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Valera Global Founders David and Naomi Eckstein celebrate Lucky to Be Here Friends Giving with business associates
With close to 20 guests, Valera Global Founders David and Naomi Eckstein held their “Lucky to be Here Friends Giving” on Saturday, June 24. They celebrated 37 years of business among business associates and friends from the Northeast, namely Long Island, Westchester, and even Boston.
“Naomi and I love to party with business affiliates who’ve become close friends over the years from the black car and limousine industry where we’ve been very unsuccessfully going out of business for the last 37 years,” jokes David. “What an incredible trip that has been.”
The event was commemorated with T-shirts for each of the guests printed by Roberta Pike and partner Paul Danzinger of Stich This Print That in North Bellmore, N.Y. Pike previously served as Valera’s corporate lawyer for more than 30 years, and was a columnist for Chauffeur Driven.
Visit valeraglobal.com for more information.
[06.30.23]
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Sustainability in global corporate travel is a priority for the industry, according to a new report released by the GBTA Foundation, the charitable arm of the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA). The Foundation’s report, The State of Climate Action in Business Travel—Global Industry Barometer 2023, found that 92 percent of respondents are making sustainability a top concern in their business, up from 89 percent in the 2022 report.
The report was unveiled as part of GBTA’s 2nd Sustainability Summit, which was held in Washington, D.C., earlier this month. Notably, respondents from Asia Pacific and Latin America unanimously claim it’s a top priority, with Europe at 98 percent; North America was slightly lower than its global counterparts at 86 percent.
Moreover, travel partners are looking toward those who can offer solutions. And while a corporate green footprint is important for their reputation (84 percent), they are equally concerned about the impact on the environment (82 percent)—meaning it’s not just lip service. As such, GBTA sees sustainable practices as part of their long-term initiative to be leader for their global members.
Report Highlights: Sustainability
Additional key findings:
- Combining trips is seen as a tactic to maximize travel’s return on emissions: 74 percent of travel managers are encouraging (55 percent) or mandating (19 percent) their employees to combine multiple business trips into one.
- Travel managers are not always directly acting on the purpose of travel in their policies: 38 percent report they currently ask for justification for same-day business trips based on return on investment (ROI) and available alternatives.
- Developing consistent industry-wide standards is a priority for travel buyers.Asked to pick five ways in which the industry should accelerate sustainable change (out of 10 possible), a large majority of buyers point to harmonized standards on emissions measurement, accounting, and reporting (requested by 65 percent of buyers). Meanwhile, 60 percent of buyers requested that GBTA develop harmonized sustainability questions to be used in procurement.
- Financing the green transition continues to present the biggest challenge for both travel buyers and suppliers in decarbonizing their programs and operations, with “higher costs” ranking as the number one barrier two years in a row.
- Travel managers are being tasked with reducing emissions for their programs: More than half (54 percent) of respondents say their company has set either internal or public targets to reduce Scope 3 emissions, which include those from business travel. Another 23 percent are planning to set such reduction targets.
“Any kind of meaningful impact begins with the knowledge that change is necessary,” said GBTA Foundation Managing Director Delphine Millot. “Engaging business travelers and activating the point of sale to empower them to select more sustainable options will be critical—with corporate travel managers playing a leading role in driving that needed change. But to get there, as an industry we must unify standards and make the investments needed to decarbonize business travel.”
The full report is available for download here.
Visit gbtafoundation.org for more information.
[06.27.23]
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225+ travel professionals attended the ASTA Legislative Day
More than 225 travel advisors, representing all 50 states, journeyed to our nation’s capital to advocate for the travel industry for the American Society of Travel Advisors’ (ASTA) Legislative Day. In addition to meetings with Congressional representatives—more than 200, according to the association—the annual event included a prep course for the meetings as well as an industry forecast panel discussion.
Members met with Congressional reps, including Congressman Kevin Hern (R-Okla.)
According to a press release from ASTA, among the issues discussed with legislators and their staffs were ensuring that ASTA’s priorities are maintained in the multi-year Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reauthorization bill (H.R. 3935/S. 1939), especially those related to airline refunds; the DOT’s Aviation Consumer Protection Advisory Committee and streamlining offline air consumer disclosures; and supporting the U.S. Department of Commerce’s $3.5 million funding request to set up the office of the new Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Travel and Tourism.
The event also included a Travel Industry Forecast panel discussion
“When it comes to the government, you face a choice: engage in the process or put your head in the sand, leave the field to the opposition, and hope for the best. Starting well before COVID hit, ASTA and our members have engaged tirelessly, both in D.C. and in the states, and we have a series of wins to show for it,” said President & CEO Zane Kerby. “By showing Congress who we are, who we employ, and that we are paying attention, the government will understand that travel advisors watch out for the traveling public. Legislative Day is the most important way to send that message.”
“Policymaking is a marathon, not a sprint,” said Executive Vice President of Advocacy Eben Peck. “Our goal is to raise awareness about the critical role travel advisors play in the broader travel and tourism industry, and to secure support from as many legislators as possible for policies that will help our members’ businesses recover post-COVID. Legislative Day is the most impactful thing our members can do to help make that happen.”
Visit asta.org for more information.
[06.27.23]