Resilience conference to focus on future-proofing tourism sector

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The Global Tourism Resilience Conference (GTRC) is scheduled for February 16 – 17 and will focus on building resilience for future disruptions by addressing the vulnerabilities brought to the fore by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Minister of Tourism Edmund Bartlett addresses the Global Tourism Resilience Conference press briefing at the Jamaica Tourist Board in New Kingston on Tuesday, February 13. Listening is Executive Director of the Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre at the University of the West Indies, Professor Lloyd Waller. (Photo: Mark Bell)

Executive director of the Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre at The University of the West Indies (The UWI), Professor Lloyd Waller, says that the sector has proven to be quite resilient but is still susceptible to things like natural disasters and pandemics.

“It is usually the first sector that bounces back after a major crisis as evidenced by the set of crises for the last 10 years. That vulnerability and the impact or contribution that tourism has to the global economic space, warranted the need to have a conversation about preparing for the possibilities of other disruptions. In other words [we will be] looking at the future of the tourism space, looking at trends, looking at disruptions, challenges and, more so, different solutions,” he pointed out.

Waller was addressing the press briefing for the GTRC held in Kingston on February 13. The theme for the conference is ‘Navigating the Future of Tourism Resilience’ and will cover ideas and strategies surrounding digital technology and cybersecurity, emerging industry trends, infrastructure, funding tourism resilience, and artificial intelligence and its use in the tourism industry.

The conference will also see the release of the book titled, ‘Decoding the Future of Tourism – Unravelling Emerging Trends and Possibilities’, co-authored by Bartlett and Waller, which focuses on trends in tourism and digital transformation in the industry.

February 17 will be observed as World Global Tourism Resilience Day and will feature discussions on tourism education, as well as the establishment of a Caribbean Tourism Academy for the development of human capital in the industry.

This is the second staging of the GTRC and will be attended by the secretary-general of United Nations World Tourism Organisation, Zurab Pololikashvili, as well officials from 10 other invited countries.