Travel Together: Tasha Hayes

How does a travel company that is currently not travelling re-invent itself? How do a collection of 40 travel brands serving 1.9 million travellers annually, including tour operators, hotels, and transportation companies that operates in 70 countries and has multiple offices around the world, change their operations and strategy? Contiki Travel has used this everchanging time to move further into the sustainability journey by bringing forth more uniqueness and changing the way they do business. In conversation with recently appointed sustainability officer, Tasha Hayes, we dive into the questions of how and why should large companies advance the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Tasha Hayes is the Operations Director for Contiki Europe. Based in London, United Kingdom, A dual national having lived in both the Netherlands and the USA, Tasha started her career with Contiki as a Trip Manager in 2012. In 2021 Tasha took on the additional role as Contiki’s first-ever global Sustainability Officer to guide Contiki’s implementation of the strategy through the brands trip operations and owned accommodations. Tasha played a crucial role in assisting TreadRight to develop TTC’s new sustainability strategy, How We Tread Right, designed to advance the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. This brand new, change-making role will also be integral in implementing Contiki’s Climate Action Plan, launched in April 2021.

Contiki is the world leader in travel experiences for 18-35 year-olds. The brand is about discovery, once-in-a-lifetime moments, human connections, and making every second of being young count. With a portfolio of over 350 trips in 50 plus countries, each one is designed to get to the beating heart of a destination, understanding the local way of life and unearthing unforgettable experiences. Contiki is a member of the family-owned The Travel Corporation (TTC), which is renowned and trusted for outstanding quality, service, value, reliability and financial stability.

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I’m @elenarodriguezblanco from @authenticitys, and I’d love to be in conversation with you and hear your thoughts, ideas and feedback. Visit ReDesign-Travel.com for more notes on this Podcast and Authenticitys.com to follow our work