General Sessions
Keynote Presentations Sponsor Industry Perspectives
Gain expertise and insight on macro-level issues in corporate travel and how they affect your day-to-day operations. Keynote and Sponsor Industry Perspective presentations given by well-known, respected leaders in travel and business will challenge your thinking and provide you with innovative intelligence.
Sunday, 5 October, 16.00 - 17.30
Compliments of:
The War in Iraq: Its Impact on the Global Arena
Click here to read recent and archived articles written by John Burns for The New York Times.
As bureau chief for The New York Times in Iraq, John F. Burns was based in Baghdad from the fall of 2002 until the summer of 2007. From a heavily-fortified compound beside the Tigris river, he oversaw the newspaper's coverage of the last nine months of Saddam Hussein's tyranny, the American capture of Baghdad, and the turbulent years that have followed. His first-hand experience of events that have plunged Iraq toward sectarian civil war and driven a deep divide in American public life has been matched by few other western reporters. Drawing on more than 35 years as a foreign correspondent covering wars in Africa, Asia, Europe and the Middle East, Mr. Burns will offer a personal assessment of America's enterprise in Iraq - what went right, what went wrong, and what the outcome may mean for Iraq, America and the world. Central to his conclusions is the view he has expressed often in his television appearances from Baghdad: that America must emerge from Iraq, whatever the pains endured in the end-game there, resolved not to retreat into an era of self-doubt and recrimination, but to re-affirm its role as a the principal beacon of liberty in the world. Read Full Biography
Monday, 6 October, 9.00 - 10.00
Compliments of:
Global Economic Outlook
While the global economy will struggle in the near-term, the long-term trends remain very favorable for business travel. In the near-term high oil prices and the credit crunch are pushing down growth in North America and Europe, while easy credit and the commodities boom are pushing up growth rates in the emerging world. In the longer-run, globalization and technology will drive growth in all regions.
Business travel will decline slightly in step with global economic activity in the next couple of years, but longer-term prospects are quite good. First, increasing foreign trade drives new business travel. Secondly, business travel is a key input to the service sector. Service industries are rapidly expanding in both developed and developing economies. This, too, will drive expansion of business travel. Business travel costs will moderate in the near-term as oil prices stabilize and new hotel capacity comes on-line. Read Full Biography
Monday, 6 October, 16.45 - 18.00
Compliments of:
National Geographic Reports: The Challenge of Climate Change
As
host of National Geographic’s television series Explorer from 1994
through early 2003, Boyd Matson’s job has been to travel to exotic
locations, join thrilling expeditions, and participate in high
adrenaline adventures. Partly to suit the show and partly to suit his
personality, Matson has been an active host. During his eight-year
stint as series host, Matson brought the journalistic skills of a
seasoned reporter and the strength and conditioning of an athlete to
the show.
Matson’s background as a television journalist includes stints as co-anchor of ABC’s World News Now and NBC’s Sunday Today, and host of CNBC’s The Real Story. Matson is currently the host of Wild Chronicles, a new half-hour magazine style PBS TV series that was created through an innovative partnership between National Geographic, the World Wildlife Fund, Lindblad Expeditions and New York’s WLIW PBS station. As the show’s host, Boyd checks in with leading scientists, adventurers, and conservationists working around the world on issues that affect us all.
He is also currently the host of the nationwide radio program NG Weekend and writes a monthly column for NG Traveler magazine.
Re-thinking Globalisation: Beyond Economics and Profit
Compliments of:
Globalisation is the mega-topic of current times, even though one could argue that its first signs can be traced back to the year 1492.
200 years ago the philosopher Kant wrote: Since the narrower or wider community of the peoples of the earth has developed so far that a violation of rights in one place is felt throughout the world, the idea of a cosmopolitan right is not fantastical, high-flown or exaggerated notion.
A fair globalisation process characterizes itself by including the chances and possibilities of everybody/ all mankind. The Bertelsmann Foundation wants to become the facilitator of a globalised world that will enable us to take a hold in self-determining the future of society and ourselves.
Tuesday, 7 October, 9.00 - 10.00
Compliments of:
A Common Thread: Weaving New Immigrant Populations into Europe’s Social Fabric
Click here to read recent and archived stories by Sylvia Poggioli for National Public Radio.
According to Sylvia Poggioli, Senior European Correspondent for National Public Radio, Europe’s social systems are being strained as a result of an unprecedented influx of immigrant populations from North Africa who cross the borders of France, Germany, Britain, Italy, The Netherlands, Belgium, Scandinavia and Spain. The biggest challenge for these European governments is how to support these groups which are not easily integrated into the fabric of European society.
In her keynote address for the ACTE Global Education Conference in Rome, Poggioli will discuss how, in a climate of mounting fear and mistrust, language taboos are being broken, politically correct discourse is being challenged, and even European leftists are beginning to debate the limits of tolerance. Read Full Biography
Industry Perspectives
Lesley Harris
President
Travelocity Business
On Behalf Of:
Henri Hourcade
VP Corporate Distribution
AF/KLM group
On Behalf Of:
Bill Brindle
Business Technology and Distribution Director
HRG
On Behalf Of:
White Papers
Corporate Travel Payment Solutions – Local Challenges for Global Implementation
On Behalf Of:
The Future of Lodged Cards
On Behalf Of:
Conference Moderator
Michael Jackson has carved out his reputation as one of the best business-to-business speakers on the global professional circuit by creating and delivering powerful images and memorable messages at over 300 conferences and seminars to date across Europe, Africa, Asia, the USA and the Middle East; to audiences ranging from factory workers to Heads of State.
Once acclaimed by former South African President Nelson Mandela as “a national treasure”, Michael has an uncanny ability to connect with his audiences and is often referred to as a passionate champion of the cause.
Michael returns to ACTE as moderator for the Rome Global Conference general sessions following rave reviews for his performances at previous Washington, D.C., London and Barcelona events.
