Tree Planting Wraps Up Tourism Awareness Week

The aim was to perpetuate the 2023 UNWTO World Tourism Day theme, “Tourism and Green Investments.”

Throughout the week, the Jamaica Tourism Ministry and its partners planted over 100 trees in schools across the island, including Manchester High, Titchfield High, Sam Sharpe Teacher’s College, Iona High, and Excelsior High.

Tourism Enhancement Fund’s (TEF) Executive Director, Dr. Carey Wallace spearheaded the tree-planting ceremony at the Mannings School, supported by Junior Minister of Tourism, Deja Bremmer; Acting Principal of Mannings, Mrs. Sharon Thorpe; other executives of the MOT and the Forestry Department who addressed students on caring for the plants.

In welcoming the exercise, Mrs. Thorpe spoke of the importance of trees in preserving life and the environment. “Without trees we can’t survive. We need oxygen and it means then that when you plant a tree, when you preserve the environment, you are in fact preserving your life,” she told a gathering of 5th and 6th formers attending the event.

Dr. Wallace used the occasion to underscore the value of the tourism industry as a major asset to transforming Jamaica. “You develop the industry so that you can earn from it, provide jobs, provide opportunities and pull wealth into the country for the people to live a good quality of life,” he posited.

Singling out some of the assets that make the county a lure for tourists, Dr. Wallace mentioned having one of the top ten largest natural harbors in the world, having mineral spas that are rated among the top five worldwide, blessed with an abundance of mountains and alluring beaches, and an amazing people who, based on exit interviews conducted at airports, makeup “the number one thing that tourists like about Jamaica.”

“How are we so overly blessed? Our wealth is in our tourism asset.”

He told the students that as bright, young thinkers they should direct their thoughts at converting Jamaica’s assets into wealth creating for the people and that the Tourism Enhancement Fund was engaged in determining “how can we make you more equipped, more skilled, with more resources to make tourism better and to make more from it for everyone.”

Imploring the students to get involved and seize the several opportunities available through various initiatives of the Tourism Enhancement Fund and its subsidiaries, Dr. Wallace challenged the young men and young women to be agents of change and have an influence on their communities.

“My charge to you in wrapping up Tourism Awareness Week is that we have an amazing country, we have amazing potential, we have you the amazing young people; let us all pull it together, collaborate and let us make this Jamaica, land we love, a resounding success of a story,” he advised them.  

SEEN IN IMAGE:  Executive Director of the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF), Dr. Carey Wallace shares the honor of the occasion with Junior Minister of Tourism, Deja Bremmer in planting trees at Mannings School in Savanna-La-Mar to wrap up Tourism Awareness Week. The theme for the week, “Tourism and Green Investments: Investing in People, Planet and Prosperity” mirrored the United Nations World Tourism Organization’s World Tourism Day theme for 2023. Behind Dr. Wallace is Chief Technical Director in the Ministry of Tourism, Mr. David Dobson while to their left is Acting Principal of Mannings School, Mrs. Sharon Thorpe.

SOURCE: Tree Planting Wraps Up Tourism Awareness Week