Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne, on Monday, April 28, will present the keynote luncheon address at the Great Smoky Mountains Sustainable Tourism Summit at the Knoxville Convention Center in Knoxville, Tenn. The Summit, designed to honor the 75th Anniversary of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, will be held April 28 – 29.
The Great Smoky Mountains Sustainable Tourism Summit has been primarily designed for the Great Smoky Mountains gateway communities, but the principles and best practices discussed will benefit any community wishing to incorporate sustainability in its tourism industry. Sustainable tourism is defined as sustaining the environment and historical and cultural heritage of a region, while simultaneously sustaining the economic growth of that region.
The Summit is a partnership effort of the states of Tennessee and North Carolina and the National Geographic Center for Sustainable Destinations, The University of Tennessee, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and the Tennessee Civil War National Heritage Area.
Secretary Kempthorne's Remarks
| Who: | Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne |
| What: | Remarks at Great Smoky Mountains Sustainable Tourism Summit |
| When: | Monday, April 28, 2008 1:00 p.m. |
| Where: | Knoxville Convention Center Knoxville, TN |
Press Conference
| Who: | Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander |
| What: | Press Conference to highlight the three National Park Centennial projects and programs that will soon get underway at Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The projects and programs, unveiled Thursday, are part of the National Park Centennial Challenge, an innovative program in which federal funding is used to match philanthropic contributions for the benefit of our national parks as we approach the 2016 centennial of the National Park Service. |
| When: | Monday, April 28, 2008 11:30 a.m.- noon |
| Where: | Knoxville Convention Center Room 300B Knoxville, TN |