients have been key to our business since day one – and while they may sound obvious, they’re often overlooked or don’t get past the “words” on a mission statement or PowerPoint. We’ve learned many lessons throughout our 20-year journey and still can’t drop the mic. I hope attendees can take away practical knowledge that they can apply in their own businesses – or start the conversation with us.

Who should add this responsible travel session to their schedule and why?

I think WYSTC attendees will be surprised to learn how an insurance company can shape itself into a responsible global business that is relevant to youth travellers who care and want authentic experiences and to buy from companies that align with their values. Ultimately throughout our 20 years, we’ve found that doing the right thing is good for sales, growth, innovation, and staff retention. Those are all good things that you need to grow a global brand.

What’s the most exciting part of your role at World Nomads?

The most exciting part of my role at World Nomads is working with a diverse and geographically dispersed team who bring fresh perspectives, energy and smarts that keep the brand, campaigns and products current and responsive to the evolving traveller needs. No one day is the same.

I thought you might say that WYSTC is the most exciting part!

Ha! WYSTC is very much a marquee event for World Nomads!

World Nomads is a long-time sponsor of WYSTC – what’s been the best part of that relationship so far?

It’s no accident that we have a long relationship with WYSE Travel Confederation and the World Youth and Student Travel Conference. For over 18 years, WYSE and WYSTC have been powerful forums for World Nomads to build meaningful partnerships and strength in the global youth travel market.

Can you tell us about something new and interesting at World Nomads, current or forthcoming?

There are three exciting things on the boil at World Nomads:

1. Our new affiliate program will be launching soon – a formal announcement will be made during WYSTC.
2. It’s our 20 th anniversary! Twenty years of keeping travellers safe and protected – it’s a huge milestone for us and another proof point that being a responsible business is a good foundation for being a sustainable business.
3. Our Content Creator Scholarship, after a hiatus due to COVID, is back and reimagined as a bootcamp in partnership with NOMADasaurus, Sony, and RØDE. Our scholarship programme has been running for 16 years. It reflects the World Nomads community and drive for capturing the great narratives and stories of the host communities in which they travel. It’s open until October 16 and you can learn more at worldnomads.com/creator.

Thank you for this sneak preview, Christina. Looking forward to it in Lisbon.

Thank you!

Join Christina Margarita Tunnah of World Nomads at the World Youth and Student Travel Conference (WYSTC) for “Responsibility at the core: Building a responsible travel business” on Thursday, 29 September from 11:00 – 12:00 local Lisbon time.