Lipa City, Batangas – September 30, 2025. The College of Management and Tourism of the University of Batangas Lipa City, in partnership with the Junior Tourism, Hospitality, and Real Estate Professionals (JTHREP), successfully celebrated the 3rd Annual World Tourism Day on September 30, 2025. With the theme “Tourism and Sustainable Transformation,” the event highlighted both local and global initiatives that position tourism as a powerful tool for sustainability, inclusivity, and innovation.
The morning session featured distinguished guest speakers. Dr. Luh Yusni Wiarti of Bali, Indonesia, presented best practices from Bali’s tourism industry that align with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs). Meanwhile, Councilor Spye Tenorio Toledo emphasized the role of students as catalysts for sustainable transformation and spotlighted Lipa City’s local tourism programs that integrate eco-conscious and community-driven approaches.
In the afternoon, the program shifted to the much-anticipated Mr. and Ms. World Tourism 2025 pageant, an advocacy-centered competition promoting sustainability through fashion and youth leadership. Contestants participated in the Sustainable Wear Competition, showcasing creative and eco-conscious outfits made from recyclable and sustainable materials. At the culmination of the event, Anika Kim Barcbachano (HM2D) and Bong Benedict Manguera (HM3A) were crowned as Ms. and Mr. World Tourism 2025. Other winners included Rohan Peter Deinla and Princess Mary Bawi as first runners-up, and Jarvis Christian Bautista and Angela Villapando as second runners-up.
The celebration also echoed the official message of United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres, published on the official UN Tourism website, which emphasized the urgency of placing sustainability at the heart of tourism:
“Tourism is a powerful driver of transformation – it creates jobs, fuels local economies, and builds bridges across cultures while preserving traditions and cultural heritage. Yet, as the world faces climate challenges and inequalities, we must take bold, sustainable action that puts people and the planet first. This year’s theme, ‘Tourism and Sustainable Transformation,’ calls us to invest in education, empower communities, support small enterprises, and advance climate action to ensure tourism becomes a force for resilience, sustainability, and shared progress for all.”
This message reinforced the global perspective shared by the United Nations Specialized Agency for World Tourism Day 2025, which underscored that tourism must evolve through effective governance, strategic investments, and innovation to ensure long-term benefits for communities and the environment.
Through this year’s celebration, UB Lipa’s College of Management and Tourism reaffirmed its commitment to shaping responsible and globally competitive tourism professionals. By empowering students with the knowledge, values, and vision to lead in sustainability, the university highlighted its role in ensuring that tourism becomes an engine of growth, a force for inclusive and transformative progress.