News for the Hospitality Executive |
United Arab Emirates,
14 October 2010, A world
leading expert on responsible tourism is
urging key industry stakeholders to accept responsibility for advancing
a
sustainable agenda and is joining a growing lobby which will press the
case at
next month’s World Green Tourism Abu Dhabi. “For too long
the major
stakeholders have failed to take responsibility for their impacts and
for
making their businesses more economically, socially and environmentally
sustainable,” said Prof. Goodwin. “Sustainable development, sustainable
tourism, sustainability have all too often been dismissed as someone
else’s
responsibility – there has been a failure to act. Businesses have
argued that
it is for others to solve the problems.” Prof. Goodwin
will address a
special World Green Tourism Abu Dhabi session devoted to ‘Taking
Responsibility
for Making Tourism Sustainable’ where he will be joined by: Nikki
White, Head
of Destinations and Sustainability, the Association of British Travel
Agents; Roddy Gordon, VP Sales and
Marketing, Tamani Hotels and Resorts, UAE and Faith Taylor, VP
Sustainability
and Innovation, Wyndham Worldwide, USA . The session will be chaired by
Lelei
LeLaulu, Co-chairman of Hawaii’s Innovation for Sustainable Development
Centre. “While the
industry will be urged
on to stronger action at World Green Tourism Abu Dhabi, delegates will
also
hear case studies of how sustainable initiatives can be translated into
economic reality,” said Rick Theobald, Event Director, Streamline
Marketing
Group (SMG), which is organising the event. World Green
Tourism Abu Dhabi’s
powerful speaker platform also boasts Gopinath Parayil, the 36-year-old
founder
and chief executive of India’s leading responsible travel company The
Blue
Yonder and Bruce Poon Tip, founder of Gap Adventures, the world’s
largest
adventure travel company, both of whom will outline how pioneering
sustainability can deliver significant socio-Economics. “In Abu Dhabi it is encouraging to see the
government
accepting that change is needed and that they are working with the
industry to
make the essential changes if tourism is to contribute to
sustainable development in the next 20 years,” added
Prof. Goodwin. World Green Tourism Abu Dhabi, is being held
under the
patronage of HH Sheikh Sultan Bin Tahnoon Al Nahyan, Chairman of Abu
Dhabi
Tourism Authority (ADTA) who will deliver the event’s opening address. World Green
Tourism Abu Dhabi – a
first-of-its-kind event for the Arabian Gulf, is the first meetings
industry
initiative to emerge from ADTA’s Advantage Abu Dhabi incentive
programme which
catalyses and seeds new business tourism and meetings concepts. The
event
reflects the core values of the Abu Dhabi Government’s 2030 plan which
clearly
identifies tourism as a key economic diversification driver and
environmental
sustainability as an underlying fundamental of the emirate. The event,
a
conference with a supporting exhibition, is a forum for key industry
leaders
and associations to discuss the environmental challenges facing the
tourism
industry, highlighting ‘green’ initiatives, technologies and solutions
currently being integrated into mainstream industry practices. For more information: www.worldgreentourism.com About the Streamline Marketing Group: Streamline Marketing Group (www.smg-online.com)
is a boutique events
agency with a 12-year track record of launching specialised trade
events in the
Arabian Gulf both on its own in partnership with international media
groups,
global governmental organisations and NGOs. Providing professional and
proactive services, with a strong focus on government-related and niche
marketing projects, the group's philosophy is to provide tailor-made
and
cost-effective service, offering its clients complete turn-key
management. Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority was established in September 2004. It has wide ranging responsibilities for building and developing the emirate's tourism industry. These include; destination marketing; infrastructure and product development and regulation and classification. A key role is to create synergy in the international promotion of Abu Dhabi through close co-ordination with the emirate's hotels, destination management companies, airlines and other public and private sector travel-related organizations. abudhabitourism.ae For more information on Harold Goodwin : www.haroldgoodwin.info/links.html |
Contact: Alisdair Haythornthwaite +971 56 690 1725 [email protected] Rosemary Youssef +971 50 354 8805 [email protected] |
Also See: | Abu
Dhabi Tourism to Collaborate with Hong Kong Polytechnic On Educational
Strategies / November 2009 |
2007 Abu Dhabi & Dubai Snapshot; Economics, Visitation and Hotel Development / Hadrien Pujol and Bernard Forster/ May 2007 |