Keynote Announcement: TBEX North America 2026 in Richmond, Virginia
TBEX North America is thrilled to announce one of our featured keynote sessions for 2026: Access for All: How Inclusive Travel Storytelling Builds Stronger Creators and Smarter Destinations. This is one of several keynote conversations with more speakers and sessions to come.
This dynamic panel brings together leaders who have reshaped the way the industry views accessibility and inclusive storytelling. The conversation will take an honest look at how far we have come and the work that still lies ahead. Accessibility is not a niche. It is a universal need that every traveler and every destination will eventually face. This keynote will help creators and brands understand why inclusive storytelling is essential to future proofing their work.
Panelists will share what they have learned about audience building, trust, and the responsibility that comes with telling stories grounded in lived experience. They will also explore how creators and destinations can work together to communicate access clearly and accurately. Whether you are navigating your own access needs or advocating for others, this discussion will inspire you to turn personal insight into meaningful action.
Featuring:
Cory Lee of Curb Free with Cory Lee
Cory Lee has visited all seven continents and more than 50 countries in his powered wheelchair. Through his award winning blog, CurbFreeWithCoryLee.com, he shares accessible and sometimes not so accessible travel adventures with readers around the world. Cory is also the author of the children’s book “Let’s Explore with Cor Cor”. He has grown a following of more than 150,000 across social media and leads international group trips each year. In 2022 he launched The Curb Free Foundation which provides travel grants to wheelchair users. Cory’s mission is simple. Inspire wheelchair users to roll beyond their comfort zone and experience the beauty of the world.
Penny Zibula and Splendid of Six Legs Will Travel
Penny Zibula is a freelance travel writer based in Greenville, South Carolina. Her background includes public relations, community outreach, nine years as a local television talk show host and producer, and four years as a staff writer for a local newspaper. Today she travels the world with her husband and photographer Simon Lock and her guide dog Splendid. Penny creates stories for serious travelers, armchair travelers, boomers, and travelers with disabilities. Her work highlights the places, people, and moments that make destinations unforgettable.
Phoenyx Powell of Phoenyx Travels
Phoenyx Powell is a travel writer and accessibility advocate who shares destinations through lived experience as an amputee with a brain injury, sensory sensitivities, and chronic illness. She creates clear and practical accessibility content that helps travelers plan confidently. Phoenyx also teaches creators and destinations how to communicate access honestly and in a way that builds trust. Her work bridges the gap between what travelers with access needs look for and how destinations and storytellers describe it.
Moderated by:
Leslie Walker, CHSP, CATP of Leslie Walker Consulting and TBEX
Leslie Walker is a nationally recognized tourism consultant and storytelling strategist. She helps destinations and small business communities turn authentic stories into powerful marketing tools. As the founder of Leslie Walker Consulting, she works with economic developers, tourism leaders, and entrepreneurs to uncover overlooked assets, develop tourism ready products, and position communities for long term visibility. Her work includes major initiatives like Accessible North Alabama and her role curating creator focused content for TBEX around the world. Leslie is known for blending creativity with practical tools to help businesses turn what makes them unique into what makes them unforgettable.
Registration for TBEX North America 2026 is now open. Join us in Richmond to learn, connect, and be part of the conversations shaping the future of travel storytelling. Secure your spot early and get ready for three days of ideas, inspiration, and practical tools you can take home and use right away. Richmond is ready to welcome you, and we cannot wait to see you there.
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