Purposeful Travel Summit

People, Planet, Place and Pace

Join us at Banff Centre, February 7-9, 2024.

Early Bird Tickets and Packages Available in September 2023.

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The Purposeful Travel Summit will launch a new era in travel that integrates sustainability, education and a passion to promote travel that contributes to a better world. People want to travel, and destinations want to host but we all just want to do it a bit better! Purposeful Travel encourages visitors and host destinations to be intentional in the experiences they seek and provide, based on principles that represent an exciting vision for travel’s next chapter. 

  • The value proposition in travel has shifted from quantity to quality which implies a stronger connection to place, planet and people.  
  • Tourism has an opportunity to be more sustainable by reducing greenhouse gas emissions and negative impacts on host communities. 
  • Tourism has an opportunity to be more impactful by delivering rejuvenation through wellness travel and connecting to place via slow travel (ie pace). 
  • Education and storytelling are how we create extraordinary experiences that make the world a better place.

2024 Summit Details

The Purposeful Travel Summit is the place for real and open conversations about the future of travel.  The Summit is designed to appeal to industry professionals, academics and students. It is also open to essential tourism collaborators such as local governments, non-governmental organizations and community members who are residents in and around tourism regions. 

Building on the success of the 2023 Summit, the 2024 Purposeful Travel Summit will feature:

  • Pre-Summit Workshop exploring “Connecting to Place”
  • Open space for participant driven conversations
  • Purposeful Exploration of the future of technology and guiding
  • Purposeful Destination: choosing your visitors
  • Panel Discussion featuring local stakeholders

     

Packages: Full Summit, one-day, and student attendance packages will be available. Packages on sale in September. 

For those who wish to be involved in the Summit as a presenter or collaborator, connect with us at summits@banffcentre.ca.

"The aim of travel should be to create better global citizens and a global citizen does their best work at home"

Rick Steves

Who will be in Attendance?

Purposeful Travel as a concept is inclusive, so the Summit is designed to appeal to industry professionals, (hoteliers, tour operators, service providers), academics, and students. It is also open to essential tourism collaborators such as local governments, non-governmental organizations and of course community members who are residents in and around tourism regions.

The Purposeful Travel Summit is an in-person event, with a blend of online and in-person presentations.

Summit Host: Banff Centre, Canada

Banff Centre has a long history of inspiring people to challenge ideas and create change through education and collaborations.  It is situated in the majestic Rocky Mountains of Banff National Park and provides a world class setting for the demonstration of what Purposeful Travel may be in the future. A key element is the Banff Net Zero 2035 initiative which aims to make Banff the first carbon neutral tourism destination on the planet.

2023 Summit Structure (For Reference) 

February 13, 2023 - Pre-Summit Workshop on Truth and Right Relations

February 14 and 15, 2023 - Banff Centre Purposeful Travel Summit 

View Full Schedule

Programmer

Joe Pavelka PhD, Professor of Ecotourism and Outdoor Leadership
Mount Royal University, Calgary, Alberta, Canada jpavelka@mtroyal.ca  

2023 Summit Speakers

Come join us for the next Summit February 7 - 9, 2024

For more information, contact us at summits@banffcentre.ca 

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