UNWTO AWAKE TOURISM CHALLENGE

Tourism is resilient. While it has been one of the most impacted sectors by global crisis, it has also demonstrated its potential as a major force of recovery.

Now, with an accelerated digital transformation and technology adoption throughout the tourism value chain, the sector stands out as a leader for responding to the toughest challenges.

At the same time, youth has proven its capacity to come up with technology, social impact, and sustainability solutions. However, they need concrete support to keep their energy and unleash all their projects’ benefits.

For this reason, UNWTO calls for a joint effort amongst stakeholders and launches the Awake Tourism Challenge seeking to find the most innovative startups that are working to advance the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Benefits for winning startups include but are not limited to:

• Sponsorship provided by Wakalua to pitch at the UNWTO Demo Day (venue and country tbc);
• Application through the YouNoodle platform, which facilitates introduction and growth opportunities for startups;
• Access to 90+ Venture Capitalists, Top Corporations and 150+ Countries;
• Become a Member of the UNWTO Innovation Network;
• Curated mentorship and acceleration programme from our partners;
• Membership at the Startup Campuses;
• Potential pilot project with private sector collaborators and institutions;
• Potential seed funding;
• Incubation services in Les Roches Spark Innovation Center, including 3 months accommodation in Crans-Montana, provided by the Sommet Education group.