BORDER: Binational summit coming in March

By Don Glynn
Niagara Gazette

January 14, 2007 05:52 pm

— Amid growing concern over new passport regulations — especially the impact on cross-border trade and travel — the second annual Binational Tourism Summit 2007 is planned for Niagara Falls, Ontario.
The three-day event with the theme “Capitalizing on Cross-Border Connections” will begin March 4 at the Sheraton Fallsview and Conference Center.
Edward Friel, who is credited with helping convert Glasgow, Scotland, from a decaying industrial city to a major tourist destination, will be the keynote speaker.
Friel, a visiting professor at Niagara University, will speak on “Economic Revival Through Tourism.” A conference spokesman said Friel will share his insights and experiences with the delegates from both sides of the border, as well as his ideas for changing the cross-border regions into international tourism centers.
“It’s a way to unify the (tourist) industry in a binational approach,” said John Percy, president and chief operating officer of the Niagara Tourism and Convention Corp. “We’re so often working outside our areas to market tourism that we sometime fail to appreciate the benefits of networking among ourselves.”
A number of local and area government leaders, tourism, development and academic professionals will cover topics ranging from updates on the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative and Border Security and cross-border investments in tourism to new tourism trends and new developments in the cultural, heritage and culinary sectors.
Delegates also will have a chance to network with travel and hospitality industry partners.
Under the new travel initiative passports, Merchant Marine Mariner Documents or NEXUS air cards will be required for all air travel from within the Western Hemisphere for citizens of the U.S., Canada, Mexico and Bermuda, starting Jan. 23.
The timeline for the second phase is Jan. 1, 2008, when it is anticipated that U.S. citizens traveling between the U.S. and Canada, Mexico, Central and South America, the Caribbean, and Bermuda by land or sea, will be required to present a valid U.S. passport or other documents as determined by the Department of Homeland Security.