Women in tourism spearhead global aid initiative for victims in Japan

The bond among the global tourism industry strengthens when immediate help is needed, and the Women in Tourism International Alliance (WITIA) is leading a vanguard effort to encourage worldwide tourism support to aid those in Japan that have lost so much from the earthquake and tsunami.

WITIA calls on the worldwide network of tourism and hospitality members to band together for a united effort of aid, utilizing their most readily-available tools to provide assistance with donations to global aid organizations currently providing efforts on the ground in Japan. Support by way of social media and frequent communication with calls for aid within each member’s network is also highly encouraged, causing a ripple effect of awareness across all points of the globe.

The earthquake is predicted to have a significant effect on the world’s tourism industry, as Japanese outbound tourism will most likely be curbed to various regions until the country recovers from the social and economic impacts of the disaster. Inbound tourism to Japan will also be impacted in affected areas causing further deterioration of the country’s economy.

Members of the industry are highly encouraged to help by donating to their charity or organization of choice and spreading the word among their individual networks,as well to help victims in the short term and assist in rebuilding the affected Japanese tourism industry in the long term. A list of recommended aid organizations are listed on the WITIA website at www.witia.org .

“WITIA calls upon its members and the rest of the world’s tourism industry to also send us their stories – stories of help, heroism, and human kindness – associated with the Japanese disaster. Send us stories from within Japan and the world beyond as the industry reaches out to assist victims and build the economy within affected areas of Japan. We will use those stories to tell the world about the power of tourism as a force for good and as a resilient sector of the world’s economy,” said Mary Mahon Jones, WITIA’s President.