Immediately preceding Travel Weekly's Readers Choice Awards gala at the Conrad New York, industry nonprofit organization Tourism Cares held its Hearts of Travel Awards ceremony at the hotel to recognize "excellence in travel corporate social responsibility and philanthropy," according to the nonprofit.
Abercrombie & Kent and Universal Orlando Resort were honored with Legacy in Travel Philanthropy awards, honoring long-term impact in corporate philanthropy.
Afar Media received the New Innovators Award, recognizing achievement among organizations that have started a philanthropic program within the last three to six years.
Jonathan Tisch, co-chairman of the board of Loews Corp. and chairman of Loews Hotels & Resorts, received the Personal Philanthropic Leadership Award.
Tourism Cares Hearts of Travel Awards recipients, from left: Keith Sproule, executive director, Abercrombie & Kent; Diane O’Dell, vice president of community relations, Universal Orlando Resort; Jonathan Tisch, co-chairman of the board of Loews Corp. and chairman of Loews Hotels; and Afar Media co-founders Joe Diaz, chief product officer, and Greg Sullivan, CEO.
Abercrombie & Kent's corporate contributions, guest contributions and the value of in-kind donations totaled more than $2.5 million in 2016, Tourism Cares said. Abercrombie & Kent also employs full-time community development professionals in eight countries.
According to Tourism Cares, Universal Orlando Resort's Universal Orlando Foundation has given more than $14 million to the Central Florida community via projects such as its Art of Tomorrow program. More than 1,000 students have participated in the program, a collaboration between the resort, the Universal Orlando Foundation and Orange County Public Schools to encourage youth to pursue careers as artists and designers.
Tourism Cares recognized Afar Media's scholarship program (it has awarded 613 scholarships, according to Tourism Cares) and other funding efforts for various programs across the U.S., which emphasize the importance of travel in education.
Tourism Cares cited Tisch's leadership roles with the U.S. Travel Association and NYC & Company and his stint as chairman of New York Rising, a task force to revive New York's tourism industry and economy post-9/11.
The awards were made possible by Legacy award sponsor American Express, New Innovators award sponsor Amadeus and Leadership award sponsor Trip Mate.