Mendoza, Argentina - 09 December 2011

Village Earth, a non-profit organization that provides sustainable international development training programs, is offering a new online course "Tourism and Development" as a part of the Community-based Development Certificate Program in partnership with Colorado State University. This course runs 5-weeks from January 6 - February 10, 2012.

All registration is done online and the deadline to register is December 30, 2011.

The course is about tourism and its impacts within the framework of community-based development.

The course description is as follows:

In developing countries, tourism as a means of economic development receives considerable public funding and private investment. Moreover, NGOs increasingly support local tourism initiatives, as well as voluntourism, in hopes of raising incomes in the communities in which they work. Amongst these institutions, tourism is seen as a mechanism for local communities to capitalize on assets such as the natural environment and cultural heritage. Yet in academic circles, tourism has often been accused of being destructive, elite and at times oppressive. This course will explore successful tourism initiatives as well as problematic initiatives. We will critically examine the nature of tourism, its impacts on communities and considerations that must be taken into account in order for a tourism project to have the desired impact of pursuing a local vision for development without destroying.

Course instructor Cynthia Ord holds a Masters of Tourism and Environmental Economics degree from the University of the Balearic Islands in Palma de Mallorca, Spain and a B.A. in Spanish and Philosophy from Colorado State University. Her M.S. program focused on the socio-cultural, environmental and economic impacts of global tourism. Ord's research focused on non-commercial volunteer tourism networks. She currently works in media and communications for WHL Group, a global online travel-booking network that focuses on e-market access for small and medium sized tourism enterprises in the Global South. She has also worked on ecotourism projects in Central America and worked with a local tour operator in Albania. 

Video Introduction by the Instructor: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ALFTNQY7uFc

To Register for the Tourism and Development online course please see: http://www.online.colostate.edu/courses/GSLL/GSLL1507.dot

Stowe, Vermont, United States - 23 November 2012

International Institute for Peace through Tourism (IIPT) Founder and President Louis D'Amore was presented the International Council of Tourism Partners (ICTP) Visionary Award by ICTP President Geoffrey Lipman earlier this month at the World Travel Market in London, in recognition of his tireless efforts to promote the travel and tourism industry as the world's first "Global Peace Industry" since the founding of IIPT in 1986.

Among other activities, IIPT has launched World Peace Travel in an effort to be a model of tourism that exemplifies the ideals, concepts and philosophies upon which IIPT was founded. World Peace Travel is being spearheaded by IIPT board member Donald King.

The following peace tours are being offered in 2012:

The Gulf Experience, United Arab Emirates and Oman - January 31-February 10, 2012
The Wild Jordan Tour - March 6-16, 2012
Nabji Festival Trek & World Peace Tour to the Himalayan Kingdom of Bhutan - January 8-21, 2012
World Peace Tour: Tanzania - June 1-13, 2012
Are You Ready to Climb Mount Kilimanjaro? - February 18 and June 16, 2012
Discover Croatia 2012

For more information and detailed itinerary please visit http://www.iipt.org/newsletter/2011/september.html

Punta Gorda - Belize - 11 November 2011

The Battle of the Drums returns to Punta Gorda in November. This highly successful competition and show always takes place on the Saturday before Garifuna Settlement Day on Nov 19th so this year's event will be on the 12th. For those who are not familiar with this event, the Battle of the Drums is a drumming competition and show that allows groups to compete and display their musical artistry by playing five (5) different categories of Garifuna drumming. The first Battle of the Drums was held in Punta Gorda Town on November 17, 2006 and was well received by spectators from home and abroad. In 2007, there was even a bigger audience and greater enthusiasm. In 2008 the event evolved into an international drumming competition and show involving drumming groups from various parts of Belize as well as from neighbouring Guatemala and Honduras.

This competition and show has become a major local and tourist attraction. The proceeds from the Battle of the Drums Initiative are strictly used to pursue various Garifuna cultural retrieval projects in Punta Gorda Town and other Garifuna communities as the funds allow. The cultural retrieval projects include
annual Battle of the Drums summer camps for children and youths ages 5 to 16 years, Garifuna Drumming in Schools program for primary school age children, Annual Primary Schools Garifuna Translation contest, among others.

The groups performing at this year's Battle of the Drums are: Ugundani Dance Group from Belize City, Wageirale Drummers from Dangriga, Lebeha Drummers from Hopkins, Lumalali Beidi of Seine Bight village, Hamalali Esanigu Dance Group from Georgetown village, Mario & The Umalali Group of Punta Gorda Town, Iseri Laruga from Livingston Guatemala and Grupo Juchelo from Baja Mar, Honduras. This promises to be a fabulous year with so much talent participating. Check out the Howler's Calendar of Events (Page 3) for a full schedule of November events with dates, times and venues.

For more information contact Rob Hirons at rob [at] thelodgeatbigfalls.com , visit http://www.thelodgeatbigfalls.com or call: 621-0140.