Kuching, Sarawak, is hosting the Pacific Asia Travel Association’s flagship event this week, and a Bhutanese tourism executive has taken center stage. Lizam Dorji, CEO of MICE Bhutan, was named the PATA Face of the Future 2026 during the PATA Travel Mart 2026, which opened August 18 at the Borneo Convention Centre Kuching and runs through August 20.

Dorji, whose company is a subsidiary of Druk Asia, was selected as the Grand Winner of the association’s award for emerging tourism leaders. According to eturbonews.com, PATA said the recognition reflects her leadership, innovation and commitment to building a more meaningful and sustainable tourism industry. The award has been presented since 2002 and is considered PATA’s highest honor for young professionals in travel and tourism.

PATA CEO Noor Ahmad Hamid congratulated Dorji, noting that this year’s competition drew a record number of applications and that the quality of candidates made judging especially challenging.

From International MICE Experience to Bhutan

Dorji’s win carries particular weight for Bhutan, a Himalayan kingdom working to grow tourism while preserving its environmental, cultural and social values. Before returning home, she spent more than five years in Thailand with the Royal Cliff Hotels Group and the Pattaya Exhibition and Convention Hall. Her portfolio included international conferences, United Nations events and corporate meetings involving as many as 4,000 participants.

Back in Bhutan, she is now expanding the country’s Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions (MICE) sector. Her vision goes beyond attracting events: she wants MICE tourism to create professional opportunities for young Bhutanese and position the country as a venue for meaningful international dialogue.

That philosophy extends outside the conference business. Dorji’s projects include a partnership with Bhutan’s Youth Development Fund to plant 2,664 flowering trees with visitors over three years, as well as collaboration with the Department of Culture to support the revitalisation of three nationally significant museums.

As PATA Face of the Future 2026, Dorji will serve on the PATA Board for one year beginning in 2027, giving younger voices a seat at the leadership table. She hopes the award will encourage other young professionals to see tourism not just as a career, but as a way to protect cultural heritage, strengthen host communities and preserve the environment — all while reflecting Bhutan’s philosophy of sustainability and Gross National Happiness.

Four More Young Leaders Recognized

PATA also presented four Special Recognitions highlighting different dimensions of next-generation leadership. Abdulla Iyaan Ahmed of the Maldives received the Student Excellence recognition. A final-year International Tourism Management student at Taylor’s University in Malaysia and former President of the PATA Malaysia Taylor’s Student Chapter, he has been active in student leadership and sustainability initiatives.

Orawan Dinsor of Thailand, Team Leader – Travelplan (Latin Markets) at Asian Trails, earned the Strategic Management recognition. She leads operations serving more than 1,000 Spanish travellers each month and was praised for combining operational management with collaboration and customer experience.

Alevtina Borodulina, Lead Heritage Consultant at Aquamarine Projects, was recognized for Leadership. A social anthropologist, she spent six months conducting ethnographic fieldwork with Sarawak’s Bidayuh Indigenous community as part of a tourism masterplan.

Uyanga Galbadrakh of Mongolia, Co-Founder and CEO of WildMongolia, received the Sustainability Initiatives recognition. After a career in IT and strategy consulting in Tokyo, she returned to Mongolia and developed a tourism model supporting traditional nomadic livelihoods. PATA says WildMongolia’s locally led Pop-Up Ger Camp has supported 50 families directly and more than 300 people indirectly since April 2025.

Together, the five honorees illustrate a shift in Asia-Pacific tourism leadership: away from measuring success solely by visitor volume and toward community benefit, cultural preservation, sustainability and purposeful growth.

PATA Travel Mart 2026 Opens in Kuching

The awards coincide with PTM 2026, which is being held in Sarawak for the first time. More than 1,100 delegates from 48 countries and destinations are participating, with 221 buyers representing 215 companies from 29 source markets and over 365 sellers representing more than 200 organisations and destinations. Across the two principal Travel Mart days, buyers and sellers are scheduled to conduct more than 4,000 business appointments.

PTM 2026 is organised by PATA, endorsed by Sarawak’s Ministry of Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts, hosted by the Sarawak Tourism Board and supported by Business Events Sarawak. PATA CEO Noor Ahmad Hamid has framed the decision to take the Travel Mart beyond traditional gateways as part of a strategy to connect smaller and emerging destinations directly with international markets.

Holding PTM in Sarawak puts international buyers face-to-face with a destination whose tourism proposition is closely tied to Indigenous heritage, biodiversity, gastronomy, culture, nature and adventure.

Sarawak Becomes the Meeting Point

The program extends beyond buyer-seller appointments. Activities began August 17 with the PATA Youth Symposium, bringing university students and young professionals together for industry discussions. The day also included PATA’s Executive Board and Board Members networking, Life Members gathering, Chapter and Student Chapter Awards, and the Face of the Future Awards.

On August 18, the PATA Knowledge Forum is being held under the theme ‘The Next Era: Impactful Partnerships, Purposeful Growth.’ Discussions cover partnerships, technology, business innovation, communities, culture and meaningful tourism experiences — themes that closely mirror the work for which Dorji and the other winners were honored.

Sarawak Tourism Board CEO Dr Sharzede Datu Haji Salleh Askor sees PTM as an opportunity to move international perceptions of Sarawak beyond a conventional exhibition. By exposing visiting travel professionals directly to Sarawak’s communities, food, culture, natural environment and adventure products, the destination hopes buyers will return to their markets ready to incorporate more Sarawak experiences into future itineraries.