Registration opens April 7, 2014. Details coming soon at www.ctocrestsymposium.com.
About the Innovators Symposium:
Coastal and cruise tourism are the fastest growing sectors in the tourism industry. The rapid pace of resort and vacation home developments along coastlines and on islands is contributing to a variety of environmental and social problems.
However, a growing number of developers, owners, investors and operators are experimenting with sustainable models of coastal development. Rather than building conventional gated resorts, these “innovators” are designing and building in ways that are more integrated with and beneficial to local communities and the native landscape.
The 3rd Symposium and Sustainability Expo for Innovators in Coastal Tourism, being held in Grenada from July 8 to 11, 2014, will feature cutting-edge ideas of these “innovators” in coastal and marine tourism. The Symposium, which is produced by the Caribbean Tourism Organization, Center for Responsible Travel (CREST), and the Grenada Ministry of Tourism, will bring together leaders in socially and environmentally sustainable coastal and marine tourism, as well as potential adopters – those who are considering new models of coastal tourism. Participants will also include leaders and experts from government agencies, universities, international development organizations, and environmental and tourism NGOs.
The Symposium opens Wednesday evening, July 9, and runs through Friday, July 11. On July 8 – 9, prior to the Symposium, participants will have an opportunity to visit tourism attractions in Grenada and attend Grenada’s first Sustainability Expo featuring local tourism and agricultural innovators.
This Innovators Symposium – like the two previous Symposiums organized by CREST – will be an intimate event with high quality participants and ample time for informal networking. The Symposium will have a geographic focus on coastal areas in the Americas, with an emphasis on the Caribbean.
What will be discussed?
The Symposium will serve as a platform for those in the forefront of new coastal and marine tourism models to share what they have accomplished and what they have learned along the way. They will discuss the challenges of designing and operating coastal and marine tourism in this age of climate change, as well as accessing ‘green’ financing and investment. The Symposium will explore ways to overcome the barriers that have kept sustainable tourism development from going mainstream, and the range of tools now available for ensuring sustainability.
Schedule Overview: All activities July 8-11 are included in the registration fee.
- July 8: Visit Grenada’s leading tourism attractions
- July 9 (until 3 pm): Visit Grenada’s Sustainability Exp
- July 9 (5 pm): Innovators Symposium opens
- July 10 – 11: Innovators Symposium
- July 12-13: Delegates may choose from a range of optional tours in Grenada
Registration opens April 7, at www.ctocrestsymposium.com
