ACTE 2007 Awards Program

ACTE Canada Education Conference, Calgary

2007 ACTE Canada Ambassador Award

The 2007 ACTE Canada Ambassador Award was presented to Onita Dey-Frankian, Director, Sales, BCD Travel, recognizing her dedication and commitment to elevating the visibility of ACTE and by becoming one of the most recognizable ACTE personalities in Canada.

2007 ACTE Canada Volunteer of the Year Awards

The 2007 ACTE Canada Volunteer Of The Year Award was presented to three individuals this year: Gillian Cody, Manager, Business Development, American Express, Deborah Legroulx, Regional Manager, Corporate Sales – Eastern Canada, Air Canada, and Tina Steinfals, National Director of Sales – Eastern Region, Atlific Hotels recognizing their unbridled team spirit in dedicating time, effort, and thought to meeting association objectives in serving the industry.

Advancing the Industry Award - EMEA

ACTE honored Sabine Sehrt, Vice President, International Travel Management, Global Shared Services for Siemens, with the Advancing the Industry Award at the ACTE Global Education Conference in Munich. Sabine Sehrt has demonstrated initiative, creative problem-solving, and a commitment to advancing the industry by paving the way with her results... Results that have led to increased productivity, quality, and customer satisfaction.

Latin America

Elizabeth Wada, Managing Director, FurWa Strategic Planning
Elizabeth Wada was instrumental in establishing ACTE in Latin America, and in bringing the corporate contribution of travel management executives in the region into the international limelight. She was presented with the "Advancing the Industry Award," for her efforts in demonstrating how ACTEs education and advocacy efforts can meet corporate objectives for growth and profitability in Latin America.

United States

Margaret Hansen, Global Procurement, Director Corporate Travel, for AT Kearney
Travel industry veteran Margaret Hansen is the personification of volunteer leadership and professional commitment. A former ACTE board member, steering committee participant, speaker, panelist, and event moderator since 1998, Hansen is also known for her "best-in-class" global travel program. According to the award citation, Hansen made it possible for her colleagues and this association to benefit from access to AT Kearneys intellectual capital. This cumulative endeavor earned her the "Advancing The Industry Award" for the United States.

Corporate Social Responsibility Award - EMEA

ACTE presented Giovanni Bisignani, Director General and CEO, International Air Transport Association (IATA), with the organizations 2007 Corporate Social Responsibility Award -- Europe and Middle East & Africa Regions, at the Global Education Conference in Munich recognizing his leadership on sustainability initiatives in the aviation sector. Under Bisignanis direction, IATA has pushed governments for shorter routes to save fuel, reduce emissions, and reduce the current 12% industry wide operating inefficiency. The air transport group is striving to lower aviation industry carbon emissions, while boosting fuel efficiency by 25 percent by the year 2025. To this end, IATA adopted an industry wide climate change strategy, focusing on accelerating technological developments as the primary means of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The award was accepted on his behalf by Mr. Phillip Rochat.

New for this year is the ACTE Corporate Social Responsibility Award, presented to an industry leader who promotes sustainable travel programs that respect both the environment and the traveler, and moreover make their company a better world citizen and preferred business partner.

Michael Hall, Global Travel Manager for Johnson Controls
Michael Hall has been a proponent of corporate social responsibility years before it appeared in the headlines. He began by studying the impact of aircraft emissions on the environment, and systematically included other areas in which business travel could reduce its carbon footprint or consumption of resources. His approach to CSR is now a component of Johnson Controls hotel program, which is focused on water and energy conservation in preferred properties.