Mission Statement
Motivated by its deep commitment to tourism's
capacity for fostering understanding and acceptance between
cultures, the American Tourism Society supports transformational
international destinations in attracting and serving travelers and
building economic value.
The Society's destination services include facilitating access to
and enhancement of relationship building between transformational
international destinations and travel companies, education,
destination marketing, and government relations.
History of the American Tourism Society
In 1986, the American Tourism Society (ATS), a not-for-profit
tourism association, was created by competing international tour
operators who were having difficulty dealing with the Soviet Union's
tourism organizations, such as Intourist, not only in that country
yet also in the eastern European satellite countries of the Soviet
Union. These competitors, led by Alex Harris of General Tours,
Francis H. Goranin of Vega Travel, E. Wallace Lawrence of Russian
Travel Bureau, and David Parry of Academic Travel Abroad, along with
Don Reynolds of Reynolds Associates as executive director, created
the American Soviet Tourism Society in order to band together so
that they might have a unified voice against the difficult practices
employed by these state-run tourism organizations. The new
association, armed with western-style education and a unification of
purpose among competitors, was successful in creating an environment
that allowed for more agreeable business relationships through the
provision of mutual educational opportunities.
Then, only three years later, the reunification of Europe occurred
and the association was re-purposed as the American Tourism Society.
Its primary focus became providing education and trade opportunities
to ATS "Council Regions" that eventually included The Baltics,
Russia and the Confederation of Independent States (CIS), central
and eastern Europe and, eventually, the Mediterranean/Red Sea.
ATS helped to foster growth in tourism within its Council Regions,
and also helped to foster the knowledge base of tourism
related-business professionals within these regions, through the
period of the 1990's and into the 21st Century. The popularity that
eastern Europe realized during this period, with a dramatic increase
in the number of international visitors, enhanced the opportunities
for the association to provide beneficial educational, networking
and business opportunities to its constituents.
New Strategic Developments
In 2005, a new group of tourism professionals was recruited to
become involved in the association, and through collaboration with
existing members, the association began to concentrate on change.
The board of directors established a strategic planning committee,
which became a reality early in 2006, whose mission was to build on
the success of the past, yet also concentrate on building the
association for the future. This group created a revised Mission
Statement and specific goals that were meant to develop
partnerships, enhance education programs, and develop new membership
through a redefinition of the organization. The strategic planning
committee recommended, and the board approved, several initiatives,
among them a key semantic reference to the destinations or Council
Regions that ATS works within, as being transformational
destinations, meaning that these less-visited regions most
appropriately fit the work with which the association is involved.
Today, with an increased membership, a rejuvenated mission, new
partnerships with organizations such as Vacation.com the National
Tourism Association, and Tourism Cares, and an educational mission
headlined by the ATS Tourism College, the association continues to
redefine its relevance. The partnerships with Vacation.com and the
National Tour Association were created to highlight ATS membership
benefits to the travel agent and NTA membership communities through
the implementation of exclusive ATS opportunities available to each
community.
The ATS affiliation with Tourism Cares as the exclusive
philanthropic foundation of ATS allows Tourism Cares to "become
international" through exposure at ATS conferences, including the
creation of a Tourism Cares clean-up project during all ATS autumn
conferences. This initiative will begin with the 2009 ATS conference
in Mecklenburg.
The ATS Tourism College also plays an important role during each ATS
conference, as ATS Tourism College lecturers conduct courses at a
local university attended by all ATS delegates, and local university
students are invited to join in all aspects of the ATS conference,
along with local tourism professionals. The education of local
students continues beyond the conference as some current
participants are invited to join ATS at the international location
of the future year's conference, so that we have a continuity of
educational programs and opportunities for learning related to
cultural awareness and local needs on an ongoing basis.
Why Potential New Members Should Become Involved
The new ATS is not only defined by an altruistic view of giving back
to the tourism communities within which we direct our efforts by
"becoming local" during our annual conventions to meet, educate, be
educated by, and work side-by-side with students and tourism
professionals within targeted international Council Regions, yet
also by conducting business. Regardless of which area of the tourism
industry we happen to work within…for the association is completely
inclusive with member categories ranging from travel media to travel
agents, tour operators to traditional tourism vendors such as
hotels, airlines, and car rental agencies…the leadership of ATS is
always mindful that the membership's underlying goals of
participation must include real business opportunities for each
member.
The Future of the American Tourism Society
The new ATS, through its newly-appointed strategic planning
committee, its executive committee of the board, as well as its
board of directors, will continue to consider innovative future
opportunities, including the expansion of its area of influence
beyond the traditional Council Regions and into definitive
transformational destinations around the globe. As it does so, the
original intent of its founders to celebrate cultural diversity, to
emphasize cultural awareness, educational and business
opportunities, all while its members continue to "be involved
locally", will continue be a primary focus. |
