SUSTAINABLE TOURISM CONFERENCE WORKSHOPS
Publication Date: 5/23/2007
At this year’s Caribbean Conference on Sustainable Tourism Development, which is taking place this week, May 21-24, at the Westin Casuarina Resort & Spa, educational workshops will be offered on a variety of subjects relating to communities, environment, economies and emerging industries.
Tuesday May 22, 2007
§ Health Tourism: Alternate Strategies for the Caribbean
Often called “wellness”, the rapidly growing consumer interest in lifestyle improvement will offer anyone, from the single practitioner to boutique hotels to large scale resorts, ways to create differentiation in the marketplace. The workshop will discuss global consumer trends and how they will affect the marketing of today’s business while positioning it for the future.
Presenter: Eric Light
Light, President and CEO of the Strawberry Hill Group Worldwide, is recognized as a leading expert in spa, medical spa and wellness centre development, and has helped develop facilities around the globe. He holds degrees in anthropology and archaeology from the University of Mexico and one in communications from Temple University.
§ Success, Challenges & Opportunities within the Caribbean
Wellness Sector
This presentation provides insight into the challenges that the Caribbean spa and wellness sector faces, and will continue to face, in dispelling common myths surrounding the sector, the development of industry standards, financing and stakeholder collaboration. The presentation proposes a way for the regional spa and wellness sector to create a brand the rest of the world will envy by using the region’s successes and challenges and transforming them into opportunities for the Caribbean.
Presenter: Steve Andrews
Andrews is the founder and CEO of Soothing Touch Da Spa, Inc. in Barbados. A 12-year veteran of the Caribbean spa industry, Steve is passionate about seeing the Caribbean become the leading spa destination in the world.
§ Developing a Spa and Wellness Business
The Caribbean could be poised for a boom in the spa/wellness industry, with more than 78 million baby boomers approaching 65 over the next few years. Uniting the spa and wellness industries under one umbrella allows for greater flexibility and efficiency. This workshop will discuss whether the Caribbean should position itself to be the world’s destination of choice for cosmetic surgery and recovery programmes, utilizing the gift of ideal climatic conditions and perfusion of natural springs.
Presenter: Gaudia Chevannes Aquart
Aquart, an industry leader and educator with more than 20 years experience, has sat on the consulting body that wrote the Cosmetology Curriculum for the National Vocational Training Institute in Jamaica. She has also worked with the Tourism Product Development Company in Jamaica to create and implement training under the ‘Don’t Harass the Tourist’ programme funded by the OAS.
§ The Basics of Ayurveda Tourism Development
Ayurveda Tourism is quickly becoming a new dimension in the health and wellness tourism niche market, now a billion-dollar health industry. The presentation will focus on the theme of Ayurveda Tourism and how it can accrue benefits to both the health-conscious tourist who engages in this therapeutic form of tourism and the Caribbean citizens by providing them with real knowledge of how to make the best use of the treasure that is Ayurveda.
Presenter: Indiana Monteverde
Monteverde is one of the most well-known tourism specialists in the Caribbean. She completed Ayurvedic training in Gujarat, India, and has opened the “Centro Ayurvedico del Este”, C.H.A.E, in Caraca. She’s currently developing the Ayurvedic Foundation for the development of the Ayurveda Science in The Caribbean.
Wednesday May 23rd
§ Community Sports Tourism
Sport tourism can take many forms, but primarily involves hosting sports events which bring participants and spectators who spend money in the community and in tourism. The presentation will examine the approach to effective planning for community sport tourism in order to maximize the benefits and will include, as a case study, the four steps Community Sport Tourism Planning Programme developed by 2010 Legacies Now and Tourism British Columbia.
Presenter: Andrew
Preece
Preece has 16 years of consultancy experience in the sport, leisure and tourism sectors. He has worked on projects in Hong Kong, Malaysia, Australia, Canada, the Middle East and the Caribbean and is a member of the British Expertise Tourism and Leisure Committee.
§ Cultivating Connections along the Caribbean Culinary Trail This presentation will explore the opportunities created when communities across the region unite to tell the story of West Indian cuisine island-to-island and table-to-table. The speaker will demonstrate ways to create deeper, more engaging experiences that recharge visitors and respect local interests. Potential strategies to identify, attract and retain the most beneficial tourists will also be considered.
Presenter: Andy Dumaine
Dumaine has developed strategies for some of the world's most recognized brands and destinations. He’s worked for National Geographic, The Washington Post, Intercontinental Hotels & Resorts and many other internationally-recognized clients. A seasoned traveller, Dumaine has direct experience with the challenges and opportunities tourism creates for communities and destinations.
§ Integrated Coastal Zone Management: The Importance of Beach Risk Assessments for Tourist Destinations – Lessons For the Caribbean
Ministries of tourism, hoteliers and tour operators’ councils are increasingly concerned about security and liability related issues along the coast. Under the umbrella of Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM), better coastal education and capacity building is seen as one area for general improvement. This presentation will explore how SaferSands can be used by tourism agencies to ensure consistency in communicating beach risk across the Caribbean region to help both tourist marketing and to address the plethora of problems that are currently facing coastal managers on all islands.
Presenter: Johnathan McCue
McCue is a chartered coastal scientist, specializing in the fields of ICZM, coastal tourism management, Caribbean coastal planning, flood management, strategic environmental assessment, marine park management and community participation work. He has worldwide experience and has contributed to the production of tourism plans and ICZM plans in Europe, the Middle East, the Caribbean and South Asia.
§ Greening Your Business
This workshop will establish the imperative need for action as the background for getting started on or continuously improving an organization’s “greening” initiatives. The workshop will demonstrate examples from around the region, illustrate the importance of heralding best practices and reveal how all categories of tourism operations can implement the key steps to get their initiatives started.
Presenter: Deirdre P.
Shurland Shurland
hails from Trinidad & Tobago with 18 years experience in environmental management, tourism development, standards and certification, and institutional development. She has served in management and team leadership positions throughout the Caribbean, completed environmental audit and assessment assignments across multi-industry sectors.
Thursday May 24th
§ The Role of the National Trust in Tourism Development The purposes of the National Trust are primarily the conservation of environmental areas and preservation of historic sites. The National Trust’s role in tourism focuses on “Heritage Tourism”, “Geotourism” and “Eco Tourism”. The National Trust for the Cayman Islands understands the role it can play in presenting credible, authentic and entertaining Caymanian experiences to visitors whilst preserving the history, culture and environment of the three islands.
Presenter: Frank E. Roulstone III
Roulstone became GM of the National Trust for the Cayman Islands in September 2004, and was a member since the Trust began in 1987. Frank has served on various committees and the Trust Council and actively participated in the development of the QE II Botanic Park and is a founding member of the Cayman Orchid Society.
§ The Economics of Greening Your Business
The best way to have people live a more sustainable life is to either scare them, or demonstrate to governments, to businesses and to families, that with the continual improvements in technology, and the decreasing costs of buying this technology, you, your business and your government will save money.
Presenter: Peter Hillenbrand
For the past eleven years Hillenbrand has run an award winning full service, fish and dive resort on Little Cayman called the Southern Cross Club. He is chairman of the Central Caribbean Marine Institute (CCMI), the Little Cayman Research Centre (LCRC), President of the Sister Island Tourism Association (SITA), member of the Vision 2008 Environmental Committee and Vice President of the Little Cayman National Trust.
§ The Experience of the East End District Go East Initiative
Addresses the challenges of retaining the charm, tranquillity, culture and uniqueness of the East End District while embracing the benefits of economic development and growth. It addresses working to achieved shared values and prosperity for the economic development of the district, maintaining social harmony, protecting the environment and assuring development and growth is managed so all benefit.
Presenter: Mervyn Conolly
Currently, the CEO of the Health Insurance Commission and Superintendent of Health Insurance, Conolly is the Chairman of the East End Go East Committee and has served on several government boards and committees including the Civil Services Association Cooperative Credit Union Board, the Health Insurance Advisory Committee and the Health Services Authority Board.
Other workshop topics to include: Health Tourism in Cuba; Standards and Accreditation for Complimentary and Alternative Medicine; Recreational Carry Capacity and Tourism & Climate Change.
STC-9 is organized by the CTO in collaboration with the Department of Tourism, and co-sponsored by the European Union within the framework of the Caribbean Regional Sustainable Tourism Development Program (CRSTDP).
Sponsors of STC-9 include Cayman Free Press, Deloitte, Red Sail Sports, Kirk Sea Tours, Kirk Freeport, Flowers Bottled Water, Boatswains Beach, Atlantis Submarines, Sea Trek, the Departments of Environmental Health and of Agriculture, the Tourism Attraction Board, Cayman Islands National Trust and Island Supply.
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