Media Advisory Panel
Inspire Global Media Advisors are a diverse group of senior travel media editors, broadcasters, writers and freelancers, who are able to advise, support, and enhance the public image of Inspire Global, as a path to achieving its mission.
Media Advisors
The Inspire Global Media Advisory Panel will act as a steering panel, providing oversight and due diligence, for and on behalf of both media and Inspire Global. The Media Advisory Panel will provide strategic advice in areas such as, but not limited to: award categories, award criteria, submissions process, judging process and enrichment content.
Chris Haslam
THE SUNDAY TIMESChris Haslam - The Sunday Times
The role of Chief Travel Writer at The Times and Sunday Times demands extraordinary versatility, hugely varied knowledge and a contacts book spanning the world - not to mention an understanding of what readers want, on their smart phones, tablets and from their print paper.
Karen Edwards
WRITER, AUTHOR, EDITORKaren Edwards - Travel Journalist
Karen is an editor and writer with over 20 years of experience working for national titles
• Specialising in responsible travel, music & culture, and environment & sustainability
• Experienced commissioning editor in print and digital editorial
• Author of The Responsible Traveller (2022), The Planet Friendly Kitchen (2021) and The Little Book of Activism (2021), published by Summersdale
• 20+ years interviewing artists and high level talent
• Media consultancy for new and established artists
• Commercial content writer and commissioning editor
Passionate about driving education and positive impact through storytelling.
Kav Dadfar
JRNY MAGAZINEKav Dadfar - JRNY Magazine
Kav is the co-founder of the award-winning JRNY Travel Magazine. As a writer and photographer, over the years his images have appeared in publications around the world including JRNY, Condé Nast, National Geographic, Lonely Planet, Rough Guides, Daily Mail, The Express, The Guardian and many more.
Lily Girma
TOURISM LENSLily Girma - Tourism Lens
Lebawit* Lily Girma is the founder of Tourism Lens. She is currently a full-time travel news reporter at Bloomberg Pursuits— the lifestyle arm of Bloomberg News and Bloomberg Businessweek—as well as a freelance award-winning journalist. Lebawit counts more than 15 years of experience in the travel industry reporting on global tourism with a focus on sustainability, for business and consumer-facing travel publications.
This former corporate attorney ditched her Washington DC office for the road and a new career in travel storytelling in 2008, and her writing and photography have been published in major publications: BBC, Conde Nast Traveler (US and UK), CNN, National Geographic Traveller UK, Travel & Leisure, Sierra, Lonely Planet, and The Guardian, among others, plus past in-flight magazines such as Delta Sky and MorningCalm(Korean Air).
Meera Dattani
ADVENTURE.COMMeera Dattani - Adventure.com
Meera is a senior editor at digital publication Adventure.com, a freelance travel and culture journalist and the founder and host of Travel Writing Webinars, affordable professional development sessions for travel journalists.
She covers emerging destinations, history and culture, food heritage, Indigenous tourism, wildlife/conservation, and positive impact travel. She chairs, moderates and speaks on panels, and served on the Board of the British Guild of Travel Writers as Events Director (2020-2022) and Chair (2022).
Bylines include Condé Nast Traveller, Wanderlust, BBC Travel, Lonely Planet, Telegraph, Adventure.com, Roadbook, Travel Weekly, Rough Guides, Nat Geo Traveller, Evening Standard, Guardian and others.
She enjoys curating panels and chairing debates on themes around travel/travel writing and pitching to decolonising/modernising travel writing to solo travel and sustainable travel. As a speaker, moderator or panellist, she's spoken at the Royal Geographic Society, British Library for Jaipur Literature Festival, IWTTF (Women in Travel CIC), TravMedia IMM, Destinations Show, Condé Nast Traveller Luxury Fair, Brand USA, Propel Forward, SATW (Society of American Travel Writers), Adventure Travel Film Festival, BGTW (British Guild of Travel Writers), Social With Media, Wanderful and others.
Pat Riddell
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC TRAVELLER (UK)Pat Riddell - National Geographic Traveller (UK)
As editor of the award-winning National Geographic Traveller (UK) since 2010, Pat has overseen the launch, growth and expansion of the brand from print into digital, social, events and partnerships.
Pippa Jacks
TTG MEDIAPippa Jacks - TTG Media
Shafik Meghji
TRAVEL WRITER, AUTHOR, EDITORShafik Meghji - Travel Journalist
Shafik is an award-winning journalist, travel writer, author, editor, photographer and broadcaster with more than 20 years of experience working for newspapers, magazines, publishers, tech firms, charities and NGOs, including the BBC, Wanderlust, the Guardian, Google, DK, Rough Guides, Lonely Planet, Time Out, National Geographic Traveller, the Evening Standard, Private Eye, the Runnymede Trust and Amnesty International. He was shortlisted for Travel Journalist of the Year at the British Journalism Awards in 2022 and 2023.
Shafik has worked on all seven continents, co-authoring more than 60 guidebooks, travel and history books, and anthologies, specialising in Latin America and South Asia and with a focus on responsible travel, food, history, culture and human rights. Published in March 2022, his debut book Crossed Off the Map: Travels in Bolivia was shortlisted for the Edward Stanford Travel Book of the Year, the British Guild of Travel Writers Narrative Travel Book of the Year and the Great Outdoors Book of the Year.
His second book, Small Earthquakes: A Journey Through Lost British History in South America, will be published by Hurst on 24 July – pre-order now at linktr.ee/ShafikMeghji
Simon Hancock
ELECTRIC EEL STUDIOSSimon Hancock - Electric Eel Studios
Simon is the Creative Director, Electric Eel Studios. Formerly Executive Producer, BBC Click.
Marine Teste
ATOUT FRANCE<br>Head of PRMarine Teste - ATOUT FRANCE
With over 10 years’ experience in luxury hospitality and international travel, Marine is now the Head of PR at Atout France. With the support of 3 amazing PR specialists - Rachel, Emma & Emmanuelle - she is responsible for all internal and external PR work of the French Tourism Board in the UK & Ireland.
Daniel Pearce
TTG Media<br>CEODaniel Pearce - TTG Media
Celebrating 28 years in the media in 2024, Daniel joined TTG as Editor in 2010, before moving to brand director in 2012 and mounting a management buy-out and setting up independent business TTG Media in 2013.
In April 2019 the business rebranded under a new vision to promote a ‘Smarter, Better, Fairer’ travel industry – while in December 2023 it attained B Corp status underlining its belief in prioritizing people and the planet alongside profit.
Debbie Flynn
FINN PARTNERSDebbie Flynn - FINN Partners
Debbie Flynn has been in the travel industry for over 30 years and was the founder of travel specialist PR and marketing agency Brighter Group after spending the first 10 years of her career at British Airways. After 23 years as one of the UK ‘s leading tourism PR agencies, she sold her agency to FINN Partners in January 2018. Now in her role leading FINN Partners travel teams globally, Debbie continues to be at the forefront of global travel communication and once again listed in the PR Week PowerBook as one of the top 10 influencers in travel PR in the UK.
Debbie is also an observer to the board of the Advantage Travel Partnership (the UK’s biggest leisure and business travel consortia), on the Global Travel and Tourism Resilience Council, an advisor to WTACH (World Tourism Association for Culture and Heritage) and one of the founding circle for WXO (World Experience Organisation).
Debbie also leads the way in giving back to the industry in her roles as a trustee of travel industry water aid charity Just A Drop, Chair of the Anglo Jordanian Society, and a pro bono advisor to Tourism Cares.
Mike Kelly
CORAL TREE TRAVELMike Kelly - Coral Tree Travel
I first visited Africa in 2005, travelling independently around Uganda. I was hooked.
Several years later, I moved to Mozambique to run a PADI dive resort at a world-class marine life destination on the Manta coast.
I then moved to Zanzibar to manage the exclusive Mnemba Island, during which time I met Tess and explored East Africa extensively. Five happy years later, Tess and I returned to the UK to begin our journey as family safari specialists.
I’ve been helping families plan incredible journeys to Africa and Indian Ocean destinations ever since.
I love nothing more than experiencing all that Africa’s wild spaces have to offer. Passing on this enthusiasm to our own daughter, as well as other families, is truly rewarding.