Bermuda will host the next Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) Sustainable Tourism Conference, STC 12,  from April 3 – 6, 2011.

In a symbolic passing of the “baton”, Bermuda’s Junior Tourism Minister Marc Bean received the CTO Sustainable Tourism Mahogany Scroll from the Permanent Secretary in the Barbados Ministry of Tourism, Andrew Cox, confirming Hamilton as host of the 12th Annual Caribbean Conference on Sustainable Tourism Development (STC-12).

“We are honoured to host STC-12 in Bermuda,” said Sen. Bean at a news conference later. “We look forward to an action-based programme that builds on the recommendations coming out of STC-11.”

This annual Conference is part of the information dissemination and regional awareness component of CTO’s Strategy for Sustainable Tourism. It looks at how member states can design and implement sustainable tourism policies and programmes, offering a regional forum for information exchange on the successes and pitfalls of national, regional and international initiatives.

The Conference brings together regional and international tourism specialists, Ministers of Government, Directors of Tourism, as well as developmental experts from the cultural, environmental and academic spheres and the local communities to share their experiences and offer solutions to the problems in the development of sustainable tourism.

The 11th annual Caribbean Conference on Sustainable Tourism Development (STC-11) was held from May 9-12, 2010 at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre in Bridgetown, Barbados and was organised in collaboration with the Government of Barbados.