The 71^st Skål World Congress will be held in Sydney, Australia from 7 to 12 October 2010. The programme and registration form are available on the Skål International website www.skal.travel go to congress. The theme of the Congress is “Linking the World Downunder” The Congress Organising Committee are working with the airlines to endeavour to achieve the most attractive fares possible.

POST CONGRESS TOUR Skålleagues from Australia have put together some exciting Post Sydney Congress tours to the Northern Territory. The Red Centre five-day tour will depart the day after the Congress concludes on 12th October. Skålleagues and accompanying partners will fly with Qantas to Central Australia to enjoy the unforgettable experience of seeing Ayers Rock (Uluru) and The Olgas (Kata Tjuta), dine under the stars at the famous Sounds of Silence gourmet dinner, travel to Alice Springs and Standley Chasm and learn about the Australian outback and Aboriginal heritage.  Read more UNWTO TASK FORCE The 25th meeting of the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) Task Force on the Protection of Children from exploitation in travel and tourism was held on Friday 13 March 2010 at the International Conference Centre, Messe Berlin to coincide with ITB. Dr Dawid De Villiers, Chairman of the Task Force and Chairman of the UNWTO World Committee on Tourism Ethics, presided over the meeting.   Dr. De Villiers introduced the new Secretary General of UNWTO, Taleb Rifai who addressed the meeting and underlined the need for ongoing action again this evil crime. He said that progress was being made in getting the agreement of some countries to prosecute the perpetrators of these crimes in their own countries even if the crime was committed elsewhere but much more needed to be done to create greater awareness amongst the travelling public to identify and report these crimes where they suspected them or became aware of them. He congratulated some of the international airlines for showing in-flight videos to create greater awareness by those people travelling.   Skål International has been a member of this Task Force since the beginning and was represented at the meeting by the Secretary General, Jim Power. Read more		SKÅL ALBANY’S GREY MAN FUND RAISER Many Skål members will have met Noelene Evans, President, Skål International Albany, Australia during the Congress in Budapest. Noelene is swimming for charity over the Easter holiday. She has a high fund raising target of AUS$10,000. Please help her reach that target by donating to the Grey Man Fund Raiser. More details on the following website: www.everydayhero.com.au/skalalbanyswim EDUCATION IN TOURISM Skål International is launching a new section on the website called “Education in Tourism” This is aimed mainly a Young Skål Members and will assist them on matters of education in tourism and jobs. A list of educational establishments where Skål has members will shortly be published on the website. Clubs worldwide will be asked to contact educational establishments where Skål does not have members at present to enlist them and add them to the international network which will be created on the website. This exercise will help the Clubs in two ways, (a) the Club will get new members from the Directors and Lecturers in these colleges and (b) there will be a greater interest by those young people studying for or training in the industry. Some of the guidelines being considered are: Eligible companies must have at least one of their management as a local member This section will be visible on the public area of the website but accessible for details to Skål members only If students want to use the Skål companies’ network, they must become members in the local Club The international Young Skål fee will remain at €10.00, however Clubs and National Committees may wish to charge a local fee. There are two kinds of jobs which should be offered as follows: Practical terms during studies First job after studies which is a very important factor to tie young graduates to the tourism industry and to Skål Watch the Skål International website for further details. A communication on the new Education in Tourism initiative will be sent to Clubs, National and Area Committees shortly.
SKÅL INTERNATIONAL ELECTED TO THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF “THE CODE” The Annual General meeting of The Code of Conduct for the Protection of Children from Sexual Exploitation in Travel and Tourism was held on Saturday 13 March 2010 at the Novotel am Tiergarten, Berlin, Germany. The Chairman of the Code, Giorgio Berardi presided. The Chairman mentioned that a new set of Statutes for The Code was drawn up following the previous Annual General Meeting, which came into effect on 1 September 2009 and would be binding on all members of The Code. In addition a new Membership Agreement was agreed and this was currently being implemented. A set of fees was also agreed for individuals and medium and large companies involved in the travel and tourism industry who wished to sign The Code Agreement.   A new nine-member Board of Directors was elected as agreed in the new Statutes. The following seven members were elected during the meeting: Fair Trade South Africa represented by Jennifer Seif Kuoni, Switzerland represented by Matthias Leisinger DRV Germany represented by Andreas Museler Skål International represented by Jim Power Sun n Sand Kenya represented by Shahinoor Vistram Accor represented by May Chaperon ECPAT International represented by Giorgio Berardi. Two other members will be co-opted at the first Board meeting.

In line with the Skål policy of “Doing Business Among Friends” and Skål attendance at all major Trade Shows, Buck Wilson, a member of Skål International Colorado is organising a number of Trade Shows in the United States of America on which he is offering special rates to Skål members. For more information, please click on the following hyperlink: http://www.travel-trade-shows.com/Skal.html. Numerous contacts for new members and those interested in membership of Skål have been received from those who have visited the Skål booth during Trade Shows. Furthermore, it underlines the fact that we are professionals in travel and tourism and that we are proactive as far as marketing our products is concerned.

It will be red carpet all the way for Skålleagues and their families and friends who will be attending the Skal Asian Congress in the beautiful resort city of Cebu. The 39th Congress will be held from 27-30 May 2010 in Mactan Island, Cebu.

Skål International Kerry recently elected its new President, Jason Clifford at their Annual General Meeting in Killarney. 27 year old Jason is the General Manager of the five star Dunloe Castle Hotel in Killarney www.dunloecastlehotel.com National President, Geraldine Rosney commented that the Club was delighted to have such a young and committed tourism professional assume the responsibility of President. Jason is pictured here with National President, Geraldine Rosney, outgoing President Conor Hennigan and members of Skål International Kerry. 

Skål International will once again have a stand at IMEX. The IMEX Group, have announced that they are on course to deliver more business opportunities than ever when the doors open on 25 May.

ECO TIPS

• Turning down your thermostat just 1 degree can cut your heating costs by 3%.
• By planting trees, you can reduce home cooling costs by as much as 50% and grow yourself a little shade for a warm summer day
• Over 25% of your daily household waste consists of excessive packaging used to ship your purchases to the shelf. Next time you’re at the market, shop around for less packaging.

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