AdventureELEVATE’s Keynote Speakers and Agenda Shine

14 March 2022
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The travel industry has endured tremendous hardship and uncertainty over the past two years. As a global community, we can sympathize with one another over the impossible decisions, stressful conversations, and overall loss that so many of us weathered (and continue to weather). These shared experiences connect us and help us support one another, both personally and professionally. 

The Adventure Travel and Trade Association (ATTA) focuses on bringing together members from every sector of the adventure travel industry to ensure we are always shifting and evolving and moving forward collectively, for the greatest impact. Inclusive, collaborative learning has always been at the forefront of ATTA events, and when we gather in Eugene, Oregon for AdventureELEVATE (3-5 May), this will continue to be our approach. 

With keynote speakers, breakout sessions on technology, marketing, and operations specific to adventure, plus plenty of creative networking time, AdventureELEVATE will reconnect and inspire delegates from across the adventure travel spectrum. The event is hosted by ATTA, Eugene, Cascades & Coast, and Travel Oregon and will take place at the Graduate Eugene Hotel. 

AdventureELEVATE 2022 Theme: Shine

This year’s theme – Shine – will be woven throughout the event as we rekindle the adventure travel community’s innate glow, our radiant and unique light that makes us shine. In the same way light reflects off one object onto another, our members reflect each other's light to create a brighter source for each of us individually, and all of us collectively within the tourism industry. ATTA’s belief in the power of travel to transform and be a force for good, will serve as a beacon of light throughout the 3-day event, as we work together to illuminate a path forward.

“We have been inspired by members in our global community – by their resilience, generosity, and tireless efforts toward a more sustainable, peaceful future,” said ATTA CEO, Shannon Stowell. “The stories, people, and shared missions of the members have sustained and motivated the ATTA during the last two years and have been a light for all of us.” 

 As AdventureELEVATE 2022 nears, the keynote speakers and full agenda have just been announced and promise to deliver on insights and inspiration that shape adventure travel’s dynamic industry. The opening and closing keynote sessions encourage delegates to be confident in their knowledge and strength that emerges from overcoming obstacles, to look to our shared narratives as a source of recovery through Indigenous wisdom, and to use joy as an act of rebellion.

Luis Vargas, Modern Adventure

Opening Keynote Energizes Delegates to Shine Light Forward 

In AdventureELEVATE’s opening keynote address, industry leader and friend to the ATTA community, Luis Vargas, will honor the weight that we have all carried. He will call us to energize each other as we move forward as a community, catalyzed by what lies ahead, and to use joy as an act of rebellion. 

Closing Keynote: Lived Experiences with Indigenous Traditions in Storytelling

Indigenous traditions in storytelling are the foundation of dismantling stereotypes and bridging cultural divisions. For over 50 years, Esther Stutzman has told Kalapuya and Coos stories learned from family members and Tribal Elders. Esther and her daughter, Shannin, will bring AdventureELEVATE 2022 to a close, generously sharing their community’s histories and their wisdom, to send us off with a deeper understanding of how we’re all connected and how we can make our future in creating responsible tourism experiences shine even brighter.  

Esther and Shannin Stutzman, Traditional Komemma Kalapuya Storytellers

Between these bookend keynote speakers, the agenda is filled with interactive breakout sessions, led by subject-area experts and group discussion facilitators in arenas such as marketing & technology, industry trends & insights, regenerative tourism, risk management,  organizational culture, and more. The following are only a few highlights - you can view the full agenda here:

  • Modern Marketing for Digital Readiness: challenge your assumptions and enhance your digital marketing efforts by providing people-first and story-based digital solutions.
  • Trendspotting Lab: discover consumer insights, trends and expectations around top destinations and activities for US and Canada-based outdoor enthusiasts, sustainable travel, and more.
  • Leadership Immersion: The Great Reframing: the pandemic has created an upheaval in the workplace, felt by employees and employers across every sector. Designed for managers at all levels, this workshop will discuss techniques, tools, and perspectives about leadership, organizational culture, and making workplaces fit for human life. 
  • COVID-19 Mitigation and Risk Management: a facilitated roundtable for tour providers on COVID-19 mitigation and risk management as we head into another travel season during the pandemic.
  • Regenerative Tourism: panelists examine the potential to put this philosophy into action and create a truly meaningful, net-positive, cultural experience within local communities.  

In addition to the educational components of the agenda, there are plenty of structured and unstructured networking opportunities throughout the event. MediaConnect and AdventureExchange continue to be offered at AdventureELEVATE and provide attendees an opportunity to meet one-on-one with official media delegates (journalists, photographers, and influencers) seeking fresh story ideas for their publications. Other group activities and breaks, including the Day of Adventure, provide more casual opportunities for networking with industry professionals.  

Space is still available at AdventureELEVATE 2022. Learn more about the attending media, Day of Adventure activities, and how to reserve your spot today.

Main Image: McKenzie River at sunset © Eugene, Cascades, & Coast

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