Bolivia:  Preparation of $20 Million Loan for National Community-Based Tourism  Programme

Blackstone was retained by the Inter-American Development Bank and the Government of Bolivia to prepare a tourism plan and all loan documents for this major project.   We built the five components of the loan, including: “puesta en valor” (conversion of tourism resources into products through investment in infrastructure); capacity building, including detailed development of a matching grant facility; institutional strengthening; marketing and promotion; and environmental management.   The project, prepared under a very tight time frame and difficult circumstances, was delivered on time and on budget and was very well received by the clients in Bolivia and Washington.  It resulted in the successful negotiation of a major loan from the IADB to the Government of Bolivia;

Aruba: Due Diligence Assessment of Impacts Associated with Major Tourism and Mixed Use Development Project Assessment of lessons learned throughout the Caribbean, and similar destinations, and assessment of socio-economic impacts associated with a major mixed use development adjacent to a poor population centre in Aruba;

Belize:  A Strategy for Tourism Sector Involvement in Addressing HIV/AIDS Epidemic  A project designed to assess the situation regarding HIV/AIDS in Belize, which has the third highest infection rate in the Caribbean; objective was to determine how the tourism industry, as the country’s largest employer, can work effectively with other parties to address the myriad of complex issues that are contributing to the situation, with regard to, for example, educating their employees, educating visitors, providing assistance to school programming for sex education, etc.;

Yukon Territory, Canada:  Comprehensive Due Diligence Review of Major Tourism Project for Indian and Northern Affairs Canada:  Blackstone carried out a detailed study of a multi-million dollar tourism development in Yukon, including financial analysis, product evaluation, impact assessment, etc.;

Nunavut Territory, Canadian Arctic:  Stakeholder consultation process with indigenous Inuit populations throughout eastern Canadian Arctic related to new legislation for the tourism sector;

Ningbo and Shaoxing Cities, China: Tourism and Cultural Heritage Management Projects: Funded through CIDA INC. and supported by the World Bank and the two municipalities, this project involved the preservation of historically important areas and structures, and the development of tourism strategies that will link these two areas and strengthen their ability to attract responsible tourism development;

Parish of Portland, Jamaica – “Early Actions” for Tourism: Through support of CIDA’s Environmental Action Programme (ENACT), priorities for community-based tourism were identified with stakeholders, and funding solicited through various sources;

Alternative/Cultural Tourism Strategy for Nunavut, Canada: A project for Nunavut Tourism and the Territory’s Department of Sustainable Development to identify needs and interests, assess assets and resources, determine markets and generate consensus regarding a practical strategy to attract adventure and cultural tourism to the eastern arctic of Canada in a way that benefits the Inuit people;

Assessment of Tourism Issues and Priorities in St. Lucia: A mission with World Bank staff was undertaken to identify the key issues that need to be addressed to ensure a sustainable future for tourism;

Best Management Practices for Responsible Tourism for Trinidad and Tobago: Through Inter-American Development Bank funding, guidelines were produced following a consultation process. In addition, lessons learned from other destinations and an assessment of market potential were included;

National Development Plan for Belize: Blackstone was retained by the Inter-American Development Bank to carry out this major tourism development project for Belize over a one-year period. The highly acclaimed action plan had broad support, having been prepared through an iterative and extensive stakeholder development and consultation programme throughout the country. The “Blackstone Plan” has been formally adopted by the Government of Belize and is being implemented through a major loan through the IADB and via several other funding sources;

National Ecotourism Strategies for Brazil and Argentina: Blackstone was asked by the Inter-American Development Bank to prepare national-level strategic plans for these two large South America countries, to assist the governments in supporting and developing ecotourism development in a sustainable way;

Ecotourism and the Inter-American Development Bank: A Strategy Paper: Blackstone developed a strategy paper, or “think piece”, to assist the Bank in examining how it might develop its future programming with respect to ecotourism throughout Latin America and the Caribbean;

Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States Solid Waste Management Solutions for Six Caribbean Countries – Socio-Economic, Institutional and Tourism Components World Bank (1993)  The company was responsible for undertaking socio-economic aspects of this World Bank-funded assignment, including consideration of institutional, legislative, cultural, land use planning, environmental education and awareness-building requirements related to the upgrading of solid waste management facilities on six islands, as well as opportunities for private sector involvement.  The treatment of cruise ship and tourism waste generated by hotels were major aspects of this work.

Ecotourism Strategy for the Pantanal Region of Bolivia: Funded through CIDA, this project provided detailed ecotourism planning for a tourism region of the country, including detailed market segment analyses, tour operator interviews, resource planning, community consultations, etc.;

Ecotourism Strategy for Peru, World Bank: Blackstone was engaged by the Government of Peru, through the World Bank, to develop a comprehensive strategy for the development of the ecotourism industry in the country;

Green Tourism Strategy, City of Toronto: Retained to develop a strategy to capitalize on “green tourism” opportunities throughout the urban area, with a view to encouraging sound environmental practices and strengthened community economic development;

Tourism/Economic Development Linkages Study, The Bahamas: Retained by the Inter-American Development Bank to help strengthen the linkages between the tourism sector and other productive sectors of the economy;

Evaluation of CIDA-Sponsored Ecotourism Projects in Four Caribbean Countries: An analysis was undertaken of community-based efforts to establish their own tourism attractions, in order to learn what works and doesn’t work in animating community participation and obtaining real results;

Tourism and Socio-Economic Assessments, Lake Malawi National Park, Malawi: Carried out tourism and socio-economic analyses as part of a project to evaluate development potential in and around the park, which contains 5 enclave villages and has been designated as a World Heritage Site due to the area’s aquatic biodiversity;

Tourism and Transportation Linkages Study, Ontario Ministry of Transportation: Study to examine the linkages between all transport modes and establish the role of passenger transportation in promoting and supporting Ontario’s tourism sector;

Tourism Strategy Assistance – Olsztyn, Poland: This project, through the Canadian Urban Institute, entailed assistance to the city of Olsztyn to determine its tourism potential, and institutional, infrastructural and marketing requirements;

Tourism Opportunities Study, Siberia, Russia: A mission to Gorno-Altaisk and Krasnoyarsk in central Siberia, to identify ecotourism opportunities and design a programme for action for a private sector consortium;

Winter Tourism Strategy for Republic of Turkey: S. Davidson and B. Lamb directed this project for a large engineering firm. Working with a ski resort facility planner, we developed a Master Plan for winter tourism as well as detailed financial and market feasibility analyses and physical plans for a major resort and established a plan for winter tourism throughout the country at several other ski destinations;