Joining more than 70 adventure travel pioneers and experts from five continents, four world-renowned experts representing the fields of cultural anthropology,environmental and wildlife conservation, work-life balance, and archaeology are set to address approximately 400 adventure travel business leaders converging in Seattle for the second annual, trade only, Adventure Travel World Summit in Seattle, October 19-21. Global warming, poverty alleviation, and cultural conservation headline,while strategic insights, best business practices and practical toolssessions complete the 2006 Adventure Travel World Summit (ATWS). Themed,“Today’s Tools for Tomorrow’s Adventures,” summit keynote addressesinclude:

—Wade Davis, anthropologist and National GeographicExplorer-in-Residence, opens the ATWS with “Light at the Edge of the World:A Journey through the Realm of Vanishing Cultures.” From his work in Peruto Borneo, Tibet to the Arctic, Davis sees biological crisis, indicated bya loss of species, in addition to a cultural crisis as indigenous culturesand languages vanish. Davis contends that the decline of biologicaldiversity goes hand-in-hand with the decline of cultural diversity and willexplain what travelers to the world’s most exotic sites—and thecompanies transporting these travelers—must do to preserve this preciousdiversity. (Made possible by Trinidad & Tobago)

—Mary C. Pearl, president of Wildlife Trust and Discover Magazine’s"Natural Selections” columnist, is a leading wildlife biologist who hasspearheaded the development of ‘conservation medicine’—a scientificexploration of the links between the health of humans, wildlife andecosystems. Dr. Pearl will speak on how the consequences of global warming,including newly emerging diseases, weather fluctuations, and even wildlifemigration disruptions may affect adventure travel and will address the rolethe travel community can play in helping to secure a sustainable future forhumans and nature alike. (Presented by Discover Magazine)

—Joe Robinson, author, speaker, trainer, and work-life consultant, showsthat adventure travel is a necessity of life—a health product, bestmedicine, and the ultimate annual tune-up for the body and mind in thisoverworked, overbooked, overcooked world. Author of, “Work to Live: TheGuide to Getting a Life,” Robinson will argue that the average ‘Joe’ issearching to escape the overworked and overbooked qualities of everydaylife in exchange for the novelty, challenge and direct engagement withcultures and the environment that only an adventure travel getaway canadequately provide. (Presented by the Adventure Travel Trade Association)

—Brian Fagan, Professor Emeritus of Anthropology at the University ofCalifornia, Santa Barbara, is widely regarded as one of the world’s leadingarchaeological writers. Fagan’s archaeological observations have beenprinted in Archaeology Magazine and in more than 45 books, including thebest-selling “Adventures in Archaeology” for the National GeographicSociety. Fagan will present “Global Warming, the Ancients, and Us,” andoffer lessons from adventure travelers from the past. Looking at 15,000years of human footprints as evidence, Fagan asks fundamental yetprovocative questions and challenges adventure travelers to be responsiblestewards of the world’s priceless and irreplaceable cultural heritage.(Presented by Archaeology Magazine)

Other notables from among the more than 70 experts presenting at the summitinclude: Juthamas Siriwan, Governor - Tourism Authority of Thailand; UrsEberhard, Vice Director - Switzerland Tourism; Neel Inamdar, EcotourismBusiness Advisor - Conservation International; Tek B Dangi, CEO - NepalTourism Board; James Hepple, President and Director - Tourism Trinidad andTobago Tourism Development Company; Valyn Perini, Executive Director -OpenTravel Alliance; Eric Brodnax, General Manager - The Away Network; JohnRasmus, Founder & Editor In Chief - National Geographic Adventure; EverettPotter, USA Weekend, National Geographic Traveler, Skiing MagazineContributor; Abraham Foss - Innovation Norway; and Gustavo Timo, Co-Founder& Executive Coordinator - ABETA (Brazilian Adventure Travel TradeAssociation).

Keynote addresses and session forums, workshops, panels and roundtables aredesigned to equip delegates with tools to better their business, enable theindustry to better serve travelers, promote responsible adventure tourism,and optimize the industry’s market potential through productive debate,dialogue and collaboration. Sessions, intended for industry executives anddecision makers within the travel and tourism industry, are designed toelicit summit delegate interaction with expert presenters and to enableparticipants to voice opinions and pose provocative questions forindustry-wide discussion.

Online registration is accessible at:

.Registration Fees are $750.00 U.S. for ATTA Members and $950.00 fornon-members. For information about an upcoming Summit preview conference call, email.

Key sponsors the Adventure Travel World Summit include Eagle Creek,ExOfficio, National Geographic Adventure, and Orbitz. Supporting sponsorsinclude Adventure Central, Archaeology Magazine, Discover Magazine,Discover Ireland, Global Edge Media, Incredible !ndia, Qatar Airways,Quotient Marketing, Sanofi Pasteur, Trinidad and Tobago Tourism DevelopmentCompany, and Veramonte Wines.

The Seattle-based Adventure Travel Trade Association is a strategic membership organization dedicatedto raising the profile of adventure travel globally. Established in 1990,the ATTA provides services, knowledge, and connections that help itsmembers succeed in their businesses and contribute to responsible industry growth.
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