THIS year, attendees at ITB Asia will be able to contribute to a social cause while doing what they do best, travelling around the world.
Organiser Messe Berlin (Singapore) has launched a special social media project to help raise funds for its adopted charity – Operation Smile Singapore.
The star of the project is known as the ‘ITB Asia Stickman’ – a smiling, bendable rubber figurine in the signature ITB orange.
The little man and 499 other custom-made fellows will be distributed to exhibitors and delegates at this year’s show. They are encouraged to take photographs of the little orange models in different cities as they travel around the world for business or leisure and upload them onto a dedicated ITB Asia photoblog (http://www.facebook.com/ itbasia).
ITB Asia will then pledge $10 for each of the first 250 photographs uploaded to Operation Smile, a not-for-profit, volunteer medical services organisation that provides reconstructive facial surgery to indigent children and young adults. The total sum raised will go towards funding approximately seven life-changing operations.
The ITB Asia Stickman project will take place over a year, starting from October 19, 2011, until ITB Asia 2012 - or when the target of 250 photographs has been reached.