Tom Garzilli is the chief marketing officer for Brand USA, the nation’s destination marketing organization. Tom is responsible for leading the development of Brand USA’s strategic marketing plan and all efforts to ensure Brand USA achieves year-over-year revenue, visitation, and economic impact targets.

Brand USA has raised more than $750 million in contributions from more than 500 partners and has developed many successful and award-winning marketing programs. Other initiatives include the creation and distribution of three giant-screen documentary films – National Parks Adventure, America’s Musical Journey, and Into America’s Wild, the launch of GoUSA TV, and Brand USA Travel Week Europe, a unique travel trade buyer and seller experience.

Shaun MacGillivray leads the company’s business development and partnership team and has successfully raised more than $40 million in funding for IMAX educational films in the last three years. He has been on filming expeditions around the world since he was in diapers, but it wasn’t until a trip to Palau at the age of 13 that he realized that his dad’s passion for storytelling was in his blood.

Shaun has produced the award-winning 3D giant-screen films Journey To The South Pacific, To The Arctic and Grand Canyon Adventure, National Parks Adventure and We, the Marines. Shaun received a MFA degree in Film Production from the University of Southern California. He and his wife Katie live in Laguna Beach with their three children. He can’t wait to take them all on expeditions and show them the wonders of nature firsthand.

Andrew Eisner is vice President of client partnerships, working to find new business and grow existing Discovery accounts.  Andrew also sets the strategy and manages the trade show sales effort for the executive leadership team at Discovery. The trade show sales effort includes attending approximately 50 conventions by the companies ad sales sellers. Andrew manages the relationships with the leaders of the organizations that produce trade shows including the NKBA, NAHB, OPEI, CTA and The National Hardware Show.

Andrew joined Discovery from Tribune Companies Superstation WGN.  Prior to that Andrew ran his own online media company SARJ LLC that built websites including Couponsandfreesamples.com and fivestartravelclub.com. In his role at SARJ, Andrew was responsible for all aspects of each website including design, web coding, marketing, and revenue. Before forming SARJ LLC, Andrew was senior vice President of sales at internet startup Phase2Media.

Ollie Davies is the European product lead at Samsung TV Plus, Samsung’s proprietary AVoD product available on their smart TVs, mobiles and tablet devices. In an exciting development for U.K. audiences, GoUSA TV launched as a streaming channel on Samsung TV Plus in 2020, giving over 2.5 million Britons access to its wanderlust-evoking content.

Ollie began his digital media career in 2002 when he joined the BBC as project manager in the Radio & Music Interactive division. Four years later, he joined super-indie production company Fremantle Media, where he headed up digital production for all TV properties within the U.K., with a focus on developing fan interaction for “The X Factor,” “Britain’s Got Talent” and “The Apprentice” across web, mobile and social. In 2011, he joined BBC Studios-owned broadcaster UKTV, where he was director of digital product responsible for the development of their VoD product UKTV Play.

Nick Hentschel is the chief operating officer at AmericanTours International, LLC (ATI), where he is responsible for developing and implementing overall corporate strategy, with a focus on investment in technology. Joining ATI in 2012 as its director of legal and government affairs, Nick spearheaded ATI’s efforts to create a level playing field for inbound operators in the industry.

Founded in 1977, ATI is North America’s leading inbound travel service provider, distributing escorted tours, flexible fly-drive packages, wholesale hotel inventory, transportation services, and attractions to clients worldwide, serving nearly one million visitors in 2019 from more than 70 countries. Nick has also served on the United States Travel and Tourism Advisory Board, advising the U.S. Secretary of Commerce on important issues facing the industry.

Pippa Jacks is the group editor of TTG Media, leading a team of 15 editorial staff across print magazines, digital channels, and events. TTG operates as a key news resource for travel agents, agencies, operators and tourism professionals, through the medium of a monthly magazine in the U.K. & Ireland. It also offers a range of face-to-face training events, a news-led website, a community for luxury travel professionals, and an annual travel awards.

Pippa initially joined TTG in 2006, and prior to her role as group editor, she worked as a features editor. Pippa talks regularly on radio and TV about travel and was named PPA Team Leader of the Year in 2020. TTG Media was named Independent Publishing Company of the Year at the PPA IPN Awards in 2019, while TTG was named Trade Publication of the Year by both the Travel Media Awards and TravMedia Awards in 2020.

For more than two decades Holger Jacobs has been the North America editor for FVW Medien (dfv Media Group), the largest travel trade media house in the German-speaking market.

FVW Medien is the leading trade information source in Germany in his role as North America editor, Holger is responsible for the development of all U.S.-focused print and online coverage. Holger has a vast amount of travel industry experience and regularly hosts workshops, e-learning sessions and webinars.

Philippe Orain is international director for the Michelin Travel Guides, currently covering more than 200 destinations around the world. The Michelin Travel Guides have been covering the United States for 40 years and are one of the French market’s most loved travel guide collections. Today there are seven regional titles about the U.S. and seven stand-alone city guides covering destinations including New York City, Miami, Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Portland.

Philippe graduated from HEC Paris in business administration and has a master degree in law  and art history. He is passionate about travel, art, food and wines. He manages a team of 20 project leaders and 100 freelance travel writers exploring the world for the Michelin Green Guides.

Dominic Carter is responsible for all commercial revenues across the News UK market-leading portfolio of publishing brands as well as the revenues at Wireless, overseeing the success of the U.K.’s most dynamic broadcast brands; talkSPORT, Times radio, Virgin and talkRADIO.

In addition to his commercial responsibilities, he also instigated the creation of a company-wide Diversity Board at News UK and now sits as its Chair, leading the team to deliver a comprehensive D&I strategy for News UK based on three pillars: a recruitment function ensuring more diverse young talent joins the business; the creation of new pathways to leadership for existing diverse talent; and a renewed focus on ensuring diversity across the company’s brands (The Times, The Sunday Times, The Sun, Virgin Radio, Times Radio). Together these programs constitute News UK’s commitment to achieving 50:50:20 male:female:ethnic minority representation.

Dominic was also responsible for setting up a Cultural Diversity Network as a forum to freely debate how D&I issues affect News UK’s employees, and a means of challenging perceived wisdom in leadership.

Meera Dattani is a co-editor of online travel magazine Adventure.com. She is also a highly respected freelance travel and culture journalist, and events director of the British Guild of Travel Writers for which she chairs and organizes webinars across all aspects of travel writing and publishing. These have included debates on decolonizing travel writing, a topic she has spoken and written about for various publications and organizations too, such as The Telegraph, Adventure.com, Women In Travel, Edinburgh International Television Festival and more. Meera is also the co-founder of the Unpacking Media Bias newsletter, which covers a variety of topics and stories around language, bias, context and perspective. With diverse experience as a writer, speaker, publisher and event organizer, Meera brings a broad perspective and understanding towards travel and how the industry operates.

Travis Levius is a luxury travel journalist and content creator loosely based between London and Atlanta. His writing has appeared in Condé Nast Traveler, TIME, CNN Travel, National Geographic Traveller UK, BBC Travel, Forbes Travel Guide, The Telegraph and others. Travis shares his ongoing adventures and takes on life, travel, and the pursuit of happiness as a content creator (@MisterLevius) on Instagram, YouTube and TikTok.

In 2020, Levius co-founded Black Travel Alliance, a non-profit dedicated to the amplification of Black travel creators and industry-wide accountability, and the Society of Black Travel Journalists. He currently serves as an advisory board member for The Points Guy, assisting with the brand’s diversity and inclusion initiatives.

Shivani Ashoka is a journalist specialising in ethical travel, social sustainability and identity; her work regularly appears in the likes of Condé Nast Traveller, The Telegraph, The Independent and The Times. Over the years, she has become a trusted interviewer for social and climate justice campaigners trying to spark global change, and has successfully pushed travel and culture stories of anti-racism and decolonisation to the front of historically conservative publications.

Shivani, alongside fellow travel writer Meera Dattani, co-founded monthly newsletter, Unpacking Media Bias – an international resource for writers and editors who want to address and examine their racial bias. She has since been named as one of the ‘Top 15 Women in Travel’ by BAME Women in Travel (CIC).

Sarah Barrell is a travel writer and author with 25 years in the field. Sarah has been with National Geographic Traveller (UK) since its launch, and contributes to publications including The Times, The Guardian, The Telegraph and BBC Good Food. Sarah began her career at The Independent on Sunday where she became travel editor, before moving to the United States to freelance, specialising in the Americas. She has traveled by Harley on Route 66, tracked hot springs in backcountry California, and explored Louisiana behind the wheel of the General Lee, from TV show The Dukes of Hazzard.

A native Londoner, Sarah spent five years in New York where her daughter was born. Her family still miss the Fall colours, upstate hikes and being able to hop on a plane West on a whim.

Ariel Tweto is an accomplished private pilot, public speaker, and TV personality who gained worldwide fame following her appearance in the hit reality series Flying Wild Alaska, which follows her family’s life in Alaska. Born and raised in Alaska, she is the president and founding member of Popping Bubbles, a non-profit organization dedicated to suicide prevention and helping people from rural communities overcome the barriers that prevent them from living happy and successful lives.

Ariel also starred in Brand USA’s Into Nature’s Wild film, where she took a cross-country journey to some of the most beautiful but little-known landscapes of the United States.

Sarah E. Morgenthau joined the International Trade Administration in September 2021 as deputy assistant secretary for the National Travel and Tourism office (NTTO).  In this role, she oversees a team that works to enhance the international competitiveness of the U.S. travel and tourism industry and increase its exports, thereby supporting U.S. employment and economic growth.

Sarah brings decades of experience working in the private and public sectors. She is an accomplished, outcomes-driven attorney and senior executive who is a widely respected mentor with the consummate ability to engage with influencers and key decision-makers at the uppermost levels. Sarah was previously  a managing director and head of the Washington, D.C. office at Nardello & Co., a global investigations firm. During the Obama-Biden administration, she worked for the Department of Homeland Security as the deputy assistant secretary for the Private Sector Office and as executive director of the Homeland Security Advisory Council.

Isabel Hill is the acting deputy assistant Secretary for Travel and Tourism and director of the National Travel and Tourism Office at the U.S. Department of Commerce.  She and her team support and implement policies and programs that foster the competitiveness of U.S. travel and tourism industries in collaboration with the private sector and other federal agencies, including Brand USA.

A leader in tourism policy and planning, Isabel led the development of the first National Travel and Tourism Strategy for the United States across 12 federal agencies and with the private sector, reflecting her commitment to public-private engagement and partnerships to advance shared objectives. She is the honored recipient of the 2021 World Travel and Tourism Council Global Champion Award, The International Association of Film Commissioners Crystal Vision Award, and The International Institute of Peace Through Tourism Celebrating Her Award, among others.

Uwern Jong is editor in chief and co-founder of multi award-winning, luxury and experiential travel journal rooted in diversity, discovery and discernment, OutThere magazine.

Uwern was the 2020 Winner of “Editorial Leader of the Year” at the Campaign Publishing Awards and is a luxury destinations, experiences and accommodation expert, as well as a vocal advocate for a more inclusive and intersectional tourism and travel industry. He also runs OutThere/Studio, a diversity and inclusion based content-development agency; and is brand ambassador for the Tourism Authority of Thailand’s landmark “Go Thai Be Free” outreach campaign, as well as Stockholm LGBT (a members-based Destination Marketing platform for the Swedish capital). He is proud to serve his third term as board director of the International LGBTQ+ Travel Association.

Innes McFee is managing director of Macro and Investor Services, based in London. Innes oversees the activities of the Macro & Investor Services teams globally, including the Global Macro Forecast and Global Macro Service.

Innes joined Oxford Economics in 2017 after six years at Lloyds Banking Group as a senior economist. At Lloyds Innes was responsible for the economic scenarios underpinning the Group’s internal planning. Prior to joining Lloyds, Innes was an economic advisor at HM Treasury where his roles included management of the U.K.’s foreign currency reserves; U.S. economist; and G20 macroeconomic policy advisor. Innes has a first class undergraduate degree in Economics from the University of Durham and a MSc in Economics from Warwick University.

Octavian Puzderca leads Mastercard’s data and analytics relationships with retail and travel organizations across the U.K. and northern Europe.  He helps business leaders gain insight on market trends and customer behaviours and optimize business decisions.

In his previous role, Octavian led the growth across EMEA in the retail vertical of Applied Predictive Technologies (APT), a former subsidiary of Mastercard, opening several new markets for APT, and co-headed APT’s London Consulting office. Prior to joining Mastercard, Octavian spent many years at McKinsey & Company, working across the U.K., Europe, the USA and the Middle East and leading engagements spanning multiple industries and business problems.

Simon Calder is Britain’s leading travel commentator and is known as “the man who pays his way” which means that he pays for his own travel.  Simon is a travel correspondent for the Independent, Evening Standard, the i newspaper, as well many other publications.

Simon is a regular guest on national TV and radio, often seen on BBC Breakfast, Good Morning Britain, This Morning, CNN, ITV News and Sky News, plus BBC Radio 2, 4, 5, and LBC.  He has a new travel podcast called You Should Have Been There.

Tom Garzilli is the chief marketing officer for Brand USA, the nation’s destination marketing organization. Tom is responsible for leading the development of Brand USA’s strategic marketing plan and all efforts to ensure Brand USA achieves year-over-year revenue, visitation, and economic impact targets.

Brand USA has raised more than $750 million in contributions from more than 500 partners and has developed many successful and award-winning marketing programs. Other initiatives include the creation and distribution of three giant-screen documentary films – National Parks Adventure, America’s Musical Journey, and Into America’s Wild, the launch of GoUSA TV, and Brand USA Travel Week Europe, a unique travel trade buyer and seller experience.

Dylan Thuras, Founder, Atlas Obscura

Tom Garzilli is the chief marketing officer for Brand USA, the nation’s destination marketing organization. Tom is responsible for leading the development of Brand USA’s strategic marketing plan and all efforts to ensure Brand USA achieves year-over-year revenue, visitation, and economic impact targets.

Brand USA has raised more than $750 million in contributions from more than 500 partners and has developed many successful and award-winning marketing programs. Other initiatives include the creation and distribution of three giant-screen documentary films – National Parks Adventure, America’s Musical Journey, and Into America’s Wild, the launch of GoUSA TV, and Brand USA Travel Week Europe, a unique travel trade buyer and seller experience.

Dylan Thuras, Founder, Atlas Obscura

Marthe de Ferrer is the head of social media across Euronews verticals, including Euronews Travel and Green. She’s passionate about sustainable and conscientious tourism, and completed a masters thesis on the ethics of ‘cultural immersion’ holidays to Indigenous communities.

With an international upbringing, and three passports, Marthe has been lucky enough to travel extensively, from camping on an ice cap in Greenland to a working tour through the southern states of America. As a digital native, who straddles the border between generation Z and Millennial, she’s switched on to the evolving trends in the industry.

Adam Armstrong is the chief executive officer for Contiki Holidays, a tour company which offers more than 350 global trips and provides travelers with bespoke travel experiences. In this role, Adam is responsible for driving growth in the youth travel brand and innovation in the generation Z and millennial markets.

Prior to this position, Adam was senior vice president and managing director of Silversea Cruises in Asia-Pacific, and was formerly at the helm of Royal Caribbean Cruises as associate vice president and managing director, Australia and New Zealand. With 20 years experience in the travel industry, Adam boasts a truly diverse breadth of knowledge.

Adam Lake is head of Climate Week NYC and the lead on U.S. communications for the Climate Group, an international non-profit. Every year Climate Week NYC brings together international leaders from around the world to speed up climate action, which takes place annually to coincide with the United Nations General Assembly.

Prior to this Adam served as European head of communications for the International Rescue Committee, acting as a member of the senior management team and supporting its global communications strategy. This role included overseeing the Rohingya response as well as the refugee crisis in the Mediterranean. He is former columnist and political editor and interim editor for Pinknews, Europe’s largest LGBTQ+ news outlet, and is a trustee for the Lewisham Refugees and Migrants Network.

Chris is a multi-award winning and Emmy-nominated presenter and investigative journalist. He has fronted the UK’s major news programmes, including BBC Newsround at just 19 years old, Sky News, ITV News and BBC TV news outlets, BBC Radio London and BBC World Service. Chris has uncovered some of the most shocking human rights abuses and criminality around the world for major programmes such as Panorama. His first book, entitled “Undercover”, was released in March 2010 and reached the Amazon top ten best sellers. In 2017 Chris and his co-producer Marshall Corwin, joined forces with Nicky Cox MBE to launch Fresh Start Media, producing compelling children’s factual television, documentaries and sponsored online content.

Amanda is one of the most well-known and respected faces in the global travel industry, with more than 30 years’ experience in the business. Having grown up in Bermuda and Saudi Arabia, travel is clearly in Amanda’s DNA – so it was only natural that she went on to study business studies and travel and tourism. Throughout her career, Amanda has specialized in product and marketing with the UK’s leading tour operators; she was a founding member of Sunworld Holidays before leaving to head up the global marketing efforts at Eurotunnel. Amanda founded Hills Balfour in 1998 with the ambition to create the most innovative and creative travel, tourism and lifestyle communications agency specializing in PR, digital, representation, crisis management, sales, trade and consumer marketing, branding and MICE. Amanda has helped some of the world’s most iconic destination brands maximize the economic and social benefits of travel.

Lisa McAuley joined dnata Travel Europe as Managing Director B2B Tour Operations in January 2018 responsible for the much loved and respected UK Travel brands Gold Medal, Pure Luxury, Incredible Journeys and Cruise Plus.

Prior to this, Lisa held the position of Managing Director UK & Ireland for 3 years at ultra luxury cruise line Silversea, where she oversaw the launch to the UK market of the line’s latest addition to their fleet, flagship Silver Muse. During her time at Silversea she was also a member of the executive board for CLIA UK & Ireland. In December 2020 Lisa acquired Silver Travel Advisor, considered the voice of authority for travel and reviews for the over 50s traveller.

Lisa has spent her entire 30 year career in the travel industry, working in retail and tour operations in both mass market and niche segments including ski, touring and hotels.