Leadership

POWERING OUR MISSION

Meet the Faces Behind Travel Unity

Travel Unity has an extensive network of thoughtful individuals from various backgrounds and identities. Our staff, Directors, and Advisors work diligently on our mission to make the world of travel welcoming to everyone.

Meet Our Team

Team Member Bios

Roni Weiss

Roni Weiss was born in Long Island, New York and grew up in Snohomish County, Washington, north of Seattle.

At the age of 10, Roni began attending Edmonds Community College (now Edmonds College), receiving his Associate’s of Arts and Science with Honors at the age of 12. He graduated from Lynnwood High School at the age of 15, then attended the University of Washington, receiving double Bachelor’s of Arts degrees in Drama and English at the age of 18.

Through years of world travels, Roni visited 70+ countries, including every country in Europe, six of seven continents, and taught English in Italy, France, Taiwan, and Chile, both to youth and professionals.

In 2011, Roni founded RW Social, a marketing and consulting company for the travel industry and nonprofits. From 2011 to 2016, Roni worked with Africa Travel Association (now Africa Tourism Association), assisting with and speaking at ATA’s events in NYC, DC, and multiple African countries.

In 2013, RW Social launched the New York Travel Festival, an event focused on innovation and sustainability in the world of travel, which served as the genesis for Travel Unity, where he now serves as Executive Director.

Roni lives in Westchester County, NY with his partner, Lauren, and their four children.

roni@travelunity.org

+1 (212) 923-7704

Vandana Agrawal

Vandana Agrawal is a growth consultant, specializing in DEI, International Business, and Marketing projects. Creating solutions that improve business outcomes and employee engagement, Vandana’s work focuses on prioritizing strategic goals while balancing operational realities, transforming teams to scale, and addressing complex issues with communication, teamwork, and planning.

Vandana is the former Vice President, International at Highlights for Children, where she also launched the company’s DEI Council, guiding new employee education, recruitment, and marketing review initiatives. Under her leadership, Highlights International went from emerging to established growth, through infrastructure improvements, marketing campaigns and the introduction of a reading edtech platform. Vandana worked with partners in more than 40 countries, with particular experience in Asia, Middle East and Europe.

Vandana lives in Columbus, Ohio where she is a Senior Lecturer in Marketing at The Ohio State University Fisher School of Business. She also was a broadcast journalist, writing and producing for news outlets such as CNN and Fox News in New York. Vandana has a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Pennsylvania, a Master of Arts from the University of Missouri and a Master of Business Administration from The Ohio State University.

+1 (212) 923-7704

Dr. Christa Mahlobo

Dr. Christa Mahlobo is a Provost’s postdoctoral research fellow in the The Humanities and Human Flourishing Lab at The University of Pennsylvania. Christa earned her PhD at The Pennsylvania State University where her research focused on flourishing in African Americans, mindfulness, and the well-being effects of leisure, parks, and recreation spaces. She has over 10 years of experience in diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice work from doing DEIJ work at non-profits and within university contexts. At TU, Christa does programming and delivery around DEI workshops.

+1 (212) 923-7704

Board of Directors

Board Elections to take place in June 2023.
Travel Unity’s voting body is the Board of Directors, comprised of:

Our Advisors

Travel Unity maintains a global Board of Advisors, comprised of

Travel Unity provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.

This policy applies to all employment terms and conditions, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation, and training.