Intl. Institute for Peace through Tourism President to lead talk at West Indies conference

MANDEVILLE, Jamaica, West Indies – Louis D’Amore, President, International Institute for Peace through Tourism (IIPT) will keynote the IIPT Caribbean Chapter Community Tourism-based Study Tour & Conference in collaboration with Countrystyle Community Tourism Network (CCTN)/Villages as Businesses (VAB), on November 18 to 23, 2013 at the Mandeville Hotel, Jamaica, West Indies. D’Amore says, “I eagerly anticipate returning to the beautiful island of Jamaica to keynote the upcoming IIPT Study Tour & Conference, and feature IIPT’s 25th anniversary activities. I will also report on the session of the Re-dedication of the IIPT International Peace Park at Victoria Falls, which was a feature of the Opening Day at the UNWTO General Assembly with Dr. Taleb Rifai, UNWTO Secretary General, in which 18 Jamaican and Caribbean villages participated simultaneously in dedicating Peace Villages in their respective countries.”

IIPT Caribbean, in association with its Tourism partners, exploring the theme: Sustaining & Transforming Communities through Tourism Entrepreneurship, will host 20 Caribbean leaders from the Eastern Caribbean countries and others from Jamaica, USA, Canada, and Europe, including the Diaspora, in Mandeville, for an exciting study tour taking place November 19-20. Delegates will explore 5 villages which include Marvelous Mandeville; Resource, Manchester; Treasure Beach Village, St Elizabeth; Beeston Spring Village, Westmoreland; and Rastafari Indigenous Village, S.t James.

It was at the Jamaica Community Tourism Conference, IIPT Caribbean’s first conference in 2006 in Montego Bay, in which D’Amore as keynote declared “Jamaica, the Home of Community Tourism.” During this seven-year span, Diana McIntyre-Pike, Founder and President of CCTN/VAB and IIPT Caribbean Chapter, had assiduously forayed into the Caribbean, through her consultancy, to develop niche markets. The resulting gains pushed the envelope, creating a new moniker: “The Caribbean, Home of Community Tourism.”

The conference component will officially open on November 21. The program commences with a Prayer for Peace followed by a series of official welcomes offered respectively by the Mayor of Mandeville, Her Worship, Councilor Brenda Ramsay, and Sally Porteous, Custos Rotulorum, Custos of Mandeville; Ministry of Tourism/Jamaica Tourist Board; and Jason Henzel, President, Jamaica Hotel & Tourist Association, local chapter. Dr. Clifton Reid offers the vote of thanks, which then ushers in the keynote presentation. The day’s activities also includes the highly anticipated official launch of the Community Tourism Trust Fund (COMTRUST).

The program explores salient and relevant topics such as: “Niche Marketing for Accommodation with Communities,” “Preparing communities for welcoming visitors,” “Product Development Forum,” Marketing Forum facilitated by CCTN/VAB Dominica & Caribbean, and Countrystyle Caribbean Vacations and Tours (COCAVAT, Denmark).

The Conference offers a special Community Tourism Awards Luncheon hosted by Mark Pike, Programs Manager, Sandals Resorts Intl., on November 22. The presenter will be Gordon “Butch” Stewart. The Conference concludes with a Media Breakfast exploring the topic: “The Media’s Role in Community Tourism Entrepreneurship” on November 23.

This program has been hosted in part by: The National Best Community Foundation (NBCF), LetsDoItInTheCaribbean.com, Countrystyle Caribbean Vacations and Tours (COCAVAT) Denmark, Manchester Parish Development Committee (MPDC), University of the West Indies (Institute for Hospitality and Tourism, Centre for Tourism and Policy Research, Centre for Excellence, and Mona Business Institute.

Full program details can be found at www.AccessCommunityTourism.com and www.letsdoitinthecaribbean.com/communitytourismdirectory.com