2003 Travel News ArchiveTravel

Blending tourism and environment

Can tourism and conservation co-exist in the Caribbean? The Center for Environmental Leadership in Business is convinced that they can, and is convening tourism industry leaders to devise the Caribbean Conservation Action Plan (CELB), a division of Conservation International. The mission is to gather key decision-makers who can influence Caribbean touristic development. The event will focus on finding creative, business-minded solutions to the environmental problems facing the Caribbean. It will take place 24 to 26 April at the Punta Cana Club and Resort.
Tourism industry leaders will join government officials, conservation organizations, scientists and local representatives, as they brainstorm to find solutions to the prime threats facing the Caribbean tourism industry and economy, namely environmental degradation and species loss. Keynote speakers include: Captain William S. Wright, senior vice president, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.; Gordon (Butch) Stewart, chairman, Sandals Resorts and Air Jamaica; Jeffrey Sachs and Thomas Lovejoy, world-renowned experts in environmental economics; and Sylvia Earle, leading international expert in marine science and conservation.
?The tourism industry today faces many challenges, including increasing competition, raising operational costs and increasing customer expectations,? said Frank Rainieri, founder and president of the Punta Cana Resort and Club. ?Business leaders who do not recognize that an aggressive environmental conservation program can help them address all of these obstacles will not be successful in this changing market.?
Co-sponsors include the Center for Applied Biodiversity Science at Conservation International (CABS), the Center for Environmental Research and Conservation (CERC), the Punta Cana Ecological Foundation and the Punta Cana Resort and Club. For more information email Jason Anderson at j.anderson@celb.org or
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