TRAVEL VANGUARD
In 2016, we created the Travel Vanguard to honor values-oriented leaders making positive changes in the travel industry. This year, we’ve expanded our lens to focus on entire organizations that walk the walk to ensure that travel is a force for good.
Out of more than 100 nominees, this year’s honorees include hotels, tour operators, a tourism board, a flight school, and a tech-savvy nonprofit. They work across all seven continents, and they’re grappling with everything from social and racial justice to accessibility and climate change. Read on to learn about the inspiring companies transforming the way we travel.
UNITED AVIATE ACADEMY FOR DIVERSIFYING AVIATION
IF YOU’RE A WOMAN or a person of color in the United States, your likelihood of becoming a professional pilot is slim: According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2021, 94 percent of all aircraft pilots were male and 93 percent were white.
In addition to revealing a huge inequality issue, these statistics also show that flight schools are missing out on opportunities to find the nation’s best and brightest next-gen aviation talent, according to Dana Donati, CEO of the new United Aviate Academy (UAA).
That’s why, in December 2021, United Airlines launched UAA. The academy is diversifying aviation, as well as responding to a dwindling aviation workforce and the prohibitively high cost of flight schools approved by the Federal Aviation Administration.
The academy’s mission is to create the broadest pool of exceptional candidates possible by removing financial hurdles and addressing the industry’s poor track record of recruitment efforts among diverse communities. For Donati, the mission feels personal. “Being a female in aviation, I know firsthand the barriers and financial struggle
