DZW Jamaica – Upcycled glass products after workshop © TUI
(IN SHORT) The TUI Care Foundation is deploying over €500,000 in Montego Bay to tackle plastic and glass waste pollution and youth unemployment via two flagship programmes. Destination Zero Waste Jamaica, in collaboration with Smilozone Cares, will build a recycling-and-upcycling centre, train up to 300 young people in green-economy skills, and mobilize tourism businesses and schools in a robust waste-collection network. Concurrently, the Foundation and INVEST launch TUI Academy Jamaica, offering 120 disadvantaged youths vocational courses in housekeeping, F&B service, culinary arts and tour guiding, enriched by life-skills workshops and practical industry placements. Both initiatives embody the Foundation’s global commitment to fostering circular economies, creating jobs and empowering underserved communities through tourism-driven projects.
(PRESS RELEASE) BERLIN, Germany, 2025-Jun-27 — /Travel PR News/ — In Montego Bay, a premier Jamaican holiday hotspot, environmental degradation and youth unemployment persist despite robust tourism activity. To confront these twin challenges, the TUI Care Foundation is investing more than €500,000 in two new initiatives: Destination Zero Waste Jamaica and TUI Academy Jamaica.
Destination Zero Waste Jamaica
In partnership with Montego Bay NGO Smilozone Cares, the Foundation is establishing an integrated waste-management network and an upcycling hub to repurpose discarded glass and plastic into marketable goods. This facility will provide hands-on training in sorting, recycling and creative product design, empowering up to 300 local youths with green-economy employment. Tourist visitors can participate in interactive scavenger hunts and guided upcycling tours, while hotels, restaurants, bars and entertainment venues will collaborate on curbside collection and community workshops. Environmental clubs in schools will reinforce waste-management best practices, nurturing a culture of sustainability across the region. This programme extends the global Destination Zero Waste model—already active in Curaçao, Mauritius, Zanzibar, Cyprus and Tunisia—by driving circular-economy solutions and job creation in tourism locales.
DZW Jamaica – Workshop at the upcycling center © TUI
TUI Academy Jamaica
Teaming up with the Institute of Vocational Education and Skills Training (INVEST), the TUI Care Foundation will enroll 120 underserved young people in tailored vocational courses covering housekeeping, food & beverage service, culinary arts and tour guiding. Each curriculum combines classroom instruction with life-skills coaching—addressing conflict resolution, emotional intelligence and substance-abuse prevention—followed by on-the-job placements with local tourism partners. This dual approach equips graduates to meet the hospitality sector’s acute demand for skilled labor, while offering a clear pathway to internships and permanent roles.
Both programmes reflect the TUI Care Foundation’s mission to harness tourism as a force for good: supporting education, safeguarding natural habitats and strengthening community resilience. As an independent charitable entity founded by TUI and headquartered in the Netherlands, the Foundation leverages local and international partnerships to deliver sustained impact across global destinations.
Media contact:
Manuel Ferreira
+447471260915
manuel.ferreira@tui.com
SOURCE: TUI Group
