Youth empowerment for tourism’s future ,The eight winning solutions

Students from around the world have been recognized for ideas to make tourism more responsible and sustainable. The 2021 Global UNWTO Students’ League Competition focused on addressing the issue of plastics pollution within the sector, as well as maximizing tourism’s contributions to rural development.

The competition attracted over 1,000 students. From these, 155 teams, representing 124 educational institutions in 45 different countries put forward their ideas. As well as being judged on how well their idea would contribute to a specific Sustainable Development Goal, the students were also assessed on the feasibility of their solutions and on their level of teamwork.

The eight winning solutions included works of art, calls to action, Instagram and other digital marketing campaigns, and potential strategies to help both destinations and tourism accommodation providers reduce plastic waste and consumption. Several of the ideas submitted to the competition have already been picked up and implemented by stakeholders across the tourism sector.

The UNWTO Students League is a unique chance for students from around the world to help lead this change