Statewides Meetings
Moderator: Susan Wilcox, Chief Deputy Director, California Travel and Tourism Commission

Cocktails & Hors d'oeurves Reception
Hosted by Wheeler Mansion
Thursday, November 18, 2004

Product Development Seminar
Based in part on the newly released Cultural Heritage Tourism Toolkit in the state of Vermont and the venerable Hometown Discovery - A Development Process for Tourism in South Carolina, Deborah Doyle-Schechtman and Curt Cottle will lead a one-day seminar on preparing rural areas for cultural heritage tourism, focusing on the needs and issues of product development.

• The seminar will cover:
• Getting Started (Organization and Partnerships)
• Planning for Success (Planning and Inventory)
• Telling Your Story (Interpretation)
• Finding Your Audience (Marketing Development)
• Company's Coming (Hospitality and Tourism Readiness)

Presenters:
Curt Cottle, Curt Cottle Consulting, South Carolina
Deborah Doyle-Schechtman, Cultural Heritage & Tourism Consultant, Vermont

Refreshments will be provided.  Lunch not included. Pre-payment Required.

City/Cultural Tours (voluntary)
Pre-Registration Required

Jacqueline Kennedy: The White House Years Exhibit at The Field Museum 
Revisit an era of style and grace to explore how Jacqueline Kennedy's taste, intelligence and charisma influenced American statesmanship and diplomacy. Jacqueline Kennedy: The White House Years presents more than 70 garments worn by one of history's great fashion icons. Combined with photographs, documents, and film clips, these fashions reveal how the former first lady carefully shaped her image to reflect the vigor, ideals, and internationalism of her husband's administration.

Cost: $22.50 Time: 3:00pm-5:00pm Limited Tickets Available  

Chicago Greeter 
Chicago Greeter is a free service designed to help visitors become familiar with the city of Chicago and its many neighborhoods. At this time, our focus is to help visitors and those brand new to Chicago, by matching them with a greeter. Catch the enthusiasm of city-wise locals who volunteer to share their knowledge and love of the city through visits on foot and public transportation. Tours depart at the Visitor Information Center at the Chicago Cultural Center at 77 E. Randolph Street. 

Cost: FREE Time: 1:00pm-4:00pm Limited Tickets Available

I & M Canal Bus Tour
Travel 30 miles southwest of Chicago and step back in time. Visit  Lockport, the I&M Canal Headquarters in 1837 and now headquarters for canal history. If the weather is good we will walk the tow path trail where mules and horses pulled boats the 100 miles from Chicago and LaSalle/Peru to Lock 1 and visit State Street, known for its historic storefronts and canal town architecture. Even if it is chilly, we will visit two restored stone warehouses built in the 1830s and explore canal-era exhibits in the Gaylord Building, a National Trust Historic Site and the Illinois State Museum Lockport Gallery. Refreshments will be served. 

The motor coach will travel I55, the route of the I&M Canal;  on the way to Lockport enjoy historical commentary by historian Ron Vasile. On the return Ana Koval will talk about the canal as a heritage tourism destination and outline some of the programs of the Canal Corridor Association.

Cost: $10.00 Time: 1:00pm-5:00pm Limited Tickets Available

Art Institute of Chicago  
One of the world's great art museums, with collections dating from 3,000 B.C. through the present, including famous French Impressionist paintings and drawings; fine and decorative arts from America, Europe, Africa, Asian and Latin America; photography, textiles and architectural works. 

Cost: $6.00 Time: 1:00pm Limited Tickets Available

GAR ROTUNDA & GAR HALL
Welcome Reception at the Chicago Cultural Center
77 E. Randolph Street
Sponsored by Chicago Office of Tourism. Wine provided by Stonestreet & Archipel

Welcome Address from the Cultural & Heritage Tourism Alliance

Presenter: Barbara Steinfeld, Chair, Cultural & Heritage Tourism Alliance
Director of Cultural Tourism, Portland Oregon Visitors Association

Opening Keynote Address: Collaboration & Cultural Resources

Speakers:
Lois Weisberg, Commissioner, Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs
Dorothy Coyle, Director, Chicago Office of Tourism

Cultural & Heritage Tourism in the 21st Century – Consumer Trends & New Markets
What do you get when you take into consideration the impact of technology, the expansion of income levels, the rise of the minority majority and the shift of women’s roles combined with increasing globalization?  A consumer far more experienced, bringing greater expectations for specialized, unique experiences.  The purpose of the session is to understand new market segments that will dominate in the first decade of the 21st Century and to recognize major trends impacting facilities and products.

Presenter: 
Dr. Leila Rach New York University / Preston Robert Tisch Center for Hospitality, Tourism and Sports Management

Making Research Actionable: What to Do With the Numbers
A very interactive discussion showing practical methods of applying research data to YOUR cultural and heritage tourism work.  The session includes the latest research from Americans for the Arts, Smithsonian Magazine and the National Park Service with real applications of what to do with the research (other than putting it in a file!)

Presenters:
Randy Cohen, Vice President, Research & Information, Americans for the Arts
Renee Mitchell, Research Director, Smithsonian Magazine
Brenda Barrett and Suzanne Copping, National Park Service, National Heritage Areas

Moderator:
Colleen Kalchthaler, Assistant Director, Cultural & Heritage Tourism, Greater Pittsburgh Convention and Visitors Bureau

Concurrent Sessions

Rural Cultural & Heritage Tourism
The success of programs like Handmade in America that have used cultural and heritage tourism as means of revitalizing rural communities has sparked a wave of interest and growth in rural cultural and heritage tourism. The challenges, opportunities and pitfalls faced by rural communities and regions in developing successful programs are many, and as you’ll learn no two rural areas are alike, so our presenters will share stories of efforts from New England to the Deep South and beyond.

Presenters:
Sharon Calcotte, Director, Louisiana Heritage Tourism Development
Anne Ball, Maine Office of Tourism

Moderator: Amy Jordan Webb, National Trust for Historic Preservation

THE GBLT Market: Out of the Closet, at last!
One of the strongest growth areas in the travel trade is the Gay, Lesbian,Bisexual, Transgender Market. This session will look at successful program development from a rural and urban perspective. Jeff Guaracino, Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation will relate the trails and tribulations of producing Philadelphia's recent major GBLT campaign. Willie Docto, an innkeeper and a founder of the Vermont Gay Tourism Association will address not only what's happening in Vermont the first state to offer civil unions, but give an overview of recent activities in Massachusetts the first state to institute gay marriage, New England and Quebec.

Presenters:
Willie Docto, Moose Meadow Lodge, Vermont
Jeff Guaracino, Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation

Moderator:Geraldine O’Brien, Vice-Chair, Cultural & Heritage Tourism Alliance
Arts & Tourism Manager, San Francisco Convention & Visitors Bureau

Town Hall Meeting

This free-wheeling session of ideas will engage everyone in assessing the state of cultural & heritage tourism. Since the 1995 White House Conference on Travel & Tourism, and its influential white paper on cultural tourism, the field has grown dramatically. The issues and relationship envisioned in the white paper are a starting point for our exploration of the changes in the field. A follow roundtable session will capture these ideas so that revised white paper outlining a vision of culture and heritage's relation to tourism. 

Moderator: Alf Nucifora, President, Nucifora Consulting Group, Atlanta, Georgia

White Paper Roundtables: Issues Now
The 1995 White House Conference on Travel & Tourism was an extraordinary opportunity’ to expand the creative dialogue between the travel and tourism industry and America’s cultural institutions, broadly represented by the arts, historic preservation, and humanities communities. The ten-year anniversary in 2005 of the resulting white paper on cultural tourism is another such opportunity to revise and update this historic and influential document.  These roundtables will be designed to capture what was learned in the town hall meeting so that recommendations can be articulated on the current issues and future of cultural & heritage tourism.

Moderators:
Kimber Craine, Director of Program Initiatives, President's Committee on the Arts & Humanities
Rosemary McCormick, President, Shop America Alliance

Dining Adventures (Voluntary)
Embark on this dining adventure and discover why Chicago is the world's newest culinary capital!  Travel by motorcoach to three distinctive Chicago restaurants, each offering a different course--appetizer, entrée and dessert.  Meet the creative people behind the scenes, sample the restaurants' specialties, and learn about Chicago's culinary history from an expert guide along the way.  Pre-Registration Required.

Cost: $75.00 Time: 6:30-10:30pm Limited Tickets Available

Neighborhood Tourism
This panel focuses on two distinctive tourism models, the Chicago Neighborhood Tours, created by Juana Guzman for the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and the Harlem Heritage Tours, a small organic for-profit business founded by Neal Shoemaker.  Learn about how these models involve residents, local businesses, community organizations, artists and government agencies to promote and preserve the rich cultural heritage of urban neighborhoods, while at the same time providing economic and marketing opportunities for communities seeking to be included in the broader-based tourism plan.

Presenters:
Juana Guzman, Associate Director, Mexican Fine Arts Center Museum, Chicago
Claudia G. Martinez, Executive Director, Pilsen Little Village Information Center, Chicago
Neal Shoemaker, Harlem Heritage Tours, New York

Cultural Identity & Sensitivity Panel
The development, presentation, and marketing of cultural and historical products that promote the unique experiences and history of our diverse ethnic populations are often a difficult task. How do you insure "authenticity" and "sensitivity" to the cultural contributions of ethic minorities? How do you make sure the product is presented and marketed in a balanced and sensitive manner to both culture and audience? This interactive panel discussion will explore some of the issues that must be considered in developing a tourism product that is both appealing and factual.

Presenters:
Glenn Weiss, former Executive Director, "Delray Beach Cultural Loop", Delray Beach Florida.
Gwyneth Windon, Multi-Cultural Programs Coordinator, "The Warrior Project", Oklahoma Tourism & Recreation Department incorporation with National Park Service, Oklahoma

Moderator:William "Bill" Nix, Vice President and Chief Program Officer, Palm Beach County Cultural Council, West Palm Beach Florida

New Collaborations: Embracing all the Relatives of the Cultural Tourism Family
A look at Culinary Tourism, Ecotourism and Voluntourism. Hear from an expert panel from these three fields, and learn about effective partnerships and programming that works to embrace these growing trends.  

Culinary tourism is a new trend that's piping hot. Simply put, food and drink, often overlooked in tourism promotion, are attractions that can make you money. Learn what culinary tourism is and how it can reap benefits for your region or organization.

Want to make an impact in the tourism market and impress marketing professionals who aren’t fully convinced that arts and culture will create a year round draw for visitors? Ecotourism embraces the principles of sustainable tourism, concerning the economic, social and environmental aspects of tourism, while contributing to the conservation of natural and cultural heritage. Learn how ecotourism and cultural tourism in Quebec make natural bedfellows. 

Searching for meaningful offerings for those visitors who want a truly hands-on experience? Take a look at the USDA Forest Service’s approach to education and stewardship, and their focus on cultural and heritage resources called Passport in Time. PIT is a volunteer archaeology and historic preservation program that engages volunteers and field professionals in projects such as archaeological excavation, archival research, historic structure restoration, gathering oral histories, or writing interpretive materials.

Presenters:
Jill Osborn, Passport in Time National Coordinator
Sylvie Nadeau, President, S.N. Tourisme Culturel, Canada

Moderator: Tracey Wickersham, Director of Cultural Tourism, Seattle’s Convention & Visitors Bureau

Blue Chicago (voluntary)
Located near Ontario Street's restaurant row, this 1940s-style blues bar featuring Chicago's best blues musicians and vocalists makes a perfect ending for the evening. 

Pre-Registration Required.