TOURISM Awareness Week activities came to a close on September 29 with the Speaker Series and tree-planting exercises at the Manning’s School, the institution attended by 2023 Junior Tourism Minister Deja Bremmer.

“The Manning’s School Tourism Action Club has been achieving great things and has been active in learning and promoting tourism in Jamaica. It was important that we included the school in the Speaker Series and tree-planting exercise so that they continue to benefit from tourism initiative like these,” expressed Donovan White, director of tourism, Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB).

He added that the JTB looks forward to Jamaica being represented by the 2023 junior tourism minister at the Caribbean Tourism Organization’s Youth Congress in Turks and Caicos and lauded Manning’s School for retaining the title for the second year.

The speaker series, which took place in over eight school across the island, provided students with the opportunity to hear from industry professionals surrounding this year’s theme, ‘Tourism and Green Investments: Investing in People, Planet and Prosperity’. Closing out the Speaker Series, Dr Carey Wallace, executive director of the Tourism Enhancement Fund and past student at Manning’s School, addressed fifth and sixth form students which included members of the Tourism Action Club.

Approximately 10 trees were planted at the school with the assistance of the Forestry Department. Acting principal of the Manning’s School Sharon Thorpe expressed thanks to the Ministry of Tourism and its public bodies for implementing the initiative.

“Trees are important for our environment as they provide us with oxygen and without preservation of the environment we will not survive,” she expressed. Thorpe also charged the students to do their part to sustain our natural resources, especially the trees, to safeguard their lives and the lives of generations to come.

Other activities for the week included a virtual knowledge forum, a youth forum which hosted 350 students from across Jamaica, a tourism opportunities visionary symposium and workshop and the roll-out of the Tourism Awareness Week 2023 online resource guide.