IIPT
CONFERENCE
SPIRTUALITY
IN TOURISM
La
Citadella
Assisi, Italy
13-17
October, 2001
Dear
Friend and Colleague,
We
are pleased to invite your participation in the
IIPT
Spirituality in Tourism Conference
Assisi, Italy; October 13-17, 2001
Being
organized in support of the U.N. International Year for a Dialogue
Among Civilizations and the U.N. Decade of Peace and Non-Violence
for the Children of the World.
Assisi,
a world heritage site, has been the inspirational setting of other
spiritual gatherings in the spirit of St. Francis of Assisi, whose
adult life more than 700 years ago was an expression of love for
all of God’s creation and charity towards others.
One such gathering was in October, 1986, the UN International
Year of Peace, when Pope John Paul II brought together some 90
religious leaders from all faiths to acknowledge the central role
of religions in promoting tolerance, understanding and peace among
all peoples and nations.
The IIPT Assisi Conference serves to commemorate the 15th
anniversary of this gathering.
It
is increasingly recognized that travel, in all its dimensions,
has a vital role to play in promoting an appreciation of the diverse
cultures that make up the global family and the awesome beauty
and wonder of all God’s creation.
Similarly, the travel industry, with its global
presence, has the potential to help preserve the world’s rich
biodiversity as part of God’s creation; facilitate contact among
all God’s children – our
spiritual brothers and sisters in the global family of humankind;
and contribute to the alleviation of poverty through job creation
and sustainable economic development in a spirit of solidarity
for the well being of all humankind.
Topics
to be discussed will range from “Travel as a Spiritual Experience”
to “Spirituality in Tourism Development”.
Featured
speakers include:Barbara Spee Perrins, Cultural Immersion Travel;
Fr Maximilian Mizzi, OFM, Conv.,Center for Inter-faith Dialogue;
Dr.
Carlos Warter, Global Tour Leader to sacred sites; Dr. Noel Brown,
President, Friends of the United Nations: Professor Lama Gangchen,
Founder of the Lama Gangchen World Peace Foundation; Marsha Smoke
& Eli Mandamin, Indigenous Leaders; Helene Shik, noted visionary;
Fr. Donald Conroy, Director, International Consortium on Religion
and Ecology; Marcello Palazzi, Founder, Progressio Foundation;
Nancy Rivard, President, Airline Ambassadors , and others.
The
conference will also feature an exhibition and presentation of
the inspired spiritual art of Justine Merritt, Mimi Sammis and
Jacqueline Ripstein.
African Focus
Please
come prepared to contribute your ideas and experience in a series
of interactive sessions aimed at identifying specific initiatives
that can give concrete expression to the spiritual dimensions
of travel. Towards
this end, focus on the last day of the conference will be on specific
projects that can be undertaken in Africa – “Birth Place of Humanity”.
Proposed projects include for example, a children’s peace
center, community-based tourism initiatives, addressing the digital
divide, and other possibilities. These
proposed projects will “feed forward” for further definition and
implementation to the First IIPT African Conference on Peace through
Tourism to be held in Mpumalanga Province, South Africa, March
3-7, 2002, being organized in collaboration with the Africa Travel
Association (ATA) and Mpumalanga Tourism Authority (MTA).
The
first two days of the four day conference will consist of guided
walks in the “Footsteps of St. Francis”, led by Franciscans at
the Franciscan Monastery in Assisi.
A
limited number of rooms have been reserved at the Conference venue,
La Citadella until August 15. To avoid disappointment, we encourage you to register at your
earliest convenience and not later than August 15, as October
is a peak month in Assisi for visitors.
Participation will be limited to 100 delegates to preserve
the interactive nature of the conference.
Alitalia
Official Airline of the Conference
We
are proud to announce Alitalia as the official airline of the
Conference. Round
trip fare from New York (JFK or Newark) is US$550 plus tax.
Alitalia also flies from Boston, Miami, Chicago, Los Angeles
and San Francisco. For
fares outside the U.S., please contact your local Alitalia office.
Following
is the tentative conference program and registration form.
We invite you to extend this invitation to any of your
colleagues and networks that may be interested.
We
look forward to welcoming you in Assisi, and your participation
with us.
Sincerely
yours,
Louis
D’Amore
President, IIPT
Email:
IIPT@together.net
Tel: 802-253-8671
Tentative
Program
|
