GOLD COAST, AUSTRALIA (July 31, 2024) – Travel + Leisure Co. is proud to announce its latest staff initiative aimed at inspiring inclusion and allyship for its LGBTQIA+ employees and hotel guests.

Through its Pride International diversity resource group, Travel + Leisure Co. is hosting an exclusive interview with the dynamic and inspiring Kween Kong as part of its Voices Unheard employee webinar series. The company’s diversity group spans 13 countries and focuses on fostering an inclusive and safe environment for its team members and hotel guests. During the webinar, Kween Kong will explore the intersection of LGBTQIA+ identity, cultural beliefs, and societal norms, igniting discussions on embracing authenticity and forging new paths in life.

At 16, Samoan-Tongan Thomas Fonua faced a life-changing decision: play for New Zealand’s under-19 rugby team or join Black Grace, New Zealand’s premier contemporary dance company. Against his father’s advice, Thomas chose dance over rugby, a decision that led him to tour the world as a professional dancer. Today, Thomas is better known as Kween Kong, a world-renowned choreographer, dancer, and performer. Kween Kong’s contributions to the LGBTQIA+ community have been widely recognised. This year, she was PEDESTRIAN TELEVISION’s winner of the Queer Excellence Award. She was a runner-up in the second season of RuPaul’s Drag Race Down Under. In 2023, Kween Kong was nominated for the Graham Kennedy Award for Most Popular New Talent at the Logie Awards.

Kween Kong

“We are proud to invite Kween Kong to chat with our teams about the importance of being their authentic selves, following dreams, and carving new pathways,” said Liz Collinson, Senior Vice President Legal & Compliance Asia Pacific and Executive Sponsor of Pride International.

“Through our Pride International Diversity Resource Group, we continue to foster an inclusive environment that celebrates all voices and the vibrant LGBTQIA+ community at Travel + Leisure Co. Through events like this, we aim to provide a safe and welcoming environment for our LGBTQIA+ team members, our hotel guests, allies, and advocates.”

Travel + Leisure Co. is the world’s leading membership and leisure travel company, with a portfolio of nearly 20 resort, travel club, and lifestyle travel brands. With a wealth of hospitality expertise, Travel + Leisure Co. is a development partner of choice in Asia Pacific and its management subsidiaries oversee a collection of some 89 hotel and resort properties across Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, Thailand, Hawaii, Indonesia, Japan and Europe. The company’s hotel and resort portfolio features globally renowned Club Wyndham, Wyndham Grand, Wyndham, Wyndham Garden, Ramada by Wyndham, TRYP by Wyndham brands.

Travel + Leisure Co. has the largest vacation club development operation outside of the Americas. The company markets and sells vacation ownership interests and provides consumer financing to some 100,000 vacation owners in Club Wyndham South Pacific , Accor Vacation Club and Club Wyndham Asia.

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