C E T A - Canadian EduTourism Associates Cooperative Limited
A not for profit industry association that encourages sustainable edutourism through the incorporation of education, environment, culture and heritage with tourism
This innovative International Conference has been designed to bring together leading experts from the fields of hospitality/tourism, culture and education to provide insight, stimulate, discussion, and facilitate capacity-building workshops on how to identify and move forward with EduTourism initiatives and capitalize on the potential of this enormous educational tourism market (EduTourism).
By definition, EduTourism is traveling for the purpose of formal or informal learning in a unique local environment.This has the potential to result in a socially and economically sustainable tourism product that benefits both the region and its' visitors. The affect of this collaboration can result in the rejuvenation of tourism throughout the world, celebrating cultures and the intermingling of residents and visitors. It can provide great support for preservation, conservation and sustainability as well as the creation of more meaningful opportunities for resident and visitors through a deeper engagement and involvement with their surroundings. The 2010 Conference is being held in Havana, Cuba, a destination well known for its splendid geography, vibrant culture and excellent education system.Cuba has focused heavily on tourism, culture and education over the past few decades and it exemplifies an creative EduTourism destination. The purpose of this Conference will be to provide an interactive and creative environment in which to explore and discuss: · Multi-faceted approaches and possibilities of EduTourism; · Economic and social benefits of the collaboration between hospitality/tourism and the education/learning sectors and; · to develop individual action plans to move toward creating a capacity building sustainable EduTourism product EduTourism benefits the geographic region as it: ·offers an additional sustainable source of tourism revenue, ·provides further opportunity to showcase, develop and incorporate local culture ·honors the local people/businesses and involves them in their geographic region in a more cohesive manner. The benefits will be broadly distributed among residents, tourism enterprises, governments, citizens, visitors, educational institutions, etc. This fast growing sector provides a creative way to combine and promote a region?s education/learning opportunities and unique tourism strengths, creating social and economic harmony for its people resulting in a more sustainable tourism product. With the economic and demographic shifts of the traveler changing rapidly and the many changes within the travel industry, there is a growing need for more creative and sustainable ways to market destinations and to satisfy the traveler. This is an opportune time to develop new approaches that combine unique aspects of the local environment with learning/education such as: ·cultural activities ie. language, religion, art, music, or history studies ·environmental or eco tourism activities ·medical tourism ·education programs in hotels · cconference, seminars, incentive programs ·Formal university programs The conference is a unique partnership spear headed by Canadian organizers CETA (Canadian EduTourism Associates Cooperative Limited), and is supported by the Cuban Ministry of Tourism, Canadian Embassy in Havana and other International partnerships.
It is designed to attract International participation from industry and individuals within the hospitality, tourism, culture and education sectors including: ·DMOs, tour operators, regional associations, hoteliers, NGO ·event and conference planners ·hospitality and tourism operators, consultants, planners, developers ·national and regional tourism offices, destination management organizations ·training and education organizations, developers, suppliers, coordinators, and ·numerous professionals from heritage, cultural, entertainment, or artist fields
Attendees will benefit from a combination of networking opportunities, keynote speakers, panel discussions, practical interactive workshops and excursions that will: · explore the longstanding history (and relevance to today) of educational tourism ·showcase what is currently being offered successfully in EduTourism globally and what can be learned · elaborate on key social and economic impacts (Triple Bottom Line) of EduTourism · inspire unique and innovative ideas of ways to combine learning and /tourism · create an opportunity for each attendee to start to work on developing an individual action plan to move toward creating a capacity building, sustainable EduTourism offering. Most attendees will be at the middle or senior management level, or equivalent, and have decision-making responsibilities and budgets, as well as influence within their organizations.The expected audience is 300-350. A detailed marketing campaign is being designed and it will be promoted globally through an advertising campaign directed towards:industry, associations, government organizations, and NGOs. The International Conference on Sustainable EduTourismwill be held in Havana, Cuba on November 8-9, 2010 on the heals of their biggest International Fair FIHAV.A family programme and excursion package will made available. A few Sponsorship Opportunties are still available. For details, please review the documents on the Sponsorship Page
