Global Changemakers Celebrated

A regenerative trail in Bali, a San education centre in Southern Africa, all-inclusive resorts in Turkey and Tanzania, a waste initiative in Malaysia and a pioneering peace-focused tour operator have won gold in the 2025 International Centre for Responsible Tourism (ICRT) Global Responsible Tourism Awards sponsored by Sabre.

The Global Responsible Tourism Awards gold winners and each of the 24 other organisations recognised had all already won gold in regional awards held with ICRTs in Latin America, Africa, Europe, the Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia.

Emeritus Professor Harold Goodwin, chair of the judging panel and founder of ICRT global said: “Responsible tourism is about making better places for people to live in and visit. As is clear from the 2022 Responsible Tourism Charter there is a wide variety of ways that businesses and destination managers can take responsibility. It is critically important that organisations support any statement of impact with facts. Our sector is still plagued with extravagant claims, we hope that national and EU mis-selling regulations will reduce this over time.  All of the Global Responsible Tourism Award winners have explained how they decided what to take responsibility for, what they did and with what impact.  Congratulations to them all and we hope they will inspire other organisations to follow in their footsteps.”

The 2025 Global Responsible Tourism Awards gold winners are:

Astungkara Way, Indonesia wins the nature positive Global Responsible Tourism Award. This 135 km regenerative pilgrimage in Bali that blends environmental restoration with cultural renewal. It weaves through rice paddies and forests, linking 14 local partner families who host visitors.

MEJDI Tours wins the Global Responsible Tourism Award for peace, understanding and inclusion. This socially conscious travel company that uses tourism as a tool for peacebuilding, cultural understanding, and economic justice. It designs immersive, multi-narrative experiences led by local voices -often from opposing perspectives- to help travellers engage with the complexity, beauty, and humanity of the places they visit.

The winner of the increasing local sourcing and creating shared value Global Responsible Tourism Award is  !Khwa ttu San Culture and Education Centre Southern Africa.This cultural and educational centre that honours the San people’s heritage while supporting economic empowerment and sustainability. Its approach to food and beverage sourcing is deeply rooted in ethics and tradition.

There were two outstanding gold winners in the award for responsible all-inclusive resorts. Club Marvy, in Özdere, Turkey views sustainable gastronomy as a core value and adopts local supply policies to strengthen the local economy, promote healthy living, and contribute to environmental protection and the preservation of traditional agricultural practices.  Foxes Safari Camps, Tanzania operates an impressive all-inclusive tourism model that prioritises sustainability and community development across its Tanzanian properties.

WormingUp™ Malaysia is a youth-led, ISO 14001 certified social enterprise in Sarawak. It transforms organic waste using black soldier fly larvae, creating natural fertiliser and insect protein, and diverts waste from landfills. It wins the 2025 managing waste Global Responsible Tourism Award.

Debbie Hindle, chair of ICRT global said: “Our awards are free to enter but hard to win. We applaud all our 2025 winners for inspiring and giving us great new ideas for the future. And we’re now starting the hunt for our 2026 changemakers, if you know of anyone who should be recognised please do suggest they enter.”

Further winners in the Global Responsible Tourism Awards are:

Nature Positive Global Responsible Tourism Awards

SILVER Rainforest Expeditions andWired Amazon programme in Peru integrates scientific research with ecotourism to conserve biodiversity while benefiting local communities. It engages volunteers in citizen science, using AI to process drone footage, camera trap images, and bioacoustic data.

SILVER Naturetrek, Worldwide is a UK-based wildlife holiday tour operator established in 1986, which supports multiple conservation initiatives and stood out to the judges for allocating its own profits to buy land reserves around the world as a long-term investment to support conservation and biodiversity.

FINALIST Cardamon Tented Camp, Cambodia operates within Botum Sakor National Park and helps fund18 forest rangers from camp profits. It enables patrols that combat illegal logging, wildlife trafficking, sand bank dredging, and land grabbing.

FINALIST Emboo Safari Camp, Kenya Located in Kenya’s Maasai Mara, Emboo Safari Camp is a sustainability leader, running entirely on solar power and recycling all waste. It was the first camp in East Africa to use electric safari vehicles, which not only reduce emissions but also enhance the wildlife experience through quieter, more immersive encounters.

FINALIST Jetwing Vil Uyana  Sri Lanka exemplifies nature-positive tourism through its transformative restoration of degraded land into a biodiverse wetland supporting over 300 species. The judges commended Jetwing Vil Uyana for presenting a leading model in ecosystem regeneration and visitor education.

FINALIST Six Senses Laamu  Maldives delivers a highly replicable, science-backed model of nature-positive tourism, grounded in long-term conservation initiatives such as coral spawning research, megafauna tracking, and turtle ranger programs; each showing measurable ecological outcomes.

Peace Understanding and Inclusion Global Responsible Tourism Awards

SILVER Anthro on Foot Audio Walking Tours, Philippines offers affordable self-guided audio tours across all 17 Philippine regions, including underrepresented or conflict-affected sites. It includes in-depth narratives that span pre-colonial, colonial, and modern histories.

SILVER Township & Village, Stellenbosch, South Africa
Township & Village (T&V) creates community-based tourism experiences around Stellenbosch that encourage guests to explore local culture, history, and life through immersive guided tours in historically marginalised communities.

SILVER Better Life Foundation in Ngaland India has created apeacebuilding-led, culture-centred model that builds trust through regenerative farming and then introduces tourism with ex-insurgents trained as guides, turning fear into shared pride and livelihood.

FINALIST Valencia Travel Cusco for the Ruqha Ayllu Project, Peru
Valencia Travel Cusco launched the Ruqha Ayllu Project of experiential tourism to empower a marginalised community of 25 families excluded from mainstream tourism.

Managing Waste Global Responsible Tourism Award

SILVER HBD Príncipe, São Tomé and Príncipe operates with a clear vision of environmental responsibility on the island of Príncipe. Its ten-person waste management team leads a range of community and business-focused initiatives that reduce landfill and support reuse and recycling.

SILVER TIEEDI Permaculture Foundation, India is an environmental conservation organisation in Darjeeling which proudly proclaims it is waging a war on waste through permaculture-based zero-waste homestays, forest gardens, eco-architecture and education.

FINALIST EcoCamp, Patagonia is located in Torres del Paine National Park, Chile and demonstrates a comprehensive approach to waste management. In a remote park where landfill is the default, EcoCamp offers a replicable model for sustainable waste handling.

Increasing Local Sourcing and Creating Shared Value Global Responsible Tourism Awards

SILVER Dlala Nje, Johannesburg, South Africa runs transformative inner-city tours in Hillbrow and Yeoville, encouraging guests to reframe their perceptions of Johannesburg’s most misunderstood areas.

SILVER Community Homestay Network Nepal is a social enterprise that partners with local communities across Nepal to offer culturally immersive homestay experiences.

SILVER Delphina hotels and resorts, is a family-owned business in Sardinia which operates twelve hotels, six spas and villas in Sardinia. It runs a “Genuine Local Food Oriented^®” initiative, which focuses on promoting healthy, sustainable, and local cuisine.

FINALIST Kuyana Amazon Lodge, Ecuador sources over 80% of its food from nearby farms, anchoring its cuisine in traditional Amazonian gastronomy and strengthening the local economy

Climate Adaptation and Resilience Global Responsible Tourism Awards

SILVER Green Safaris Conservation Foundation, Zambia is innovating the safari model through solar-powered, silent vehicles and lodges that are over 80% powered by solar energy. Its commitment to low-emissions tourism is matched by community-facing climate resilience work.

SILVER Six Senses Ninh Van Bay Beach Resort & Hotel built Vietnam’s first on-site solar farm (Crystal Water Plant), supplying both potable water and greywater treatment systems

SILVER Heritance Hotels, Kandalama  Sri Lanka is a luxury hotel which was designed by the famous Sri Lankan architect Geoffrey Bawa. It is addressing and adapting to climate change goals, by offering a long-term, well-integrated regenerative tourism model that is measurable, credible, and deeply embedded in both ecology and community.

FINALIST Amazonas Explorer, Peru reduces carbon emissions by offering low-impact adventure travel, such as trekking, biking, and rafting, across Peru’s Sacred Valley. It operates E-bikes, sources food locally, and avoids air-conditioned transport

Responsible All-Inclusives, Global Responsible Tourism Awards

SILVER Nay Palad Hideaway, Philippines redefines barefoot luxury on Siargao Island by emphasising nature, culture, and community. It operates an all-inclusive model featuring permaculture gardens, organic food, composting, recycling, and environmental stewardship- including mangrove restoration, plus support for local education and healthcare.

SILVER Sen Caraih, Vietnam is a Cham-led, community-run ecotourism village. It has transformed lowland rice paddies into lotus fields, offering guests hands-on activities like lotus harvesting, fishing, cooking, weaving, and cultural performances.

FINALIST Heel Oya CBT Village  is community-based tourism village in Sri Lanka. The judges praised its community-based tour packages for integrating food, trekking, local gastronomy, and traditional agriculture into immersive experiences, while offering homestays and newly curated activities.

The judges of the 2025 Global Responsible Tourism Awards, chaired by ICRT Founder Harold Goodwin included: Justin Francis CEO of Responsible Travel, Manisha Pande ICRT India Foundation, Carol Hay, ICRT global special advisor and chief tourism offier McKenzie Gayle, Glynn O Leary ICRT Southern Africa and Transfrontier National Parks, Quin Meyer, ICRT global director and founder Crees Manu,  Gustavo Pinto ICRT Latin America, Kerry Carmichael founder of Echo and from ICRT Southeast Asia Mr Sochea Nhem and Dr Phuong Bui.