Held October 10, 2007 in New York City, the Condé Nast Traveler World Savers Congress 2007 brought together industry leaders from companies including Marriott, Ritz Carlton, Fairmont, Four Seasons, Regent Cruises, Air France, and Linblad Expeditions to explore issues surrounding travel and social responsibility. Here are some highlights from the event.

Change—specifically, the power of travelers and the tourism sector to bring about positive change at home and abroad–was the recurring theme at Condé Nast Traveler's inaugural World Savers Congress, held October 10 in New York's Gotham Hall and attended by some 200 leaders of the travel industry and international nonprofits. ("I half expect superheroes to appear," remarked one guest, considering both the name of the event and the venue.)

Editor-in-Chief Klara Glowczewska set the tone during her opening remarks, asserting that while tourism is booming in the developing world, the local people in many destinations are living amid growing poverty and disease, failing education systems, and worsening environmental depredation. "About half the people in the world still live on less than two dollars a day," she said. "This, while many of us think nothing of spending hundreds of dollars a night on a hotel room."

Governments should play a role in finding solutions to the problems that plague their citizens, Glowczewska continued, but individuals, businesses, and nonprofit organizations can also make a difference. And since Condé Nast Traveler was founded 20 years ago on the principle of Truth in Travel—presenting readers with the unvarnished truth about the world and traveling through it—what better way to further that mission than to act as a catalyst for change, Glowczewska explained. "It is an all hands on deck moment."

"Make a better world": Several guest speakers followed, starting with a video address from former President Bill Clinton, whose health and disaster-relief tour of Southeast Asia last spring was profiled in the September 2007 issue ( "Clinton Unbound" ). His message for the attendees: Make the most of the transformative power of travel. "Cross-cultural interaction transforms people and inspires them to try to help those in need. The travel industry is in a unique position to influence change in the world through fair employment practices, career opportunities, responsible environmental initiatives, and deep engagement in community affairs," he said, "Together we can make a better world."

Richard C. Holbrooke—the former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations and current president and CEO of the Global Business Coalition on HIV/AIDs, Tuberculosis, and Malaria–continued the theme of corporate social responsibility during his 30-minute presentation. Many of the travel companies in the room, he pointed out—including Ritz-Carlton Hotels, Kerzner International, Mikato Safaris, and American Express–are members of his coalition, which funds disease prevention projects, but that many other travel companies were resistant to joining. "I've understood the reluctance of travel organizations to be linked to diseases," Holbrook said, "But in the long run, especially those of you with a presence in Africa, it's an issue you can't hide from."