ITIC Global 2024 | Geopolitical risks and global travel
Lloyd Figgins, CEO of the Travel Risk & Incident Prevention (TRIP) Group, shared his insights on the current geopolitical risk landscape, highlighting key hotspots, potential emerging threats and important considerations for travellers
The ITIJ team have been reporting live from ITIC Global in Vienna this week (November 2024) sharing the discussions that took place at the conference. Read all reports
Figgins opened his presentation by defining geopolitics as “the effect of geographical factors on politics, especially international politics and how they affect the whole world”.
He then discussed some of the secondary effects of geopolitical events on the global stage, such as rising energy prices.
He presented the TRIP Group’s 2024 global risk map, which highlights each country through a traffic light system according to five levels of risk: critical, high, medium, low, and negligible. He stressed that the geopolitical landscape is continually shifting, and risks are constantly evolving, stating: “We need to be able to evolve with them.”
Figgins continued by underscoring the definition of ‘ecopolitics’, “the study of politics influenced by economic power”, noting how geopolitics and ecopolitics impact one another.
Next, he outlined the current global threat landscape, highlighting key geopolitical issues.
These include tensions between China and Taiwan; the war in Ukraine, with Russia as a broader global concern; the ongoing conflict involving Israel, Gaza, Lebanon, and Iran; and conflicts in Africa. He observed that these issues are likely to contribute to increased civil unrest and terrorist attacks worldwide, emphasizing that a rise in terrorism would significantly affect global travel.
Then Figgins addressed the ‘US effect’, reflecting on the implications of Donald Trump coming into power in the US, concluding that his presidency will definitely impact the global picture.
He highlighted the TESSOC acronym, noting that TESSOC threats occur daily and should not be overlooked by travellers:
- T – Terrorism
- E – Espionage
- S – Subversion
- S – Sabotage
- O – Organised
- C – Crime.
Figgins noted that in today’s world, threats like espionage, sabotage, and organised crime can be easily executed by hijacking mobile phones and laptops, or through social media, where people inadvertently expose themselves by oversharing personal information.
Next, he outlined the travel risk management roadmap:
- Threat assessments – geohazards, political, security, health
- Intelligence reporting – verifiable and account for mis- and disinformation
- Travel risk assessments – include activities and be specific
- Emergency response plans – including medical evacuation response plan (MERP) and evacuation
- Empower travellers – make reporting part of the travel process
- Continually review – apply revisions and inform travellers
- Own your travel risk management strategy.
To conclude, Figgins stressed that thoroughly researching your destination, planning all aspects of travel, testing travel risk management systems, and fostering communication among travellers are essential for a safe travel experience.
He also recommended researching beyond official government advice by consulting multiple sources or checking various government websites to gain a more comprehensive understanding of potential risks.