"Tourism from a community perspective" is the central theme of the 9th edition of the Sustainable & Social Tourism Summit

Rosarito, Baja California, Mexico. As part of the 49th edition of the Tourism Tianguis, the lineup of speakers for the 9th Summit, to be held from May 20th to 23rd in San José, Costa Rica, was announced.

 Fernando Mandri Bellot, President of the Sustainable & Social Tourism Summit, announced the program for the 9th edition of the event, whose theme is “From the perspective of communities”, will feature speakers from 9 countries such as Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Spain, Japan, and Mexico, among the speakers who will share their knowledge, experiences and good practices in social sustainability are: Miguel Ángel Rodríguez from the Tourism Department of the Canary Islands, Spain, Alexander Leicht from the UNESCO Regional Office for Central America, Colombia and Mexico, Sandra Abreu from Avia Export-Colombia, Jorge Moller from the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) Chile, Francisco Pastor from CIFAL Málaga, Mami Sakurai from the
Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA,) among other great experts.

I highlight the participation of Mexican Secretary of Tourism Josefina Rodríguez and Costa Rican Minister of Tourism William Rodríguez in a discussion on innovation and public policies to achieve comprehensive and sustainable tourism development.

This edition will feature, as always, conferences, panels, and workshops that allow for more direct contact with expert speakers, as well as the networking so valued by attendees. He emphasized that the Summit is an event for professionals, for professionals, with a practical and dynamic approach that aims to implement sustainability solutions, tools, and best practices in businesses and destinations.

He also mentioned that, as part of the benefits of the 4th edition of the Sustainable and Social Tourism Award, the winners of this edition's Award will participate in a discussion where they will talk about their experiences in the development and implementation of their projects. He indicated that this year, 53 initiatives from 11 countries were registered: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, Panama, and Peru.

As in every edition, the Expo Summit will be held, bringing together leading businesses and initiatives working on trendsetting sustainable and socially responsible solutions and supporting the transition of companies in the sector toward sustainability. There will also be four technical visits to sustainable and socially responsible tourism projects. He also shared that, as part of the Summit's technical program, Francisco M. Pastor of CIFAL, Málaga – UNITAR, will teach the course "Slow Tourism Strategies
for Social Sustainability." Fernando Mandri commented that the technical program will continue to set trends in global issues related to sustainability, solidarity, and social responsibility.

In turn, Alberto López, General Manager of the Costa Rican Tourism Institute, commented, “It is a pleasure for Costa Rica to welcome you to our country as the first international host of the Sustainable & Social Tourism Summit, which will take place next May. This event is considered the most important in Latin America for social and sustainable tourism; hosting it reinforces Costa Rica's leadership position in sustainability issues within the regional and global tourism sector. From the Costa Rican Tourism Institute and on behalf of our country, we thank the organization for its trust in Costa Rica and hope that together we can make this ninth edition a pleasant experience, allowing us to share knowledge and convey the essence of pure Costa Rican life, which unites the commitment to a sustainable tourism development model with the warmth of our people and our commitment to the planet.”

For his part, Patricio Carezzana, Director General of Sustainable Tourism at the Ministry of Tourism of the Government of Mexico, commented that the learning from the topics discussed at the Summit is important for the tourism industry, and that the Summit, along with all the personalities participating in the event, offers this opportunity. He celebrated the Summit being held in Costa Rica because it is part of its growth and expansion. He also highlighted the great need to work with communities, which is closely aligned with the themes of the 9th edition of the Summit.