- Email: [email protected]
Tourism and environment
274
RESEARCH NOTES AND REPORTS
together with a practical t r a i n i n g in all aspects of m a r k e t i n g including the necessary c o m p l e m e n t a r y activity of industry. A second course (ten weeks in duration), with a tighter "business school" approach, will be held from m i d - A p r i l to the end of J u n e (1988) at Regent's College ( I n n e r Circle, Regent's Park, L o n d o n NW1 4NS, UK). L e o n a r d Lickorish will again be the Director of Studies. A new d e p a r t u r e will be the inclusion of some students from the U K , as this mixing of experience should prove m u t u a l l y beneficial. T h e British ~Ii'avel Educational Trust has agreed to offer a scholarship, and the Institute hopes that Tourist Boards and leading Local Authorities will take a favorable view of this new o p p o r t u n i t y for senior m a n a g e m e n t further training. E][~ Submitted 7 October 1987 Accepted 10 November 1987
Tourism and E n v i r o n m e n t Ueli Milder Arbeitskreis Tourismus und Entwicklung, Switzerland Travels to T h i r d World countries are a b u r d e n to the e n v i r o n m e n t . T h e d a m a g e they cause is almost irreversible. To prevent the further sell-out of limited resources we require different tourist behavior patterns. These include, a p a r t from responsible individual behavior, consideration of the interests of b r o a d sections of the population in the concerned host country. OUTLINING
THE PROBLEM
One-Sided Use of Resources. Every m i n u t e 49 acres of rain-forest wood are cut down. Every year 8,000 square miles of cultivated land are devastated. Wood, harvest residues, and m a n u r e are b u r n t instead of being recycled to the soil (Bfinziger 1986:48). T h e industrial countries consume 80% of the world's resources, whereof a considerable part is i m p o r t e d from poor countries for exploitatively low prices and in a way that d a m a g e s the e n v i r o n m e n t . T h e 6 % of world-population living in the industrial countries consume m o r e than a q u a r t e r of the world's e n e r g y - - 2 . 3 times as m u c h as all developing countries together (including the petroleum exporting countries). A US citizen "devours" on the average the same a m o u n t of energy as two Europeans, 55 Indians, 168 Tanzanians, or 900 Nepalis ( S t r a h m 1985:14). In Switzerland 1 square m e t e r of cultivated land is built u p o n each second. Between 1970 and 1985, 35 square miles were used for the construction of weekend-houses and apartments; 160,000 m o r e houses are p l a n n e d by the year 2000. These will cover a surface larger than the lakes of Lucerne and L u g a n o together ( K r i p p e n d o r f 1986:40). In the village of Saas Fee, a holiday resort in the South of Switzerland, 90% of the natives lived by agriculture in 1951. Today, only 1%. In Grindelwald, the share of agriculture in the village's income a m o u n t s to only 2 %. Each nice Sunday, about 6,000 cars drive up to Grindelwald. For this trip of about 100 miles, the cars consume 80,000 liters of gasoline and produce 9 tons of carbonmonoxide, 1.3 tons of h y d r o c a r b o n , 1.7 tons of nitrogen, and 24 lbs of lead. O n the same Sunday, another 400,000 tourists are driving through Switzerrand, p r o d u c i n g an e n o r m o u s a m o u n t of pollutants.
RESEARCH NOTES AND REPORTS
275
Some 1,800 ski-lifts and chair-lifts, with a t r a n s p o r t i n g capacity of 1.2 million people per hour, consume more e n e r g ' / t h a n 1 million Swiss people use tor their private needs. Ski-slopes cover 59,000 acres, whereof 90% are destroyed with long lasting effects. Seventy-five million nights are spent by tourists in 1.75 million holiday beds in Switzerland. Halt' of these nights are spent by 35 million tbreign guests. T h e y s p e n d - - t o g e t h e r with 78 million dayt o u r i s t s - - 1 0 billion francs per year. O n the other hand, Swiss tourists spent 7.5 billion francs a b r o a d in 1985. Although tourist facilities are exploited to less than 20% of their capacity, new ones are constantly being built. T h e d a m a g e to the e n v i r o n m e n t , which is aggravated by these over-capacities, is one of the reasons why more and more Swiss people travel overseas for their holidays. In 1985, 490,000 went to Africa, Asia, and Latin A m e r i c a (Neue Zfircher Zeitung 1986:67). Spread of the Threat. "Because they have spoilt their own e n v i r o n m e n t , people of the c o n s u m e r societies are ruthlessly beginning to consume the e n v i r o n m e n t of others" (Bugnicourt 1978:52). O n e h u n d r e d million tourists from overseas spend their holidays in developing countries. In order to please them, poor countries undertake e n o r m o u s developmental efforts ( R u f 1984:170). In order to kill seaweeds, tourist promotors pour l e a f stripping products containing dioxin into the water along large sections of the coast. This "cleaning" process has already killed several million fish in Venezuela. In 1982, this process led to the evacuation of thousands of people (Tages-Anzeiger 1982). ~Iburist transport systems consume far too much fuel. For example, a D C 10. needs 300,000 liters of gasoline for a 19,000 square mile r o u n d - t r i p from Europe to S o u t h - A m e r i c a and back. W i t h an average load of 150 passengers, this means 2,000 liters per person. Even in poor countries, tourists often lodge in luxurious hotels. T h e hotel "Elfenbein" (financed with Israeli capital) in A b i d j a n is no exception. It includes two s w i m m i n g pools and a skating and curling hall; it consumes 16.5 million kw of electricity per year ( I n f o r m a t i o n s z e n t r u m 1986:55). In the hotels "Saharien" and "Marhala," each tourist has 600 liters of water a day at his disposal. T h u s the water consumption in the oasis of ~Ibzeur (Tunisia) has increased from 500,000 liters to 1,200,000 liters between 1983 and 1985, "thanks" to the increasing mass of tourists. This a m o u n t of water would be sufficient tor the irrigation of 124 acres of oasis land with 12,000 date pahns. T h c water for the tourists is taken away from the farmers and as the water table sinks, natural water supply is exhausted. T h e same thing happens in other oases, such as Nefia (H~immerli 1983:42). C o n s e q u e n t l y tourist investments often collide with agriculture, destroy landscapes, and p r o d u c t erosion.
SEARCHING FOR SOLUTIONS
CoT~creteAttempts. According to P t a m b a r S h e r m a ot Tribhuvan University in K a t h m a n d u , a trekking tourist in Nepal burns about 14 lbs of wood per day. A l a r m e d by reports on resulting damages to the already scarce woodlands of Nepal, an environment-conscious group built up a kerosene deposit in the M o u n t Everest area. Moreover, some trekking tour agencies encourage their clients to spend money for forest-planting projects and urge them to store their garbage into their backpack instead of digging it into the ground ( F r a n k f u r t e r R u n d s c h a u 1984). A h m e d Zahir, director of the M a l d i v i a n D e p a r t m e n t of Tourism, fears that tourist pollution is ruining several islands. "But you know" he adds, "we have to go with the time." In other words, without being able to cope with the high international standard, the Maledives would be thrown out of the tourist market (Die Zeit 1986). O f course, single countries have no chance against "generous" international
276
RESI.;ARCH NOTES AND I,~EP()RTS
tinancicrs and holdings. "In order to 'darn' today's gap under the pressurc of creditors, new holes are being torn open tk)r tomorrow ~ (Ruf 1984:167). Thus, the circumstances demand thvoring tourist policies instead of ceologic~d concerns. In order to escape this deadlock, more and more devcloping countries try. to promote a j o i n t tourist policy. This inclucles (as far as possible) the material evaluation of costs caused by pollution, which arc to be compensated by the responsible part> This policy is supported by the "Commission on Far Abroad ~Iimrism" of the "Non-Allied Countries." A n o t h e r hopeful movement is the Ecumenical Coalition on Third ~'~)rl(t ~l}mrism (Bangkok). It encourages citizen movenmnts in their search tot ahernative forms of tourism as well as tbr alternatives to tourism. This new approach to tourism should focus on the satisfhction of basic needs of the residents. C o n s e q u e n t l y the natives of Goa (India) and the C h i a n g Mai ( T h a i l a n d ) struggh." against the tourist sell-out of their home country.. In some places (in Casamance, Senegal) the natives ofti'r their own simple infrastructure for a limited n u m b e r of tourists (Ecumenical Coalition 1986:3). (,~7~scious 7/)urh,~. "Conscious tourism" or "soft tourism" calls tot a tourism that is compatiblc with an intact e n v i r o n m e n t . ~lhurism tbr, by, and with natives is favorcd (i.e., a cautious tourist development controlled bv residents, a devc]opment based on existing local structures and local resources that can bc regenerated). This type of tourist development is closely related to productive sectors such as agriculture and local trade. Supplying thc natives with water, tbod, and energy thus has priorit> A diversified economic structure prevents one-sided dependencies, q'he social infi-astructurc cannot suffer on account of short-term interest of capital investment. It is, thcretbre, important not only (o build up small islands of soft tourism, but to focus on large scale measures a i m i n g at a conscious tourism. This includes taking intluencc on thc clicnts' behavior as well as promoting structural policies in thvor of soft technoh)gics and public transport. Moreover, it is imf)ortant to tcll the tourists how thcy ('an more carefully handle the e n v i r o n m e n t on their trips. The motto could be "The more wc behave according to the customs of the host country (and thus profit from their cxpcrien(e), the more ecologically responsible wc travel and the less we damage nature." ~Iburists should stay in pensions that bclong to residents and are m a n a g e d in the typical way of the country. If the tourists consumc nativc food and drink and if they buv local crates the local people will prot]t. I~_~-]
REFERENCES Biinzigcr, Andrcas 1986 Die Saat der D{irrc. Bornhcim: Lamuv \~:rlag gt,gnicourt. Jacques 1!)78 'Iburismus (ibcrschwcmmt Entwickhmgsliindcr. 1i, "l~mrismus- Entwicklung odor Gct~ihrdung. Studicnkreis ffir "lburismus. ed., pp. 45-57. l)ic Zcit 1986 ~k~hin n]it dcm M(ill? Dic Zcit (Mai 9). Harnburg. E('umcnical Coalition and Third "v~))rl(lN)urisrn 1986 Third World People and Tourism: Approaches to a l)ialoguc. Bad Boll/Unkcl: Horlemann-Studics. Frankfurter Rundschau 1984 De," Mount Everest. Frankthrter Runds{'hau (July 7). Htimmcrli, Alti'cd 1983 Fiir tin paar Dollar mchr. In Namr (July 7), M{inchcn. lntbrmationszentrum Dritte '~Veh 1986 Kla,, sch&n war's. Frciburg i. BJ. Prolit. Krippcndort; ,Jost 1986 Alpscgen, Alptraum. Bern: KClmmcrly und Frcy. Nvuc Z~irchcr Zcitung I986 Die Schweiz und dcr Frcmdcnvcrkt:hr Ncuc Z(irchcr Zcitung (June 19).
RESEARCH NOTES AND REPORTS
277
Ruf, Werner 1984 Weltwirtschaftskrise, Dritte Welt-fourismus. In fourismus in Entwicklungslfindern. Studienkreis ffir fourismus, ed., pp. 159-173. Strahm, Rudolf 1985 Warum sie so arm sind. Wuppertal: Peter Hammer Verlag Tages-Anzeiger 1982 Dioxintod ffir Millionen Fische. fages-Anzeiger (March 24), Z(irich. Submitted 25 February 1987 Accepted 18June 1987
ASTA Congress Turgut Var Texas A & M University, U S A The American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA) is the largest travel trade association in the world, representing 20,000 members in 124 countries. Founded in 1931 as the American Steamship and Tourist Agents' Association, ASTA has grown and changed as the need for professional travel planning has increased. ASTA has remained loyal to its original commitment of upholding the professionalism of the travel agent community and promoting ethical business practices. ASTA's objectives are to: promote and encourage travel among people of all nations; promote the image and encourage the use of professional travel agents worldwide; promote and represent the views and interests of travel agents to all levels of government and industry; promote professional and ethical conduct in the travel agency industry worldwide; serve as information resources for the travel industry worldwide; promote consumer protection and safety for the traveling public; sponsor and conduct educational programs for travel agents on subjects related to the travel industry; and engage in any lawful activity which the members of the association shall deem fit and appropriate for the promotion of their common welfare. There are two basic memberships in ASTA. Active members are fully-accredited travel agencies. Allied members include travel suppliers and other organizations which are regularly engaged in a travel-related industry. A travel agency must meet certain requirements to become an Active member, including that the firm is currently accredited in good standing with the Airlines Reporting Corporation (ARC) or the International Airlines Travel Agent Network (IATAN). All ASTA members agree to comply with the Society's "Principles of Professional Conduct and Ethics." There are more than 12,000 Active members of ASTA and 5,000 Allied members in the United States and 2,000 in Canada and throughout the world. Additionally, ASTA has 180 travel school members. ASTA~s 57th World Travel Congress took place at the brand new George R. Brown Convention Center of Houston (Texas, USA; October 11-16, 1987). After opening remarks by the Congress Chairman, Larry S. Clark, the Honorable Donna F. Tuttle, Under Secretary for the Travel and Tourism Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, gave a review of major developments in worldwide tourism, including the US-Canada free trade agreement and removal of travel related foreign exchange restrictions. The Honorable Kathryn Whitmore, Mayor of Houston, extended a welcome to the Congress. The educational seminars presented during the Congress included many topics of interest to the travel industry: "Cold Call Selling" "Electronic Communication Systems for the 90's;' "High Finance for Low Budget Companies," "The New Tax Laws" "Public Relations and Advertising," "Special Interest
RESEARCH NOTES AND REPORTS
together with a practical t r a i n i n g in all aspects of m a r k e t i n g including the necessary c o m p l e m e n t a r y activity of industry. A second course (ten weeks in duration), with a tighter "business school" approach, will be held from m i d - A p r i l to the end of J u n e (1988) at Regent's College ( I n n e r Circle, Regent's Park, L o n d o n NW1 4NS, UK). L e o n a r d Lickorish will again be the Director of Studies. A new d e p a r t u r e will be the inclusion of some students from the U K , as this mixing of experience should prove m u t u a l l y beneficial. T h e British ~Ii'avel Educational Trust has agreed to offer a scholarship, and the Institute hopes that Tourist Boards and leading Local Authorities will take a favorable view of this new o p p o r t u n i t y for senior m a n a g e m e n t further training. E][~ Submitted 7 October 1987 Accepted 10 November 1987
Tourism and E n v i r o n m e n t Ueli Milder Arbeitskreis Tourismus und Entwicklung, Switzerland Travels to T h i r d World countries are a b u r d e n to the e n v i r o n m e n t . T h e d a m a g e they cause is almost irreversible. To prevent the further sell-out of limited resources we require different tourist behavior patterns. These include, a p a r t from responsible individual behavior, consideration of the interests of b r o a d sections of the population in the concerned host country. OUTLINING
THE PROBLEM
One-Sided Use of Resources. Every m i n u t e 49 acres of rain-forest wood are cut down. Every year 8,000 square miles of cultivated land are devastated. Wood, harvest residues, and m a n u r e are b u r n t instead of being recycled to the soil (Bfinziger 1986:48). T h e industrial countries consume 80% of the world's resources, whereof a considerable part is i m p o r t e d from poor countries for exploitatively low prices and in a way that d a m a g e s the e n v i r o n m e n t . T h e 6 % of world-population living in the industrial countries consume m o r e than a q u a r t e r of the world's e n e r g y - - 2 . 3 times as m u c h as all developing countries together (including the petroleum exporting countries). A US citizen "devours" on the average the same a m o u n t of energy as two Europeans, 55 Indians, 168 Tanzanians, or 900 Nepalis ( S t r a h m 1985:14). In Switzerland 1 square m e t e r of cultivated land is built u p o n each second. Between 1970 and 1985, 35 square miles were used for the construction of weekend-houses and apartments; 160,000 m o r e houses are p l a n n e d by the year 2000. These will cover a surface larger than the lakes of Lucerne and L u g a n o together ( K r i p p e n d o r f 1986:40). In the village of Saas Fee, a holiday resort in the South of Switzerland, 90% of the natives lived by agriculture in 1951. Today, only 1%. In Grindelwald, the share of agriculture in the village's income a m o u n t s to only 2 %. Each nice Sunday, about 6,000 cars drive up to Grindelwald. For this trip of about 100 miles, the cars consume 80,000 liters of gasoline and produce 9 tons of carbonmonoxide, 1.3 tons of h y d r o c a r b o n , 1.7 tons of nitrogen, and 24 lbs of lead. O n the same Sunday, another 400,000 tourists are driving through Switzerrand, p r o d u c i n g an e n o r m o u s a m o u n t of pollutants.
RESEARCH NOTES AND REPORTS
275
Some 1,800 ski-lifts and chair-lifts, with a t r a n s p o r t i n g capacity of 1.2 million people per hour, consume more e n e r g ' / t h a n 1 million Swiss people use tor their private needs. Ski-slopes cover 59,000 acres, whereof 90% are destroyed with long lasting effects. Seventy-five million nights are spent by tourists in 1.75 million holiday beds in Switzerland. Halt' of these nights are spent by 35 million tbreign guests. T h e y s p e n d - - t o g e t h e r with 78 million dayt o u r i s t s - - 1 0 billion francs per year. O n the other hand, Swiss tourists spent 7.5 billion francs a b r o a d in 1985. Although tourist facilities are exploited to less than 20% of their capacity, new ones are constantly being built. T h e d a m a g e to the e n v i r o n m e n t , which is aggravated by these over-capacities, is one of the reasons why more and more Swiss people travel overseas for their holidays. In 1985, 490,000 went to Africa, Asia, and Latin A m e r i c a (Neue Zfircher Zeitung 1986:67). Spread of the Threat. "Because they have spoilt their own e n v i r o n m e n t , people of the c o n s u m e r societies are ruthlessly beginning to consume the e n v i r o n m e n t of others" (Bugnicourt 1978:52). O n e h u n d r e d million tourists from overseas spend their holidays in developing countries. In order to please them, poor countries undertake e n o r m o u s developmental efforts ( R u f 1984:170). In order to kill seaweeds, tourist promotors pour l e a f stripping products containing dioxin into the water along large sections of the coast. This "cleaning" process has already killed several million fish in Venezuela. In 1982, this process led to the evacuation of thousands of people (Tages-Anzeiger 1982). ~Iburist transport systems consume far too much fuel. For example, a D C 10. needs 300,000 liters of gasoline for a 19,000 square mile r o u n d - t r i p from Europe to S o u t h - A m e r i c a and back. W i t h an average load of 150 passengers, this means 2,000 liters per person. Even in poor countries, tourists often lodge in luxurious hotels. T h e hotel "Elfenbein" (financed with Israeli capital) in A b i d j a n is no exception. It includes two s w i m m i n g pools and a skating and curling hall; it consumes 16.5 million kw of electricity per year ( I n f o r m a t i o n s z e n t r u m 1986:55). In the hotels "Saharien" and "Marhala," each tourist has 600 liters of water a day at his disposal. T h u s the water consumption in the oasis of ~Ibzeur (Tunisia) has increased from 500,000 liters to 1,200,000 liters between 1983 and 1985, "thanks" to the increasing mass of tourists. This a m o u n t of water would be sufficient tor the irrigation of 124 acres of oasis land with 12,000 date pahns. T h c water for the tourists is taken away from the farmers and as the water table sinks, natural water supply is exhausted. T h e same thing happens in other oases, such as Nefia (H~immerli 1983:42). C o n s e q u e n t l y tourist investments often collide with agriculture, destroy landscapes, and p r o d u c t erosion.
SEARCHING FOR SOLUTIONS
CoT~creteAttempts. According to P t a m b a r S h e r m a ot Tribhuvan University in K a t h m a n d u , a trekking tourist in Nepal burns about 14 lbs of wood per day. A l a r m e d by reports on resulting damages to the already scarce woodlands of Nepal, an environment-conscious group built up a kerosene deposit in the M o u n t Everest area. Moreover, some trekking tour agencies encourage their clients to spend money for forest-planting projects and urge them to store their garbage into their backpack instead of digging it into the ground ( F r a n k f u r t e r R u n d s c h a u 1984). A h m e d Zahir, director of the M a l d i v i a n D e p a r t m e n t of Tourism, fears that tourist pollution is ruining several islands. "But you know" he adds, "we have to go with the time." In other words, without being able to cope with the high international standard, the Maledives would be thrown out of the tourist market (Die Zeit 1986). O f course, single countries have no chance against "generous" international
276
RESI.;ARCH NOTES AND I,~EP()RTS
tinancicrs and holdings. "In order to 'darn' today's gap under the pressurc of creditors, new holes are being torn open tk)r tomorrow ~ (Ruf 1984:167). Thus, the circumstances demand thvoring tourist policies instead of ceologic~d concerns. In order to escape this deadlock, more and more devcloping countries try. to promote a j o i n t tourist policy. This inclucles (as far as possible) the material evaluation of costs caused by pollution, which arc to be compensated by the responsible part> This policy is supported by the "Commission on Far Abroad ~Iimrism" of the "Non-Allied Countries." A n o t h e r hopeful movement is the Ecumenical Coalition on Third ~'~)rl(t ~l}mrism (Bangkok). It encourages citizen movenmnts in their search tot ahernative forms of tourism as well as tbr alternatives to tourism. This new approach to tourism should focus on the satisfhction of basic needs of the residents. C o n s e q u e n t l y the natives of Goa (India) and the C h i a n g Mai ( T h a i l a n d ) struggh." against the tourist sell-out of their home country.. In some places (in Casamance, Senegal) the natives ofti'r their own simple infrastructure for a limited n u m b e r of tourists (Ecumenical Coalition 1986:3). (,~7~scious 7/)urh,~. "Conscious tourism" or "soft tourism" calls tot a tourism that is compatiblc with an intact e n v i r o n m e n t . ~lhurism tbr, by, and with natives is favorcd (i.e., a cautious tourist development controlled bv residents, a devc]opment based on existing local structures and local resources that can bc regenerated). This type of tourist development is closely related to productive sectors such as agriculture and local trade. Supplying thc natives with water, tbod, and energy thus has priorit> A diversified economic structure prevents one-sided dependencies, q'he social infi-astructurc cannot suffer on account of short-term interest of capital investment. It is, thcretbre, important not only (o build up small islands of soft tourism, but to focus on large scale measures a i m i n g at a conscious tourism. This includes taking intluencc on thc clicnts' behavior as well as promoting structural policies in thvor of soft technoh)gics and public transport. Moreover, it is imf)ortant to tcll the tourists how thcy ('an more carefully handle the e n v i r o n m e n t on their trips. The motto could be "The more wc behave according to the customs of the host country (and thus profit from their cxpcrien(e), the more ecologically responsible wc travel and the less we damage nature." ~Iburists should stay in pensions that bclong to residents and are m a n a g e d in the typical way of the country. If the tourists consumc nativc food and drink and if they buv local crates the local people will prot]t. I~_~-]
REFERENCES Biinzigcr, Andrcas 1986 Die Saat der D{irrc. Bornhcim: Lamuv \~:rlag gt,gnicourt. Jacques 1!)78 'Iburismus (ibcrschwcmmt Entwickhmgsliindcr. 1i, "l~mrismus- Entwicklung odor Gct~ihrdung. Studicnkreis ffir "lburismus. ed., pp. 45-57. l)ic Zcit 1986 ~k~hin n]it dcm M(ill? Dic Zcit (Mai 9). Harnburg. E('umcnical Coalition and Third "v~))rl(lN)urisrn 1986 Third World People and Tourism: Approaches to a l)ialoguc. Bad Boll/Unkcl: Horlemann-Studics. Frankfurter Rundschau 1984 De," Mount Everest. Frankthrter Runds{'hau (July 7). Htimmcrli, Alti'cd 1983 Fiir tin paar Dollar mchr. In Namr (July 7), M{inchcn. lntbrmationszentrum Dritte '~Veh 1986 Kla,, sch&n war's. Frciburg i. BJ. Prolit. Krippcndort; ,Jost 1986 Alpscgen, Alptraum. Bern: KClmmcrly und Frcy. Nvuc Z~irchcr Zcitung I986 Die Schweiz und dcr Frcmdcnvcrkt:hr Ncuc Z(irchcr Zcitung (June 19).
RESEARCH NOTES AND REPORTS
277
Ruf, Werner 1984 Weltwirtschaftskrise, Dritte Welt-fourismus. In fourismus in Entwicklungslfindern. Studienkreis ffir fourismus, ed., pp. 159-173. Strahm, Rudolf 1985 Warum sie so arm sind. Wuppertal: Peter Hammer Verlag Tages-Anzeiger 1982 Dioxintod ffir Millionen Fische. fages-Anzeiger (March 24), Z(irich. Submitted 25 February 1987 Accepted 18June 1987
ASTA Congress Turgut Var Texas A & M University, U S A The American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA) is the largest travel trade association in the world, representing 20,000 members in 124 countries. Founded in 1931 as the American Steamship and Tourist Agents' Association, ASTA has grown and changed as the need for professional travel planning has increased. ASTA has remained loyal to its original commitment of upholding the professionalism of the travel agent community and promoting ethical business practices. ASTA's objectives are to: promote and encourage travel among people of all nations; promote the image and encourage the use of professional travel agents worldwide; promote and represent the views and interests of travel agents to all levels of government and industry; promote professional and ethical conduct in the travel agency industry worldwide; serve as information resources for the travel industry worldwide; promote consumer protection and safety for the traveling public; sponsor and conduct educational programs for travel agents on subjects related to the travel industry; and engage in any lawful activity which the members of the association shall deem fit and appropriate for the promotion of their common welfare. There are two basic memberships in ASTA. Active members are fully-accredited travel agencies. Allied members include travel suppliers and other organizations which are regularly engaged in a travel-related industry. A travel agency must meet certain requirements to become an Active member, including that the firm is currently accredited in good standing with the Airlines Reporting Corporation (ARC) or the International Airlines Travel Agent Network (IATAN). All ASTA members agree to comply with the Society's "Principles of Professional Conduct and Ethics." There are more than 12,000 Active members of ASTA and 5,000 Allied members in the United States and 2,000 in Canada and throughout the world. Additionally, ASTA has 180 travel school members. ASTA~s 57th World Travel Congress took place at the brand new George R. Brown Convention Center of Houston (Texas, USA; October 11-16, 1987). After opening remarks by the Congress Chairman, Larry S. Clark, the Honorable Donna F. Tuttle, Under Secretary for the Travel and Tourism Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, gave a review of major developments in worldwide tourism, including the US-Canada free trade agreement and removal of travel related foreign exchange restrictions. The Honorable Kathryn Whitmore, Mayor of Houston, extended a welcome to the Congress. The educational seminars presented during the Congress included many topics of interest to the travel industry: "Cold Call Selling" "Electronic Communication Systems for the 90's;' "High Finance for Low Budget Companies," "The New Tax Laws" "Public Relations and Advertising," "Special Interest