2018 marked the 100th anniversary of British women gaining the right to vote and WTM London held a special travel-focused debate to mark this. The need for greater diversity, gender balance and visibility of women in the travel industry is still a key issue and our panel investigate what the travel industry might be able to do to accelerate the pace at which the pay gap is closing and what lessons and best practice can be shared and learnt from other sectors.

The panel is moderated by Alessandra Alonso of Women in Travel, a long-standing, passionate advocate and supporter of women in the travel & tourism industry and social entrepreneur and includes a stellar line-up of women from media, politics and of course travel

Eliza Reid – First Lady of Iceland & Special Ambassador for Tourism (World Tourism Organisation)

Zina Bencheikh, PEAK Destination Management Company 

June Sarpong MBE, Co-Founder, WIE Network & DNA Summit

Jo Phillips, VP Talent & Culture, Carnival UK

• How if we don’t have women at the table we’re losing 50% of the chance for success
• Iceland’s ranking as the number one country in the world to be a woman
• How the travel and tourism industry can make women’s voices heard and become more empowered
• How the Suffragette’s made their voice heard by taking huge risks
• Women doing well at mid-level but not rising to senior management
• Companies realising that amplifying the female voice matters
• How senior female representation is the key
• The Iceland women’s strikes
• The commercial case for having women in senior positions in the industry
• The power of a diversity of voice and using our voices together whatever gender
• Celebrating the gains that have been made
• How mean and women at the top must champion women working their way up
• The importance of mentoring and role modelling