PortEconomics has scientifically coordinated the most successful Cartagena Cruise Dialogue on “Cruise, Ports and Cities” which took place in Cartagena, de Indias, from 19 to 21 February 2020,
Focused on “Preparing Ports, Cities, and Destinations for the next day of cruising”, the Cartagena dialogue involved a unique blending of industry and academia interactions. PortEconomics members involved in the study of cruise ports joined 100 participants and had the opportunity to discuss with cruise ports, destinations, and tourism associations with a major role in the development of cruising all over the world their views and agendas on how to sustainably accommodate the seemingly unstoppable globalization and growth of cruise activities.
PortEconomics members presented at #cruisedialogue2020 their latest studies on cruise shipping and ports. PortEconomics will provide you access to the findings of these studies – stay tuned !!!
The cruise-academia dialogue
Esteemed speakers included representatives of ports in Latin America (Cartagena de Indias, Lima, Santa Marta, Curacao, Sans Souci), Europe (Barcelona, Venice, Cartagena, Spain, Tenerife, Thessaloniki) and US (Port of Los Angeles), The entire Colombian cruise industry was also present, with keynote speakers including Sociedad Portuaria Regional de Cartagena, Procolombia, the Cartagena Chamber of Commerce, WISTA Colombia, etc. They were joined by the major industry associations – such as the International Association of Ports and Harbors (IAPH), AIVP-The World network of port-cities the association of ports from all over the world, MedCruise, the association of ports from all over the world, the Global Sustainable Tourism Council, and the UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean.
The highlights of the industry days included an interview with Richard J. Vogel, President and CEO of Pulmantur Cruises, and a dialogue between executives of Global Ports Holding (Carla Salvado), which is the biggest cruise terminal operator of the world, and Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines (RCCL) Ltd (Miguel Reyna) on how to develop Latin America to a major cruise region – both of them moderated by the journalist and CEO of CruiseNews Media Virginia Lopez.
The program included sessions examining “The benefits and challenges of cruise growth”, “The role of Associations in balancing cruise growth with economic & social sustainability”, “Cruise agendas for the future”, “Cruise Port Growth Strategies”, “Positive stories of port cities & cruise destinations and how to expand them”, “Main challenges for cruise industry in the Caribbean”, “Expedition cruises’ and “Corporate Social Responsibility and gender issues in cruise”.
The academic program brought together contributions by scholars from several different countries – including Colombia, Belgium, Chile, China, Canada, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, UK, and US – who during six different sessions discussed the latest research on how best to achieve sustainable cruise growth.
A themed volume of the scholarly journal Research in Transportation Business and Management (RTBM) on “Cruise, Ports * Destinations – edited by PortEconomic members T. Pallis, G. Wilsmeier and G. Satta – will include the most advanced studies presented at the #cruisedialogue2020
The PortEconomics scientifically coordinated event was organized by the Universidad de Los Andes, Colombia, along with the University of the Aegean, Greece and the University of Genoa, Italy. Sponsors and supporters included Cruise Port of Cartagena Colombia, Global Ports Holding, Port of Cartegena Spain, MedCruise – The Association of cruise ports in the Med and its adjoining seas, Cartagena Sightseeing, Expocafe, and ProColombia. Chaired by Thanos Pallis and Gordon Wilmsmeier, the event has been under the auspices of the International Association of Maritime Economists (IAME), the Port Performance Research Network (PPRN), and the scientific coordination of the PortEconomics.eu web-initiative.
Following the warm welcome of Cruise Dialogue 2020, PortEconomics intends to explore the potential of a future second edition. We will keep you updated on that front as well, and continue to #shapecruisefuture #shaperportfuture together.
You might recap all that happened at #cruisedialogue2020 by visiting the social media accounts devoted to it: Twitter: @CruiseDialogue; Linkedin: Cruisediaogue2020; and the website: www.cruisedialogue2020.org.
