UNWTO and China have opened a third Sustainable Tourism Observatory to monitor the environmental and socio-economic impacts of tourism. The Zhangjiajie Observatory, located in Hunan Province, is part of a network of observatories assisting policy makers to ensure sustainable tourism growth. It will gather and report data on the environmental, social and economic impacts of tourism in the area based on UNWTO sustainable tourism indictors.

TCEB initiates collaboration through exhibition platform aiming to create long-term mutual economic benefits between Thailand and Indonesia

The Thailand Convention & Exhibition Bureau (TCEB) organised a business forum entitled “Maximise Your Business Opportunity in ASEAN through Thailand’s Champion Trade Shows” aiming to attract Indonesian visitors at its five ‘champion’ trade shows being supported by the bureau. It aims to enhance awareness of business opportunities in Thailand and open the door to the ASEAN market through the country’s exhibition platform.

Diederik Pen (43) is appointed managing director of Martinair effective today. After completing a degree in Economics, Diederik Pen began his career in the air transport  industry at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. He subsequently held management posts at Brisbane Airport and at Virgin Blue in Australia. In 2006, Diederik Pen joined Martinair Holland. As director of operations, he was part of the Martinair Management Team and the Board of Managing Directors.

airberlin’s Board has appointed the President and CEO of the Dutch airline Martinair, Paul Gregorowitsch, 55, as a new member of the Executive Board. From September 2011 Gregorowitsch will be taking over as Chief Commercial Officer (CCO), responsible for network and sales. This makes him the fourth member of airberlin’s Executive Board, alongside Joachim Hunold (CEO), Ulf Hüttmeyer (CFO) and Christoph Debus (COO).

by Reinhard Hohler, Chiang Mai

Bhutan is more than a sensation. With a population of just less than 700,000 people, the Himalayan Kingdom east of Nepal and Sikkim is some 38,394 square kilometers large and dominated by steep and high mountains in the north of the country south of Tibet, while a network of swift rivers form deep valleys in the central part and drain into the Indian plains of West Bengal and Assam in the south.

According to the breaking news on www.bangkokpost.com, ASEAN’s Foreign Ministers are meeting in Bali, Indonesia to take stock of progress in the grouping’s key community-building and economic integration targets. The 10-member grouping has a vision to create an ASEAN Community comprising the pillars of political security, economy, and socio-cultural values by 2015.