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CT Award

Connecting Cultures 2027

The CT Award honors people or projects that see travel not only as an experience, but as a way to build bridges between cultures and promote mutual understanding. Among the numerous nominations, six deserved candidates are selected by a specialist jury, three of whom eventually emerge as winners of the award.

The goal of the CT Awards is to establish connections between the source market Germany and destinations worldwide, to support destinations and thus to contribute to international understanding.

Our partners

FVW Magazine
Media partner is the FVW, which presents nominated persons/projects and accompanies the award. CT destinations thus receive a relevant platform to present, make known and honor themselves and people/products from the tourism of their country.

CMT Stuttgart
CMT Stuttgart gives the winners a platform to introduce themselves at the press conference in January and at an exclusive event.

Criteria for the Nomination

Initiatives that contribute to international understanding.

Key principles:

Personal dialogue: Direct experience of other ways of life breaks down stereotypes and promotes tolerance.
Cultural exchange: Through contact with local people, traditions and values are shared and appreciated.
Sustainability and respect: Sustainable tourism respects the local population, protects the environment and strengthens the regional economy.
Change of perspective: Travel encourages self-reflection and challenges one’s own worldview, leading to a deeper understanding of others.
Local participation: When locals help shape tourism and benefit from it, a positive bond is formed between guest and host.

Submission of nominations

The nominated person or project is requested in a 1–2 page paper (max. 600 words) to be described.

WHAT is the project?
WHERE is it located?
WHAT does it include?
WHY is it particularly committed to the guiding theme?

For this purpose, three high-resolution photos (JPG, at least 300 dpi) must be submitted.

→ Deadline: 2.11.2026 via E-Mail to the CT

Jury

A neutral jury was formed by the CT board. The jury will come on the 25th November 2025 to size the nominations and to choose winners.

Petra Thomas

GF Forum anders reisen eV

Petra Thomas, is managing director of forum anders reisen e.V., the association for sustainable tourism. Since 2010, the archaeologist and art historian has represented the interests of the Sustainability Association vis-à-vis politics and the public. At the same time, Petra Thomas is involved in the board of the industry initiative Human Rights in Tourism e.V. as well as in the board of the Working Group for Tourism and Development and contributes her many years of tourism expertise to numerous advisory boards and committees.

Bente Grimm

NIT Kiel

Bente Grimm, is a sociologist (M.A.) and has been part of the team of the Institute for Tourism and Spa Research in Northern Europe GmbH (NIT) based in Kiel since 2003. The tourism researcher focuses on the topics of mobility and tourism acceptance and has also been responsible for the thematic special evaluations of travel analysis, the so-called modules, for many years. In her work, the topic of sustainability and in particular the social factors (which also include international understanding) plays an important role.

Günter Ihlau

Chairman of the Working Group on Cultural Tourism in the DRV

Günter Ihlau, is responsible for destinations and crisis management at TUI. Delegated from this function for the following national and international offices: Advisory Board for Tourism BMWI, Executive Board DZT. Advisory Board ITB, Chairman Destination Committee DRV, Executive Board CIST.

International as Vice President UNWTO Aff. Members, Vice President Ifto, Member Destination Affairs Ectaa.

Guido von Vacano

Honorary Member of the Management Board Messe Stuttgart

Guido von Vacano is involved in various projects and events in the field of sustainability and international understanding.

Klaus Hildebrandt

Editor-in-chief FVW/Travel Talk

Klaus Hildebrandt, has been at fvw | TravelTalk since 1992 and has been editor-in-chief of Germany’s leading specialist medium for the travel industry since 2000. The graduate economist also moderates many events such as the fvw | TravelTalk Congress or the workshops with travel agencies and organizers abroad.

Detlef Altmann

Managing Director of the Willy Scharnow Foundation for Tourism

Sören Hartmann

President BTW

Volker Adams

Head of Politics & Tourism
German Travel Agency Association DRV

Award ceremony

The award ceremony will take place during a press event at CMT Stuttgart 2027.

The aim is to present six nominations and, if possible, to welcome the three award winners in person. In addition to the award certificate, FVW will produce a feature article for its print magazine, and CMT will issue a separate press release dedicated to the winners.