Vol 6 Issue 1, February 2006 - School of Hotel & Tourism ...

Student Activities29Nominated by the School, three BA tourismstudents, Lam So-man, Li Jiali and Kenix Tong,accompanied by lecturer Eric Chan, attended the WorldStudents' Tourism Summit 2005, organised byRitsumeikan Asia Pacific University (APU), Oita Prefectureand Beppu City in Japan in November.About 460 student delegates from 78 universities andeducational institutions in 20 countries joined the event.Keynote speakers included Dr Dirk Glaesser, Chief ofPublications, World Tourism Organization, and MrNobutaka Ishikure, Chairman, Pacific Asia TravelAssociation (PATA). Japanese Prime Minister JunichiroKoizumi shared his views about the importance ofinbound travel in Japan during the closing ceremony ofthe summit and hoped the students would take theresults of the summit back to their countries and remainactive in the promotion of tourism in the future.Mr Chan noted that the participants discussed howtourism can be a driving force for regional development,promote mutual understanding among different culturesand how it should be promoted in harmony witheconomic, environmental and socio-cultural aspects. Theparticipants also discussed how tourism is affected byterrorism, SARS and other serious problems during theconference. The SHTM students joined a series ofworkshops to discuss “Stakeholder Cooperation”, oneof the essential elements for sustainable tourism. “Theyreturned not only with increased knowledge of tourism,but with a deeper understanding of Japan gainedthrough interacting with Kyushu's rich culture and fromexperiencing Beppu's unique onsen culture,“ he says.“I was very happy to be one of the students nominatedto attend the summit,” says Kenix Tong. “This summitwas divided into two parts: the trip to Kyushu and thenthe forum. Kyushu is a wonderful destination. It offersEric Chan, Li Jiali, Lam So-man and Kenex Tong(left to right) at the Summit’s entrance.Students Climb Global Summitmany historic treasures and natural beauty. I especiallyenjoyed the Aso volcano. Besides, I appreciated that theJapanese are very friendly and polite.“During the forum, students from different countriesjoined together and discussed global tourism issues. Itwas very informative and I enjoyed hearing differentviews and opinion. It is hoped that the outcome of thediscussion can be of use to the tourism industry.”Lam So-man says that attending the summit was one ofmost memorable experiences in her life. “We had aboutfour days travelling around Kyushu, and we visitedseveral famous attractions. I was especially impressed bythe local people, they are extremely friendly and helpfulto the tourists even though there is a language barrier,”she says. “I appreciate that the School nominated us toattend this summit. It was a wonderful opportunity andvery beneficial to us as students and the reputation ofthe School.”Li Jiali says: “At end of each day, activediscussions were carried out, with theinvolvement of students from all overthe world. This was the way we learnt,shared, and made friends. During theworkshop sessions, the hottest topics intoday’s tourism industry were discussed.Different voices were raised. As atourism student, the summit providedme with an opportunity tounderstand the reality facing theindustry worldwide. Returningfrom the summit, I discovered mywill to stay within tourism hadbeen much strengthened simplybecause I see a promising and aswell as challenging future.”Japanese PrimeMinister Junichiro Koizumidelivers the closing speech (top);students took part in discussionsat the end of each day.School of Hotel and Tourism Management