Travel and Tour World: Did the IAATO face any this pandemic together, with robust protocols to challenges due to the coronavirus pandemic? How ensure guests can safely and responsibly visit did the organization overcome those challenges?Antarctica again. It requires a lot of hard work in an ever-changing landscape and being a united voice Every single travel company for our industry. Once we can achieve this and I globally faced challenges due to coronavirus. have every confidence we will do so, our next Antarctic operators felt that pressure acutely as we challenge is going to be preparing for the expected operate in such a remote and pristine environment. industry growth we were seeing prior to the As an industry, IAATO was extremely mindful of pandemic. We are currently working on preparing keeping Covid out of Antarctica, and of being our databases and systems to ensure we can responsible and safe in all we do. As a great support that growth in a responsible way in line example of our membership's commitment, soon with our long-held mission and values. IAATO after the global pandemic emerged in our world, serves as a resource for our members, and we we set up a Covid Advisory Group, working with our strive to self-manage. This is a unique own operators and relevant gateways and experts, responsibility, so we need to ensure we do the right to keep our membership informed of the constantly thing for the sake of this place we are all so evolving restrictions, regulations, vaccine roll-out, passionate about, so that we can conserve the and emerging 'covid-safe' practices and procedures. natural beauty of the region and create a corps of We have held a number of meetings over the Antarctic Ambassadors for its future protection. course of the past year, our most recent one being on the June 1, to discuss coronavirus and safe Travel and Tour World: Can you share something operations to establish topics and possible protocols around which IAATO as an organisation about the latest IAATO Antarctic Fellowship can unite, particularly with regards to vaccinations Initiative? Will it contribute towards responsible and testing. It's all about being a collaborative tourism in any way?community both in times of global crisis as well as Yes! In 2019, IAATO and the times of growth. Council of Managers of National Antarctic Programs (COMNAP) launched our first joint Antarctic Travel and Tour World: What does the future of Fellowship Program with the aims to continue tourism look like in the Antarctic, especially in the supporting and strengthening the links between post-pandemic world?tourism and research. Our inaugural Fellows, Martina Mascioni and Daniela Cajiao have been That's a good question. Our developing their research on the western Antarctic focus right now, is to work alongside our Peninsula with the support of our operators.membership and trusted stakeholders to overcome Robyn Woodhead:Robyn Woodhead: Robyn Woodhead:13 TTW World