Now in its third year, the awards attracted more than 100 entries across 10 categories.
The 2026 ATTA Action Awards winners are:
• Purpose & People Award — TAMàNA (Madagascar)
• Earthkeepers Award — Gamewatchers Safaris (Kenya)
• Eco-Innovation Award — Porini Safari Camps, Gamewatchers Safaris (Kenya)
• Zero Waste Trailblazer Award — Sirikoi Lodge (Kenya)
• Community Upliftment Award — Nomad Tanzania (Tanzania)
• Marine Impact Award — andBeyond (South Africa)
• Collaborative Impact Award — The Safari Collection (Kenya)
• Traveller Education and Awareness Award — Blood Lions and Marine Dynamics (South Africa) (joint winners)
• Media Voice for Action Award — Marco Barneveld, Wide Oyster Media (Netherlands)
• Emerging Changemaker Award — Travel4Purpose (Kenya)
According to ATTA, entries were assessed across environmental, social and economic impact categories.
Blood Lions and Marine Dynamics were named joint winners of the Traveller Education and Awareness Award.
The joint award in the Traveller Education and Awareness category was awarded because judges felt the organisations excelled in different areas of the same challenge.
Gamewatchers Safaris and its Porini Safari Camps operation became the first organisation in the awards' history to win in two categories in the same year, receiving both the Earthkeepers and Eco-Innovation awards.
TAMàNA returned to the winners' list after receiving recognition in a different category in 2025, while Marine Dynamics secured its second award in the programme's history.
Virginia Messina, Group CEO of ATTA, said: "The ATTA for Action Awards exist to celebrate the organisations and individuals proving that tourism can be one of Africa’s most powerful forces for positive change. Across the continent, we continue to see extraordinary leadership in conservation, community empowerment, cultural preservation and environmental innovation.
"In many ways, African tourism businesses have been pioneering responsible tourism practices for decades, often developing solutions that the wider global industry is only now beginning to embrace.
“As an association, we will continue to champion evidence-based responsible tourism, showcase innovation from across Africa, and provide our members with the knowledge, tools and inspiration they need to thrive in a rapidly changing landscape.
"The future of African tourism depends on protecting the very people, places and wildlife that make the continent so extraordinary, and these winners are showing what that future can look like."
The awards were presented during Experience Africa, a trade event focused on promoting African tourism to the UK market.
