A Note of Impact

Nearly ten years ago, IMPACT Sustainability Travel and Tourism set out to create space for a different conversation about tourism.

What began as a gathering of people asking challenging questions has grown into a community of destination leaders, entrepreneurs, researchers, and advocates working to create positive change through travel.

This issue celebrates that journey. Within these pages, you'll meet some of the people who have helped shape the movement, explore the ideas influencing its evolution, and revisit moments from the IMPACT community that continue to inspire new ways of thinking and working.

In her opening column, Gaby Beaudoin, Program Director of the IMPACT Sustainable Travel and Tourism Summit, shows how destinations function as interconnected nodes within larger social, cultural, economic, and governance systems. Rather than isolated sustainability initiatives, lasting transformation emerges through networks of destinations sharing and replicating whole-system approaches. It is a fitting perspective for a milestone year that is as much about community as it is about progress.

In her article, The World We Are Building Together, Starr McMichael reflects on the role sponsorship has played in making that community possible. The conversations, collaborations, and innovations that have emerged through IMPACT over the past decade are, in many ways, the result of organizations choosing to invest in a shared vision for the future of tourism.

As we look ahead, we see that the work continues, the questions continue, and the opportunity to shape tourism for the better remains as important as ever. We invite those who share this vision to consider how they can help build the next chapter of IMPACT through sponsorship and partnership.

We'd like to extend a special thank you to all of our 2026 IMPACT sponsors. We couldn't do this important work without you.

Here's to the next decade of learning, collaboration, and turning vision into practice.