Check-In with Suzanne

How Do You Transform An Industry? One Person at a Time. 

Today we step into November – for many of us the next few weeks will be busy and productive ones as we wrap up 2022 and move our focus to the year ahead. But it’s also a not-to-be-missed opportunity to reflect on how much has been accomplished.  
 
Last Thursday evening, we celebrated many in our industry who are giving back to move us forward. At the sold-out GBTA WINiT Awards Gala in New York City, the industry gathered to honor and thank more than 60 individuals – both women and men – as well as their organizations, whose efforts have supported and advanced women in travel-related industries. Congratulations to all of this year’s winners! It’s well-deserved recognition. 
 
These dedicated individuals, and the many others who have supported GBTA, WINiT, and the industry over the years, are so much more than volunteers. They are the people whose efforts, expertise and passion are ultimately empowering and driving transformation across the global business travel industry. We are grateful for all of you! 
 
Another critical area of transformation for our industry is sustainability, an existential topic of our times. We’re in the run-up to our first-ever GBTA Sustainability Summit on November 8 in Brussels (as well as the GBTA Europe Conference), which is running concurrently with COP 27 (the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change) in Egypt starting Sunday. From what we are hearing from you, it is clear our industry cares, acknowledging that our collective sustainability journey is a critical one. We see this both from your show of support financially and also from the conferences, meetings, and workshops many of you are holding within your individual companies on this complicated topic. Thanks for including GBTA in so many of them. 
 
Sustainability will continue to be a major priority for our industry in 2023 and beyond, and we look forward to working collectively to transform our industry and business travel for a greener future. Sustainability is clearly activated across the travel industry – evidenced by the discussions around the solutions, policy choices and ultimate investment required. And now it’s time for action, for business travel has an opportunity to lead the way for the entire travel industry – with our many voices and one purpose. 

Suzanne