By Lea Thin, freelance author
Antje Monshausen has shaped the work of Tourism Watch for more than a decade. Today, she is Executive Director of ECPAT Germany. In this interview, she reflects on more than 15 years of Tourism Watch, the importance of child protection for the tourism sector, and the future of sustainable tourism education.
Ms. Monshausen, you have been involved with Tourism Watch since the early 2000s. In which moments have you felt that you really made a difference?
Antje Monshausen: When I started at Tourism Watch in 2008, corporate responsibility for human rights was still in its infancy. Yet Tourism Watch already had it fully on the agenda. It wasn’t until a few years later that the UN adopted its Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. Many people began asking: what does “due diligence”1 mean in practice? During that time, Tourism Watch played a key role in translating this theoretical concept into practical applications for tourism. And we didn’t do it with a finger-wagging approach, but through trust-based networks with companies, associations, and civil society organizations. Out of this work, the Roundtable Human Rights in Tourism eventually emerged – today an officially registered non-profit association and an international multi-stakeholder initiative. I see the creation of such a tool from within civil society as one of our greatest achievements.
Another significant milestone was the Transforming Tourism Initiative. Launched within the broader UN process surrounding the 2015 SDGs and Agenda 2030, the initiative brought together NGOs from around the world to formulate a clear vision of what tourism must look like by 2030: a sector that advances income equality, protects the climate, and safeguards the rights of Indigenous peoples, women, and children. This vision was later presented to the UN World Tourism Organization and a wide range of tourism stakeholders, anchoring civil society perspectives firmly in global debates. When the pandemic brought global travel to a standstill, the Transforming Tourism Initiative proved its value once again. It became a crucial space for NGOs to stay connected, share insights, and push for a tourism restart grounded in social justice and sustainability.
Today, you work at ECPAT Germany, an organization that combats the sexual exploitation of children. But even during your Tourism Watch days, you were already in contact with ECPAT…
AM: Both organizations share common roots. When “Ferntourismus,” the predecessor of Tourism Watch, was founded, the initial impulses came from churches in Asia and the Caribbean. People there had suffered from the negative effects of international tourism and called on churches in sending countries to better prepare travellers – ecologically, culturally, and ethically.
Topics such as environmental damage, colonialism, cultural respect, and child protection were present from the very beginning. ECPAT later emerged from a global campaign. The acronym originally stood for End Child Prostitution in Asian Tourism. Today, ECPAT is a worldwide network combating all forms of sexual exploitation of children. Both Tourism Watch and ECPAT continue to work closely together, united by the idea that the perspectives of those affected must always be at the centre.
Where do we stand on child protection in tourism in 2025? What has improved, and what hasn’t?
AM: In Germany, the discussion about sexualized violence in tourism was almost taboo until the mid-2000s. Many tour operators avoided the topic out of fear that it could reflect badly on them. Gradually, however, people began to realize that offenders exploit the infrastructure of travel –and that tourism therefore has the potential to counteract it.
Today, the taboo has been broken, but the path is long. Companies and governments deal more openly with sexualized violence against children, but we must not fool ourselves: of around 2,000 German tour operators, only about 20 have signed the International Code of Conduct for the Protection of Children. That shows how much catch-up work remains – globally, but also in Germany. Even here, hotels become crime scenes. This is still an almost unknown, highly taboo topic. There is still much to be done in Germany.
Why is the number of signatory tour operators so low? Is it due to the effort required, or a lack of awareness?
AM: Both factors play a role. The Child Protection Code requires companies to take concrete measures: risk analyses, staff training, traveller information, and clear reporting procedures. ECPAT supports these processes with trainings, flyers, and educational materials. Signing companies receive support – but the Child Protection Code is not a mere symbolic commitment. Responsibility must be visible, and that takes courage. Even today, there are executives and employees who have worked in tourism for 30 years without ever having discussed child protection – and that is simply unacceptable.
Many companies say, “We have no cases,” instead of asking whether they have appropriate reporting or analysis systems. Without a risk analysis, you won’t see the risks. We need much greater awareness of the issue. That’s why, as ECPAT, we educate future tourism professionals. Over the past 20 years, we have reached around 15,000 students in vocational schools, universities of applied sciences, and universities. Many of them later bring the topic into their workplaces. This is one reason why awareness of child protection in tourism has increased.
Are less children affected by sexualized violence in tourism today?
AM: There are both positive and negative aspects. Awareness has increased, and professional structures in the police, counselling centres, and companies have improved. However, digitalisation has also created new forms of exploitation. We observe traveling sexual offenders2 recording abuse material during trips and distributing it online. Even more common today is digital grooming: offenders contact children and their families via social media before traveling to build trust and later gain access on-site. In my recently published article “Digital Grooming, Local Exploitation”, you can find current examples from around the world. The combination of mobility and digital spaces acts like an accelerant.
Looking ahead, which topics and target groups will be particularly important for Tourism Watch in the future?
AM: Tourism Watch will remain essential. Over the past 15 years, we’ve seen that trust and cooperation can indeed create change. Tourism Watch has primarily addressed companies as central actors – and that remains necessary. At the same time, we must acknowledge that travel has become more diverse. More and more people book online and travel independently. In the Global South, more people travel for internships, development service, or study programs abroad – business travel is another risk area. These groups require new, tailored educational programmes. Future educational work must therefore involve new multipliers: not just travel companies, but also universities, funding agencies, exchange organizations, and companies that organize international business trips.
Even though ECPAT’s focus is child protection, it is important that Tourism Watch continues to address all topics. Companies tend to cherry-pick. In the years before the pandemic, climate protection was the focus; afterwards, social issues such as labour conditions or skills shortages gained prominence. Companies pick up what is easiest to implement or what currently receives public attention. Tourism Watch, by contrast, must ensure that no issue – be it human rights, climate, equality, or child protection – falls off the agenda. The organization’s wide-reaching connections to civil society in many countries of the Global South are key. The issues that matter most to people there must continue to be brought to the forefront by Tourism Watch.
1The duty of companies to examine whether their activities could violate human rights and to take appropriate measures to prevent or mitigate such risks.
2Official statistics consistently show that more than 85% of perpetrators of sexual offenses against children are male. At the same time, there are also female perpetrators and perpetrators with a non-binary gender identity. They may commit sexualized violence themselves or play a — often overlooked — role in facilitating access to underage victims.
