Co-instructor for GWU's Study Abroad Summer Program International Consulting Practicum — a six-week live consulting assignment placing graduate tourism students with a real destination client. Across seven years he supervised teams of 14–17 students in seven destinations on four continents.
The Practicum is not a classroom exercise with a destination as a backdrop. Each cohort took on a genuine consulting brief for a real client, over six weeks, with deliverables the destination intended to act on.
The assignments varied considerably in kind. In Puerto Plata (2009), three new tourism products for the destination. In the Douro Valley (2010), product development aimed at diversifying the offer and increasing length of stay. In Cusco and the Sacred Valley (2012), gastronomic circuits and the improvement of Cusco's San Pedro Market as a visitor attraction. In Campeche (2013), destination positioning with emphasis on establishing a DMO, revitalizing the convention centre, and consolidating new products.
In Bilbao and the Basque Country (2014), positioning the region internationally with particular attention to US, Australian and Chinese outbound markets and the ethno-cultural, ecotourism/adventure, and family segments. At Inle Lake, Myanmar (2015), assessing the SAVE market segments and community-based tourism initiatives, identifying conservation and workforce opportunities, and facilitating cooperation among local stakeholders. In the Huasteca Potosina (2016), supporting the establishment of a UNESCO Geopark through community-based product development and marketing, in partnership with the Autonomous University of San Luis Potosí.
Note on the map: this entry carries seven locations rather than one. Handle it as a program, not a point.