CENTRE for CROSS BORDER STUDIES

14 June 2000

During 2000/2001 the Centre for Cross Border Studies organised a series of workshops for invited Study Groups of 40-60 practitioners, policy makers, government personnel, independent experts and academics in each of the main areas covered by its mapping study of North/South co-operation. The purpose of these meetings is to consider the present state of co-operation in the relevant sector, and to develop concrete proposals for further research and policy work. To encourage open discussion the Study Groups are normally held under the Chatham House rule, meaning that comments are not attributable to individuals so that people are free to speak from their own expert knowledge rather than necessarily representing the position of their organisation.

The day-long workshop on Tourism, chaired by a leading figure in the industry (Eileen O’Mara Walsh), took place at the Centre for Cross Border Studies, Armagh, and at the city’s new Market Place Theatre and Arts Centre, on 22 June 2000. Invitations were sent to key individuals in tourism industry organisations, major companies, academic and training centres, relevant government departments, politics, semi-state agencies, NGOs and other relevant organisations. The Group heard from a keynote speaker and from the author of the Centre’s mapping study of the tourism sector, with workshops covering four key issues. A final plenary session heard the conclusions of the workshops and sought to identify specific priority areas for North/South policy development.

As with all the Study Groups, the intention is to have an immediate and direct impact on policy with a view to enhancing mutually beneficial co-operation between the two jurisdictions. If appropriate, the Study Group or one or more subsets of it may be reconvened at a future date, or the Centre may take up recommendations from the final plenary for the development of more detailed research initiatives within or outside the Centre.

Participants

Participants in the Study Group included the following (institutional affiliations are included for identification only, participation being on an individual basis):