Communiques 1 to 4, 2007 Communique # 1 17 August 2007. Communique # 2 05 September 2007. Communique #3 04 October 2007 Communique # 4 17 October 2007

www.pacificasiatourism.org

International development via sustainable tourism

Communique # 1 17 August 2007. To the Pacific Asia Tourism Pty. Ltd. network. Well, its been a week now since the PR to launch Pacific Asia Tourism Pty. Ltd. was released. And what a week it has been for the global stock markets! We now have almost 50 members of the network giving us (a) encouragement that a shared vision exists amongst this wonderful collection of associates of the potential for the business idea and (b) a significant amount of intellectual and professional capacities to offer to the international marketplace for medium to large-scale projects. A. The updated Capability Statement dated 17 August 2007 is attached.

You’ll note some changes in the format with more focus on photos to showcase the types of international projects we target and the introduction of network communities: Research, Consulting & Future Leaders (now capped at a manageable 10 with a waiting list!)

B. In this communiqué, we welcome to the network:

1. Research community: Dr. Michael McGrath, Professor of Information Systems at Victoria University, Melbourne, Australia. Michael has over 20 years experience in the IT industry His current research is focused on the design and development of a decision support system (DSS) designed to allow tourism businesses to project ROI from the specific environmental programs promoted. Michael has authored over 100 refereed journal and conference papers.

2. Consultant community: Tara Gujadhur is Director/Founder of the Traditional Arts and Ethnology Centre, Lao PDR, a private ethnology museum in Luang Prabang with a Lao partner. She actively worked with the Lao people to register a foreign partnership, renovate a heritage building, conduct research in ethnic communities, submitted several successful proposals, designed exhibits, and develop handicrafts. She has extensive pro-poor international tourism project experience.

C. Future Leaders get engaged.

Below are three examples of how Pacific Asia Tourism can and will mentor Future Leaders by introducing and/or engaging their individual engagement in international projects. Carlos Teuffer is in Mexico on a WWF project and he will be joined next week for four other Pacific Asia Tourism network members for a WWF coastal tourism project workshop in La Paz. Terry De Lacy, Cathay Parsons, Paul Rogers and Steve Noakes will all join up mid next week to contribute to this project focused on the Gulf of California region in Northwest Mexico which includes the major recreation, leisure and tourism centres: Puerto Peñasco,

Guaymas / San Carlos, Mazatlán, San Blas, Los Cabos, La Paz, Loreto, y Bahía de los Ángeles. Chris Audley is off to Vietnam this week to conduct a course on Planning for Sustainable Tourism in Marine Protected Areas – a project organised via the USA Government’s National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration. Steve Noakes is a co-supervisor for PhD candidate Ms. Le Thi Nhu Hoa at the University of Queensland, whose research topic is "Ecotourism development - the case of Vietnam". Hoa and Steve worked on a UNDP tender for a Vietnam project last week but were beaten by time (this time!). Hoa is departing shortly for 3 + months of field work back in Vietnam.

D. Positioning Pacific Asia Tourism Pty. Ltd. in the big league.

Steve Noakes & Terry de Lacy will visit Los Angeles next week for a meeting with the President of the world’s largest e-travel community, www.travelmole.com. They will then go onto to DC for meetings with our USA partners, Solimar International, as well as high levels meetings with the World Bank, US AID, National Geographic Society, one of the world’s largest NGOs; Counterpart International, and others.

E. And some nice words about the launch of Pacific Asia Tourism. SINCERE CONGRATULATIONS! We certainly hope we can partner with you soon since our main precoccupation of poverty reduction is among the MDGs...! Fabrice LECLERCQ Senior Trade Promotion Adviser, International Trade Centre, Switzerland The International Trade Centre (ITC) is the technical cooperation agency of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and the World Trade Organization (WTO), whose mission is to support developing and transition economies, and particularly their business sectors, in their efforts to realize their full potential for developing exports and import operations with the ultimate goal of achieving sustainable development.

Dear Steve, Thanks for the Capability Statement - very impressive! We would be honored to have Pacific Asia Tourism Pty as a member of our IIPT Coalition of Partners for World Peace through Tourism. Louis D'Amore President & Founder, International Institute for Peace through Tourism, USA

To members of the Pacific Asia Tourism Pty. Ltd. network.

Communique # 2 05 September 2007.

1. Attached is updated Capability Statement. Please feel free to distribute widely!.

2. We welcomes in two new participants to the Consultants Community:

Steven Schipani is an international development specialist in tourism with extensive project experience in Lao PDR, Thailand, Cambodia, Viet Nam, China, the Philippines and the USA. He has worked on projects funded by international development agencies such as ADB, NZAID, EU, GTZ, SNV and UNESCO. Anne Goonetilleke, who has worked with TAFE (Technical & Further Education) NSW for the past 17 years as a Head of Department in Tourism and Hospitality Education and has managed several international projects. In addition to Management roles in a number of leading London Hotels, Anne has also worked in Sri Lanka as Assistant Director for the Sri Lankan Tourist Board, and was involved in the introduction of quality systems such as international star classifications for hotels and safety systems.

3. Steve Noakes & Terry de Lacy have just returned from a very beneficial 2

week visit to Mexico and the USA. In Mexico, five members of the Pacific Asia Tourism Pty. Ltd. network participated in a WWF + The Nature Conservancy Workshop on sustainable tourism for the Gulf of California. Fruitful meetings were then held in Los Angeles the President of the world’s largest e-travel community, www.travelmole.com which has just announced new programs with e-Turbo News and the UNWTO. Then onto Washington DC for meetings with our USA partners, Solimar International, as well as high levels meetings with the World Bank, International Finance Corporation, US AID, National Geographic Society, Counterpart International, the Emerging Markets Group and others. We have been sowing seeds.

4. Tracking business leads in international development can be a complex

task, given that many opportunities require years of lead-time before procurement and tend to be complex and varied. They can be difficult to fit into a single tracking system. However, there are some important project tracking systems Pacific Asia Tourism Pty. Ltd. is now plugged into, and from time-to-time, members of our network are being alerted to those opportunities.

5. World Bank Group Increases its Support to East Asia

The World Bank Group committed loans, grants and credits worth $US4.3 billion for development projects and operations in 10 countries in the East Asia and Pacific region during fiscal year 2007. This was more than $600 million over the previous year, reflecting the stronger economic performance

of most countries in the region. Jim Adams, World Bank Vice President for East Asia and Pacific, said while continuing to work with governments on reducing poverty, the region was also scaling up its support for operations aimed at addressing climate change and the growing demand for clean energy.

6. Testimonials

Dear Steve, Congratulations! You really seem to have the right spot! Keep up the good work, Brian Deeson Senior Vice President, Accor Asia Pacific Chairman of the Board, Pacific Asia Travel Association

SINCERE CONGRATULATIONS! We certainly hope we can partner with you soon since our main precoccupation of poverty reduction is among the MDGs...! Fabrice LECLERCQ Senior Trade Promotion Adviser, International Trade Centre, Switzerland The International Trade Centre (ITC) is the technical cooperation agency of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and the World Trade Organization (WTO), whose mission is to support developing and transition economies, and particularly their business sectors, in their efforts to realize their full potential for developing exports and import operations with the ultimate goal of achieving sustainable development.

Dear Steve, Thanks for the Capability Statement - very impressive! We would be honored to have Pacific Asia Tourism Pty as a member of our IIPT Coalition of Partners for World Peace through Tourism. Louis D'Amore President & Founder, International Institute for Peace through Tourism, USA

To members of the Pacific Asia Tourism Pty. Ltd. network. Communique #3 04 October 2007 1. Attached is updated Capability Statement. Please feel free to distribute widely! 2. We welcome in 2 new participants to the Consultants Community:

Dr Sarah Li: Has worked on a variety of research and consultancy projects in China, the Mekong region and the South Pacific, including the formulation of an ecotourism strategy for nature reserves in Yunnan Province to Tourism Master Plans for Hubei and Hunan Provinces, Huangshan, and most recently tourism development planning for Wolong National Nature Reserve (home of the giant panda). Dr David Beirman: A specialist in Tourism crisis management and recovery consultancy programs. David has been a keynote or major speaker at conferences focussed on tourism crisis management all over the world. And a new member of our Research Community, Professor Richard Hyde: A registered architect, working in the field of environmental architectural design, evaluation, and innovative sustainable systems for buildings for over 30 years. Currently based at University of Queensland, soon to move to Sydney University.

3. Tourism & Climate Change: Davos, Switzerland meeting attended by Pacific

Asia Tourism network member, Prof. Terry de Lacy. The second International Conference on Climate Change and Tourism was organized by the UN World Tourism Organization www.unwto.org/index.php, the UN Environment Programme www.unep.org and the UN World Meteorological Organization www.wmo.ch/pages/index_en.html. It was supported by the World Economic Forum (WEF) and the Swiss Government. It stressed the role tourism can play in addressing climate change to promote both sustainable development and the Millennium Development Goals (www.un.org/millenniumgoals), the eight ambitious targets to slash poverty and other social and economic ills by 2015. “We know that the solutions for climate change and for poverty are interrelated,” said UNWTO Assistant Secretary-General Geoffrey Lipman, an Adjunct Professor (Tourism) at

Griffith University, Australia. “We leave Davos more optimistic about our future on the

common agreement to build upon [the] quadruple bottom line sustainability of economic, social, environmental and climate responsiveness.”

4. Useful reading on International Development:

MDG 2007 - Who is Left behind in Asia and Pacific http://topics.developmentgateway.org/aideffectiveness/rc/ItemDetail.do?itemId=1115542 The Asian Development Bank (ADB), UNDP and UNESCAP will launch the 2007 Update on the MDGs. The report provides the latest MDG relevant statistics for Asia and Pacific and discusses in a theme chapter areas, social groups, and sectors that are specifically left behind. The MDG Update 2007 report will be launched during a major ADB conference on "Inclusive Growth and Poverty Reduction in the New Asia and Pacific" on 8-9 October 2007 in Manila. Mobilizing Aid for Trade: Focus Asia and the Pacific http://topics.developmentgateway.org/trade/calendar/showCalendarItemDetails.do~activeCalendarItem=15022562?intcmp=925 UNDP Annual Report (Making globalisation work for all) now available at: http://www.undp.org/publications/annualreport2007/IAR07-ENG.pdf Contact point: steve@pacificasiatourism.org

ADB Asian Development Outlook 2007 Outlook http://www.adb.org/Documents/Books/ADO/2007/Update/default.asp ‘Exceptional performance in both the People's Republic of China (PRC) and India is again propelling growth in the region. In the first half of 2007, the PRC grew faster than at any time since 1994 and India, building on its best rate in 18 years in the year to March 2007, registered strong growth in April-June this year.’

To members of the Pacific Asia Tourism Pty. Ltd. network. Communique # 4 17 October 2007 1. Attached is updated Capability Statement dated 17 October 2007.

Please feel free to distribute widely!

2. We welcome in 2 new participants to the Consultants Community:

Alastair McCracken, Chairman of EcoTourism Australia. Alastair has extensive experience over 25 years in the development, operations and marketing of resort destinations. In senior management roles, he has developed feasibility studies for, and opened new hotels with Hilton Hotels and Hyatt International throughout Australia and Asia, spending 6 years in the development and operation of Grand Hyatt Bali, at Nusa Dua, Indonesia. Alastair led the development of Couran Cove Island Resort, Australia’s first fully integrated eco-tourism village. Alastair’s key expertise and interest is in the planning and development of local community driven tourism and the appropriate and authentic expression of local culture in the travel experience.

Pallavi Mandke has been working in the areas of tourism, urban and environmental management since 1995 and has been involved in a number of research and demonstration projects in Asia. Having lived and worked in India, South East Asia and Australia she brings a sound understanding of cultural values and attitudes, the importance of respectful interdisciplinary activities and a sound appreciation of global issues as they affect tourism planning and development. To further her academic and professional achievements she recently submitted her PhD thesis at the University of Queensland, Australia in the area of tourism for urban poverty reduction. And a new participant to our Researchers Community: Dr. Thomas Iverson is a registered consultant with the Asian Development Bank and the Global Development Network. He earned his Ph.D. in economics from the University of Texas, and taught graduate courses in economics and management information systems at Kentucky State University’s Graduate Center. Tom has been at the University of Guam since 1988, where he is currently a Professor of Economics and the Executive Director of the Sustainable Development Institute. With a wide range of interests, Dr. Iverson has consulted in Guam, Palau, Chuuk State and Pohnpei State (Federated States of Micronesia), and Bali. Since 2002, the Iversons have also operated a tourism business, Cosmo Salon & Spa, in Sanur, Bali.

3. Web site & dedicated emails

www.pacificasiatourism.org is up and running. Continuous fine-tuning occurs. Thus far, almost 20 members of the network have taken on a pacificasiatourism.org email address.

4. Useful resources: http://www.doingbusiness.org/map/ The World Bank Group's Doing Business project aims to provide objective measures of business regulations and their enforcement across 178 economies.

PARTS OF ASIA-PACIFIC REGION LAG BEHIND AFRICA IN REACHING ANTIPOVERTY GOALS -- UN New York, Oct 8 2007

A new United Nations report assessing progress in the Asia-Pacific region on reaching the antipoverty Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) paints a mixed picture of progress in some parts of the region even as others lag behind Sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America. Released today in Bangkok and Manila, the report states that the region is well on track and ahead of its peers in Latin America and Sub-Saharan Africa to reduce extreme poverty by half, attain universal education, and achieve gender parity in education by the target year 2015. But Asia and the Pacific accounts for about two thirds of the world's underweight children. More than one in four children under the age of five are underweight. The rates in many Asian countries exceed those of Sub-Saharan Africa, according to the report. The region is also moving too slowly in reducing child mortality -- every year six out of every 100 children do not live to see their fifth birthday, a rate almost double that of Latin American and the Caribbean. The most serious problems are in South Asia where most countries are off track on reducing child mortality. Maternal deaths in Asia and the Pacific account for almost half of the global total, according to the report, The Millennium Development Goals: Progress in Asia and the Pacific 2007. The region's overall maternal mortality ratio, at over 300 per 100,000 live births, is more than 30 percent higher than in Latin America and the Caribbean. The region's greatest challenges lie in addressing the issues of child mortality, malnutrition, improving maternal health and providing safe drinking water and sanitation facilities, said the report -- a joint publication by the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP), the Asian Development Bank (ADB), and the UN Development Programme (UNDP). "The 2007 MDG progress report gives us an indication of what the region stands to gain if focus on those countries that are moving slowly or not making progress, and within those areas concentrate on improving the lives of the most vulnerable," said Haishan Fu, Chief, Statistics Development Section, UNESCAP.

The report points out if the countries in the region that are off track were able to speed up and meet the MDG targets by 2015, then about 196 million more people would be lifted out of extreme poverty, 23 million more children would no longer suffer from hunger and nearly 1 million more children would survive beyond their fifth birthday. The other key areas where Asia-Pacific region is making slow progress are provision of access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation facilities. Across the region, over 560 million people in rural areas lack access to improved water sources; over 1.5 billion are living without basic sanitation facilities, nearly three-quarters of the global total. The report also warns that environmental pressures -- arising from land degradation, poor water management, rising pollution in urban areas, CO2 emission contributing to climate change and other factors -- could push more people into poverty. The eight MDGs range from halving extreme poverty to reducing child mortality, halting spread of HIV and AIDS, providing universal primary education and providing access to clean drinking water and sanitation facilities -- all by the target year of 2015.