Guevara and Boyce to keynote PATA Annual Summit
Bangkok: Former Secretary of Tourism, Mexico and G20 pioneer, Ms Gloria Guevara and President of Boeing Southeast Asia and former US Ambassador to Thailand, Mr Ralph ‘Skip’ Boyce, will be keynote speakers of the 2013 PATA Annual Summit in Bangkok April 26. With other world tourism industry leaders such as Taleb Rifai, the Secretary General of the UNWTO, the eminent speakers will emphasize why a holistic, inclusive approach towards the “complete visitor economy” is vital for root and branch socio-economic development.
The speakers and moderators will share their vision on how together we can better join up and create recognition for all aspects of the highly interdependent travel, tourism and trade sectors.
Confirmed speakers include: Taleb Rifai, Secretary General of the UNWTO, Sorajak Kasemsuvan, President, Thai Airways International, Paul Griffiths, CEO, Dubai Airports, UAE, Pansy Ho, Managing Director, Shun Tak Holdings – Hong Kong SAR, Lothar R Pehl, SVP Operations and Global Initiatives Starwood Hotels and Resorts Asia Pacific, Abid Butt, CEO – Banyan Tree Hotels & Resorts, Singapore, Martin Verdon Roe – Global VP, Display Sales, TripAdvisor, UK, Ross Jackson, Head of Cross-Border Business APCEMEA, Visa Inc., Anita Mendiratta, Managing Director – CACHET Consulting/ lead consultant of the CNN T.A.S.K., Ian Aitken, Director, Enterprise and Small Medium Business, Southeast Asia, Oceania & Taiwan, Samsung Electronics, Aliana Ho, Vice President, Asia Pacific Regional Sales and Travel Operations, The Walt Disney Company (Asia Pacific) Limited and Monita Rajpal, CNN, TV anchor.
Breakout sessions panellists and moderators include Andrew Jones, Guardian, Sanctuary Resorts, Hong Kong SAR, Bert van Walbeek, Managing Director, The Winning Edge, Thailand, Guy Chester, Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC), Australia, Paul Stevens, Director of Operations, Accor Thailand, Arrut Navaraj, Managing Director, Sampran Riverside, Thailand, Ben Montgomery, Director of Business Relations Management, Centara Hotels & Resorts, Thailand, Dr. Edward P. Dramberger, Principal, Destination Dr., International Hospitality Consulting, New York, USA, Julie W. Munro, President and Founder, Medical Travel Quality Alliance MTQUA, CEO, Axcess Health, USA, Prof Dr Zadok S. Lempert, President, Panorama-Medica Group, Bangkok, Prof Kaye Chon, Dean and Chair Professor School of Hotel and Tourism Mgmt, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Peter Semone, Chief Technical Advisor, LANITH Lao National Institute of Tourism and Hospitality, Ralf Krewer, International Marketing Director, Bangkok Hospital, Thailand, Kenneth Mays, Director of Marketing, Bumrungrad International, Thailand and Olivier Jager, Co-Founder & CEO, FowardKeys, Traveller Data Intelligence, France.
Likewise, Next Gen travel industry professionals already holding down senior positions of responsibility will share their forthright views with travel industry students at the PATA Youth Forum, April 25 in Bangkok. Their focus will be on how new generations of consumers are finding, searching and connecting to travel, now and in the future.
The Forum, which has the theme, “Search, Connect, Experience – The Future of Tourism,” is aiming to attract hundreds of young professionals and students from overseas and Thailand.
The session’s key speakers include Mr Siradej Donavanik, Manager – Operations and Profit Improvement, Dusit International, and Mr Arrut Navaraj, Managing Director, Sampran Riverside, Thailand.
Similarly, the PATA China Responsible Tourism Award winners will be announced at the PATA Annual Summit April 25.Initiated by PATA China and the PATA China Chapter, the new PATA China Responsible Tourism Awards were announced at the second China Responsible Tourism Forum in Shanghai in November.
The rapid growth of domestic tourism in China makes responsible tourism practices a vital cornerstone of China’s visitor economy. The Awards have been launched as an incentive to protect natural and cultural heritage and help empower local communities in the tourism sector.
For info. visit http://www.pata.org/events/pata-annual-summit-2013-pas.
