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Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre Responds to Bahamas Crisis….Sandals Foundation to Collaborate

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Jamaica Tourism Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, says that the Jamaican-based Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre has begun to mobilize resources to assist the Bahamas following the devastating effects of Hurricane Dorian.

Speaking at a media briefing at the Jamaica Tourist Board’s New Kingston office today, the Minister stated that “we have begun the process, from the Centre, to reach out to the global tourism community, to mobilize resources to support the effort of bringing back the economies of our neighbor, as well as, to bring tourism resources.”

He also shared that the Centre has been in touch with Minister of Tourism in Bahamas, the Hon Dionisio D’Aguilar to discuss the state of the industry and the nature of help that is required.

Following this conversation, the Minister has made contact with regional and international partners who are specifically involved in tourism development, to assist the Bahamas in the redevelopment of their tourism industry.

“We are now moving to get in touch with our partners such as major hotels, airlines and all major tour operators who are beneficiaries from tourism and who can in fact provide resource support to enable recovery in countries which are  vulnerable and can be impacted,” said Minister Bartlett.

The Minister noted that one such local partner is the Sandals Resorts International (SRI), which has already, began a response mechanism through their SRI Foundation.

Speaking at the press conference, Deputy Chairman of the SRI, Adam Stewart shared that, “All three of the Sandals properties in the Bahamas have been unaffected which gives us [SRI] the opportunity to focus on recovery and assisting however we can. We are proud to be working with the Government of Jamaica and the Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre to help our neighbouring island of the Bahamas who parts of which were badly affects by hurricane Dorian.”

He also shared that “This morning the foundation, through the efforts of those who have supported us thus far, donated US$10,000 worth of water, as a first gesture to those in Abaco, through our partner the Bahamian non-profit group HeadKnowles… A partner of Sandals has also donated US$100,000 worth of cleaning material which we will also be collecting in the next 48 hours.”

First announced during the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) Global Conference on Sustainable Tourism in St. James in November 2017, the Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre has partners from across the world. These partners include the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO); World Travel and Tourism Council; Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association; Caribbean Tourism Organisation; and the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA).

“The establishment of the Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre at the University of the West Indies was a direct response to these types of disruptions which will come into our space from time to time and impact our economies. More specifically to find ways and means of building capacity to withstand these disruptions but more so to recover quickly and thrive after the recovery,” explained the Minister.

The overall goal of the Centre is to assess (i.e. research and monitor), plan-for, forecast, mitigate, and manage risks related to tourism Resilience and Crisis Management. This is being achieved through five objectives – Research and Development, Advocacy and Communication, Programme/Project Design and Management, as well as Training and Capacity Building.

During the press briefing, Minister Bartlett also disclosed that he will participate in the 23rd Session of the United Nations World Tourism Organization’s (UNWTO) General Assembly in Saint Petersburg, Russian Federation during the period September 9-13, 2019. 

“While in Russia, I will be presenting the case overall for further collaboration with the Centre in relation with dealing with Caribbean vulnerabilities. In the process, I will be supporting the Bahamas in their own recovery efforts.

“I will be partnering with the Minister there to ensure that a full appreciation for the extent of the damage in the area and the extent of support that is required is realised by all of the partners who will be coming from about 120 countries from across the world,” said the Minister.

MEDIA CONTACT: Jamaica Ministry of Tourism, Corporate Communications, 64 Knutsford Boulevard, Kingston 5, Tel: 920-4926-30, Fax: 920-4944

TSA: New airport security scanner poses “privacy risks” to passengers

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US Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is demanding modifications of a new airport security system because it poses “privacy risks” to passengers by showing too much of them on display, a newly published document has revealed.

Following a demonstration, the Transportation Security Administration has requested changes to the contract because the scanner they received “has privacy risks associated with the Graphical User Interface,” says the document dated March 26 and made public by Quartz on Monday.

While the document provides no further details on the exact nature of the privacy risks, the TSA required the scanner’s manufacturer to add additional security features before it would consider using the device in a “live environment.”

Using another government database, Quartz identified the contractor – whose name is redacted in the document – as Virginia security firm ThruVision. The document refers to ThruVision’s TAC scanner, which the company describes as a “proven people-screening camera that sees any type of item.”

The device is supposed to be part of TSA’s “Future Lane Experience” (FLEx), an effort to speed up security checks that have become a major headache for passengers in many airports.

The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority partnered with the TSA last year to deploy ThruVision’s portable TS4 scanner, which the TSA claims to have vetted “extensively” prior to using it on LA commuters. It is unclear whether the TSA had similar concerns about the TS4 before the device was used in the field.

Revelations about the TSA concerns over the new scanner come after last week’s report by ProPublica that accused the agency’s current hardware of “discriminating” against African-Americans by misreading their hair, requiring a disproportionate number of pat-downs.

The ACLU slammed the TSA in 2009 for using scanning technology to conduct “virtual strip searches” that provided TSA employees with photos of passengers’ genitals, breasts and buttocks. More was revealed in 2010, when the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) published TSA documents which further detail the scanners’ invasiveness.

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eTN becomes a SUNx SDG 17 Partner calling for Climate Sanity in Tourism on Earth Day

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In nature, nothing exists alone is the message for Earth Day 2019. Announcing the public launch of its “SDG17 Partners Program” on Earth Day 2019, Professor Geoffrey Lipman co-founder SUNx, calls and president of the International Coalition of Tourism Partners (ICTP) asks the Travel & Tourism sector to join its “Plan For Our Kids” and take the “Climate Sanity” Pledge.

Professor Lipman, former Executive Director at IATA, President of WTTC and Assistant Secretary-General UNWTO, said:

“I’m confident that Travel & Tourism will play a leadership role in the global shift to a New Climate Economy: we just need a pathway for change and that lies in our faith in the next generation”

SUNx a legacy for Planetary Champion Maurice Strong has created a “Plan For Our Kids”, aiming to recruit 100,000 STRONG Climate Champions to advance its vision of a no Carbon 2050 sector totally compliant with the evolving goals of the Paris Accords.

He added “During the past year we have seen a welcome intensification of the pressures for a new commitment to Climate Sanity, which stops discussing whether climate change is existential and just gets on with solutions. That’s the common message from Greta Thunberg’s Friday’s for Futures and AOC’s Green New Deal: it’s the message from Earth Scientists and Nobel Economists: it’s the plea from Sir David Attenborough.

”Lipman concluded “SDG 17 Partners will share our long-term vision on the fact that Climate Change is eXistential and that we have to act NOW, as if this Earth Day is the first day of the rest of our lives. We all have different starting positions, based on our separate realities: but we have a shared goal of meeting the Paris Agenda and together taking a “No Carbon 2050 moonshot”. We can deliver Climate Friendly Travel ~ measured plans: green growth: 2050 no carbon proof “

Juergen Steinmetz president of the eTN Corporation said “We are proud to become a SUNx SDG 17 Partner and provide preferential support for this great cause. As long as I have known Geoffrey Lipman, he has been drumming home the message that Climate Change is eXistential and that if we don’t fix it now, it will fix us. We are in, and will use all our links, like ICTP and the African Tourism Board to support Climate Friendly Travel. going forward”.

For more on SUNx and its SDG 17 Partnership Program please contact: go to www.thesunprogram.com

What is Earth Day?

The first Earth Day on April 22, 1970, activated 20 million Americans from all walks of life and is widely credited with launching the modern environmental movement. The passage of the landmark Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, Endangered Species Act and many other groundbreaking environmental laws soon followed. Twenty years later, Earth Day went global, mobilizing 200 million people in more than 190 countries and lifting environmental issues onto the world stage.

On April 22, 1970, millions of people took to the streets to protest the negative impacts of 150 years of industrial development.

In the U.S. and around the world, smog was becoming deadly and evidence was growing that pollution led to developmental delays in children. Biodiversity was in decline as a result of the heavy use of pesticides and other pollutants.

The global ecological awareness was growing, and the US Congress and President Nixon responded quickly. In July of the same year, they created the Environmental Protection Agency, and robust environmental laws such as the Clean Water Act and the Endangered Species Act, among many.

One billion people

Earth Day is now a global event each year, and more than 1 billion people in 192 countries now take part in what is the largest civic-focused day of action in the world.

It is a day of political action and civic participation. People march, sign petitions, meet with their elected officials, plant trees, clean up their towns and roads. Corporations and governments use it to make pledges and announce sustainability measures. Faith leaders, including Pope Francis, connect Earth Day with protecting God’s greatest creations, humans, biodiversity and the planet that we all live on.

Earth Day Network, the organization that leads Earth Day worldwide, has chosen as the theme for 2018 to End Plastic Pollution, including creating support for a global effort to eliminate primarily single-use plastics along with global regulation for the disposal of plastics.  EDN is educating millions of people about the health and other risks associated with the use and disposal of plastics, including pollution of our oceans, water, and wildlife, and about the growing body of evidence that plastic waste is creating serious global problems.

From poisoning and injuring marine life to the ubiquitous presence of plastics in our food to disrupting human hormones and causing major life-threatening diseases and early puberty, the exponential growth of plastics is threatening our planet’s survival.

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Beach and Sea Safety guide now available for Seychelles visitors

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The Tourism Department proudly released the second edition of its Beach and Sea Safety guide during a Launch ceremony Officiated by Minister Didier Dogley, Minister for Tourism, Civil Aviation, Ports and Marine on Monday April 15, 2019 at Botanical House.

The launch of the publication saw the presence of Principal Secretary for Tourism Mrs. Anne Lafortune and Ms. Philomena Hollanda, Director for Risk Management at the Ministry for Tourism.

During his address to the press, Minister Dogley commended the efforts of the Tourism department for the initiative.

He also extended his compliments to the Seychelles Police, Seychelles Lifeguard, Seychelles Maritime and Safety Administration and the Seychelles Tourism Board who have contributed towards the publication the for their assistance.

“As a destination it is our obligation to provide our visitors with correct and concise information, more often than not our guests feel like they are in paradise and there are no risks. They forget that anywhere they go around the world they need to take precautionary measures to keep themselves safe,” said Minister Dogley.

The Beach and Sea Safety guide is an updated version of a similar publication released in 2014 by the department.

The booklet, which will be shared with all tourism establishments and visitors through the STB Visitors Office on Mahé, Praslin and La Digue, seeks to educate the visitors on safety measures that they should undertake whilst on their holiday.

Taking about the guide, Ms. Philomena Hollanda mentioned that the content has been updated in view of the developments that have occurred in the past 5 years in Seychelles.

She also pointed out the new features of the booklet including indications of warning signs, additional information on marine fauna.

“In view of the sudden increase of visitor’s arrivals there is a pressing need for our department to find a way to inform our visitors about safety for their own good. The booklet is a user-friendly publication, which has been designed with beautiful pictures of the Seychelles. It provides information and can also be kept as a souvenir,” Said Ms. Hollanda.

Some 10,000 copies of the booklet has been printed and a digital copy of the same is available on the department’s website.

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UK Foreign Office urged to update UAE travel warnings

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British legal group Detained in Dubai has urged the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) to update its UAE travel warnings to UK tourists in an open letter penned by the organization’s head, Radha Stirling.

“We have frequently called upon the FCO to provide more accurate information to Britons about the many risks they face in the UAE which the current advisory does not cover,” Stirling said. “It is simply not enough to warn people to obey the laws and customs, when very often the legal system itself poses a threat even to law-abiding tourists who may be subjected to false arrests, fabricated cases, forced confessions, torture, and lack of representation.”

Stirling’s letter specifically highlights the dangers inherent in the UAE’s Cybercrime laws, under which Laleh Shahravesh was prosecuted. In the letter to Permanent Under Secretary of State Sir Simon McDonald, head of the FCO, Stirling said:

“This warning is insufficient in light of the Shahravesh case, insofar as it does not explain that a British citizen can, in fact, be prosecuted if they ever visit the UAE, for posting material online in the UK which anyone inside the UAE may deem offensive.

It is vital for British citizens to be aware before traveling to the UAE that their entire social media history must adhere to UAE standards of acceptable content before they risk entering the country.”

The Cybercrime laws, she says, are irresponsibly vague and can easily be misapplied, as in Laleh’s case, in matters that have nothing to do with public endangerment, hate speech, or incitement to violence. “UAE Cybercrime laws subordinate the police, prosecutors, and courts to the tyranny of individual egos,” Stirling explained.

“If anyone in the UAE is offended by someone’s online content, even if they do not know that person, and even if that person posted the content in a different country; a criminal case can be made and an arrest warrant issued. It is an enormous threat to free speech well beyond the borders of the UAE.”

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