Condé Nast Traveller has announced Toyo Odetunde as the winner of their inaugural Future of Travel talent competition.
The competition, which was launched earlier this year, searched for passionate and diverse voices to help drive important conversations around the future of travel, says the publisher.
Odetunde, a Nigerian Londoner, shared a moving piece about her experiences travelling in Salvador Brazil, and the echoes of her own culture in the country.
Toyo will be joining the Conde Nast Traveller editorial team for a four-week paid internship in the London office later this year, followed by six months of mentorship from Condé Nast Traveller’s global editorial team.
Divia Thani, global editorial director of Condé Nast Traveller said: “We were delighted to receive so many fantastic entries for our Future of Travel competition and the fantastic opportunity for the winner to learn from our incredible team at Conde Nast Traveller. They proved what a wide range of talent exists here in the UK, and how travel writing as a genre is still something so many people are drawn to and excited about even in the age of information overload.
“Our winner Toyo Odetunde has a truly unique voice and we look forward to uncovering more about the future of travel from Toyo on her four-week internship with Condé Nast Traveller--and sharing more stories from diverse voices to drive important and meaningful conversations around travel.”
Condé Nast says runners up for the competition included:
- Armaan
- Zara Khan
- Evelyn Chapman
- Zainab Haji
Entries were shortlisted by Condé Nast Traveller editors, with the final selection chosen by a judging panel including:
- Sophie Morgan, TV presenter, producer, artist and disability advocate
- Tom Parker Bowles, food writer and critic
- Divia Thani, global editorial director, Condé Nast Traveller
- Vanessa Kingori OBE, chief business officer, Condé Nast Britain and Vogue European business advisor
- Tharik Hussain, author of Minarets in the Mountains
- Clover Stroud, writer and journalist
- Anita Bhagwandas, beauty director of Condé Nast Traveller and author
- Meera Dattani, travel writer and culture journalist
- Holly Rubenstein, host of The Travel Diaries podcast and travel journalist
- Caleb Azumah Nelson, author of Open Water
