This year’s event will be presented under the theme: “Keeping the Right Balance: Enhancing Destination Sustainability Through Products, Partnerships and Profitability,” and will feature top speakers including Carlos Vogeler, the regional director for the Americas at the World Tourism Organization, (UNWTO), the United Nations agency responsible for the promotion of responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism; Dr. Martha Honey, the co-founder of the non-profit research institute, the Center for Responsible Travel (CREST), multiple award-winning hotelier Ewald Biemans, whose properties enjoy average occupancies of over 90 per cent; Kristin Dahl of Travel Oregon and the grandson of one of the lead developers of the world famous Punta Cana Resort and Club in the Dominican Republic, Jake Kheel.
Honey insists that “there is an abundance of evidence demonstrating that a growing number of travelers are paying heed to destinations that practice environmental management, biodiversity conservation, historic restoration and cultural preservation.”
Dr. Honey will present research to support her thesis that as international tourism arrivals continue to grow, so, too, has the interest in socially and environmentally responsible travel under the theme, “The Case for Responsible Travel: Trends and Statistics.”
Dr. Honey will present at a session entitled, “Rethinking Destination Development, Branding and Marketing for the Responsible Traveler.” This session is scheduled for 8:30 -10:00 A.M. on Thursday morning, April 18th.
STC-14 will conclude on Thursday, April 18th. For more information on STC-14, including how to participate, visit www.caribbeanstc.com.
See related stories: https://www.newsamericasnow.com/?s=STC-14
