The LATA Responsible Tourism Awards celebrate outstanding leadership in responsible, ethical, and sustainable tourism across Latin America. As the regional awards for the ICRT Global Responsible Tourism Awards, these prestigious accolades recognise trailblazing initiatives that drive positive change, inspire industry-wide transformation, and set new standards for sustainability.

Our mission is to identify, honour, and showcase exemplary businesses, projects and destinations that are delivering measurable impact and pioneering innovative solutions—initiatives that not only benefit local communities and environments but also serve as scalable models for the broader tourism industry.

Why Enter?

Gain regional and international recognition for your sustainability efforts.
Showcase your achievements at LATA Expo 2026.
Gold winners automatically advance to the ICRT Global Responsible Tourism Awards, announced in November, offering the opportunity for global recognition.
Inspire industry-wide change by sharing your success story with peers, partners, and stakeholders.

If your business or destination is driving sustainability, fostering community engagement, and setting new benchmarks for responsible tourism, we encourage you to submit your entry and be recognised as a leader in shaping the future of tourism in Latin America.

Judging the awards in 2026 will be Harold Goodwin, co-founder of The Responsible Tourism Partnership and ICRT, and chair of the judges, Anne-Kathrin Zschiegner, Director of The Long Run, Chris Haslam, Chief Travel Writer at The Sunday Times, Edgar Weggelaar, CEO of Queer Destinations, Maria Emilia Correl, Co-Founder & Senior Strategist at Sistema B, and Quinn Meyer, CREES Manu.

Please note that you do not need to be a member of LATA, or be attending LATA Expo to enter these awards. They are open to everyone, and to every size of organisation.

You can see examples of past winners in each category here.

For more information about the 2026 ICRT Global Responsible Tourism Awards please see the ICRT website here.

When you have completed the application form you can submit your entry here:

Dates

Opens: 11 December 2025

Closing date for submissions: 28 March 2026

Awards Ceremony

Date: Monday 7th June 2026

Venue: LATA Expo, De Vere Cotswold Water Park, Cirencester

2026 Responsible Tourism Award Categories

Local Economic Benefit
Diversity Equity and Inclusion
Nature Positive
Championing Cultural Diversity
Adapting to Climate Change
Regenerative Tourism

Local Economic Benefit

Tourism is one of the world’s biggest industries and brings important economic benefits like jobs and business opportunities. But often, the money does not stay in the community or help local people and the environment.

Tourism businesses can strengthen the local economy by buying local goods and services and working with local suppliers.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

In tourism, diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) affect both hosts (the businesses) and guests. The 2022 Responsible Tourism Charter highlights two key points:

For hosts (the business itself): providing inclusive jobs for people with disabilities and for people of diverse ethnicities, genders, and sexual orientations.
For guests: offering respectful, culturally sensitive, and inclusive experiences that everyone can enjoy.

This year, the focus is on the host community and host experience. We know that the host experience also shapes the visitor experience, but by focusing on hosts one year and guests the next, we ensure both sides are considered.

Nature Positive

Wildlife and natural environments are key drivers of tourism. The industry depends on nature’s beauty, but tourism can also harm the places we visit. Tourism has a responsibility to protect biodiversity and support nature for future generations by promoting a nature-positive approach — whether through non-consumptive tourism (like photographic safaris) or consumptive tourism (like hunting safaris).

Championing Cultural Diversity

Tourism is not just about places — it is about people and values. As Professor Jost Krippendorf wrote in The Holiday Makers, “every individual tourist builds up or destroys human values while travelling.” The choices we make as travellers and businesses shape those values.

The 2022 Responsible Tourism Charter calls for:

Destinations and businesses that give tourists the chance to connect with local people, learn about local history and culture, and understand social and environmental issues.
Experiences that are culturally sensitive, build respect between tourists and hosts, and strengthen local pride and confidence.

Adapting to Climate Change

Global warming has already raised average temperatures by about 1.3°C. Rising sea temperatures are bleaching coral and reducing the oceans’ ability to absorb CO₂. The Global Tipping Points report (COP30, Brazil) shows the scale of the crisis we face.

Tourism both contributes to climate change and suffers its impacts: droughts, wildfires, storms, and damage to infrastructure, heritage, and landscapes. Ski resorts are closing, glaciers are retreating, mosquito-borne diseases are spreading, and travel patterns are shifting as people avoid extreme heat and choose cooler destinations.

We must keep reducing emissions, but we also need to adapt to the impacts already happening. For 2026, the focus is on adaptation. In 2027 it will be on emissions reduction.

Regenerative Tourism

Over the past twenty years, regenerative travel and tourism have become widely used terms in the industry and academia. Both share roots with Responsible Tourism, which clarifies what issues are addressed, how they are tackled, who benefits, and what impact results. Transparency is a core value.

Regenerative Tourism goes further. It restores, replenishes, renews, and heals. It aims to create a better future for destinations and their communities. The idea comes from architecture, urban renewal, agriculture, and ecosystem recovery. It is ambitious, seeking transformational change — from economic regeneration to radical transformation.