The sixth Caribbean Media Exchange on Sustainable Tourism (CMEx) will soon be staged in Castries, St. Lucia, June 24 through 28 to look into contentious issues and in particular on how to push ahead sustainable tourism in the region. At the last meeting in Barbados in December, media practitioners, tourism planners, airline executives, hoteliers, non-governmental organizations and government officials pooled their efforts to keep the goals of sustainable tourism to the fore. Diverse issues placed on the table during the four day meet, such as sex tourism, the corporate responsibility of the cruise lines, the role of the indigenous media, all generated heated debate as participants addressed the major challenges and threats facing the industry.

LACIME, designed to become the premier exhibition in the meetings and incentive industry for Latin America and the Caribbean, aims to provide a great opportunity for the region to showcase their destinations and diversified products, including hotels, convention centers, meetings products and specialized services to international visitors. Scheduled to take place June 23 through 25 at Transamerica Expo Center, Sao Paulo, Brazil, LACIME will provide a forum for international exhibitors to meet buyers of incentive and meetings products and services from all over Latin America and the Caribbean.

Ecuador´s International Tourism Fair, scheduled from August 5 through 8 in the city of Guayaquil, is destined to gather some of the world´s premier travel companies, organizers say. News dispatches from that South American nation state that at least nine countries from around the globe -Austria, Colombia, Chile, Egypt, Spain, France, Peru, U.K. and Tunisia- have confirmed their attendance. Other nations are expected to sign up anytime soon.

Buenos Aires will be home to the Forum of Tourism Leaders scheduled from September 30 through October 1 under the auspices of the World Tourism Organization (WTO). The event, that will take place every two years, will this time around focus on the importance of the private sector for the development of the travel industry worldwide.

Organized by the Argentina Association of Tourism and Travel Agencies, and Mendoza´s Association of Tourism and Travel Agencies, the 30th Congress of Travel Agents will unfold on June 24 through 26 at the Governor Emilio Civit de Mendoza Conference and Exposition Center. Under a motto reading "Tourism: Generator of Wellbeing and Thruster of the National Economy," the event will be divided in working sessions dealing with red-hot issues that play a major role in the travel industry. Some of those topics will broach air transport, legal and technical matters, national service providers, receptive tourism, training, ground transportation, travel retailers and wholesalers, among other issues.

New experiences with eight brands of Cuban rum and a visit to the Santa Cruz factory where Havana Club is made were two highlights of the First International Rum Festival concluding Wednesday in Havana. The festival has been a forum for debate among producers, salespeople and connoisseurs, who examined distinct products as well as attending a trade fair and diverse demonstrations and tastings.