The submissions are in and judging is complete! Thank you all for your participation.
On behalf of the Jamaica Ministry of Tourism, George Washington University International Institute of Tourism Studies, and our distinguished panel of judges, it gives us great pleasure to announce the winners. Drumroll please…
Our First Place winner is Team WhitNaJekeBo from Ryerson University. Team WhitNaJeKeBo’s strategy focused on promoting community-based tourism products to millennials by partnering with schools and universities that offer study abroad programs. Their strategy included creating buzz for tailored tours through the #SustainableJammin hashtag, launching a promotional video that they developed, and organizing a Jamaican themed festival designed for millennials.
Honorable Mention goes to teams from Missouri State University for their “Come Explore the Jamaican Way of Life” submission and Georgetown University for their “Capturing Jamaica’s Story Through My Lens” submission.
Two members of the first place team will travel to Jamaica to present their winning strategy at the “UNWTO, Government of Jamaica and World Bank Group Conference on Jobs and Inclusive Growth: Partnerships for Sustainable Tourism.” This conference is the UN World Tourism Organization’s flagship event for the UN International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development.
Special thanks go out to our distinguished judges: Dr. Andrew Spencer, Executive Director, Jamaica Tourism Product Development Company Ltd.; Amanda Charles, Sustainable Tourism Development Specialist, Caribbean Tourism Organization; Jim McCaul, Vice President of Destination Development and Advocacy, Destinations International; Lily Girma, Travel Writer, Editor, and Photographer, specializing in the Caribbean Region; Norie Quintos, Communications Consultant and Editor at Large at National Geographic Travel Media; and Roberta Hatchett, Director of Advertising & Media, Brand USA.
We are delighted with the results of the Challenge, and hope you have benefited from your participation. And remember, even though the competition is over, we encourage you to find creative ways of supporting community based tourism in Jamaica!
Stay tuned for the launch of the 2018 Tourism Innovation Challenge. Next year’s challenge will focus on adventure travel in Ras Al Kaimah, United Arab Emirates. Details will follow in February 2018. We hope that you will join next year’s Tourism Innovation Challenge and/or tell others about it.
