The Class was taught by Dr. Carol A. Dimopoulos, Asst Prof of Entrepreneurship, Department of Business Management at the University and Michelle Buttigieg, Malta Tourism Authority Representative North America was a special mentor for this course. H.E. Ambassador Vanessa Frazier, Malta’s Permanent Representative to the UN hosted and welcomed the 20 students on Thursday, May 1, where they made their final presentations.
Dr. Dimopoulos, when asked why she selected Malta, responded that “Malta is a destination that is a culturally and environmentally rich destination which embraces a deep commitment to preservation, and follows the United Nations 17 Sustainable Development Goals. The students were governed with the task of developing innovation which created solutions for overtourism, mass construction, cultural preservation and conservation.”
Also present for these presentations was Greg Takehara, CEO from Tourism Cares, a USTOA (United States Tour Operators Association) nonprofit initiative. He served as a project mentor by helping the students to develop their projects in line with the mission of responsible tourism and the Tourism Cares Meaningful Travel Map. Takehara commenting on the outcome of the final presentations said that “working in groups, the students created business models for Malta, and the world, that were forward thinking and mindful, with a much-needed focus on sustainability and responsible travel.”
Michelle Buttigieg thanked both Dr. Dimopoulos for the initiative and said that her mentorship and that of Greg Takehara, was “a very fulfilling collaboration and MTA welcomes these fresh perspectives on very serious tourism and sustainability issues.” She added that MTA CEO, Carlo Micallef said that he is looking forward to receiving copies of the presentations which we will then share with the appropriate teams at MTA.”
About the Innovation & Product Development Class Project on the Maltese Islands
The students’ instructions were to position Malta as a global leader in tourism, by developing solutions to complex issues such as over tourism, environmental threats, cultural dissemination and waste. Teams will examine the problems in the following categories, and work with experts/mentors to develop new methods based on technology, program and product design. To ensure business is conducted well, and good.
- Technology-Maximizing efficiency. AI to enhance the supply chain/ consumer experience.
- Responsible and Sustainable Tourism Solutions-Preservation/Protection (Natural-Cultural)
- New Tourism products/Sectors-Experiential Tourism-Dark Tourism-Rural Tourism.
- New physical product (or line of products) which meets the demands of travelers and promotes sustainability in a post-pandemic world.
