Cuban News Agency

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Martin, President of the organizing committee of the 2nd International
Tourism Research Meeting which began on Monday at Havana´s Convention
Center, expressed his desire to fight in favor of just ideas during his
speech before the plenary, according to Prensa Latina News Agency.

He presented his ideas from a series of current and official data and on
the future that awaits the sector.

The president of the organizing committee said that recent reports reveal
that the world has 7 billion people and by 2050 the numbers will reach 9
billion, where one of every five people (1.4 million) live with 1.25 USD a
day or less.

He insisted that 1.5 million people lack electricity, 2.5 do not have a
regular bathroom and almost 1 million are hungry every day.

Martin stressed that in 20 years, 60 percent of humanity will live in
cities; he indicated that 828 million people live in slums and the cities
in the world occupy 2 percent of the earth`s territories.

He stated that urbanization represents 60 to 80 percent of the energy
consumption and 75 percent of the carbon emissions into the air with an
impact on the water supply and residues, life and public health.

He recalled that large banks created the financial crisis and are the only
ones that are saved from the debacle.

The oil prices will create an accelerated tendency until its disappearance
in some 80 to 100 years and the gas emissions that create global warming
increases while a third of the known species will extinguish.

The protectionist tariffs will affect the clients to the detriment of the
transnational sector.

Martin explained that although tourism is considered a peaceful industry,
the current panorama has a lot to desire with greed, the sector´s
replacement to terrorism for anti terrorist wars and manipulation of the
media outlets with political and destabilizing means.

Martin, President of the organizing committee of the 2nd International
Tourism Research Meeting pointed out that a way to promote reflections on
all these issues and the future that awaits tourism as an industry in a
contradictory world could be the creation of a socially responsible
website on the sector.

The academic stressed that before becoming a tourism employee, directive
or business executive in the tourism industry one must publically meditate
on the role that each one can carry out for a better world, concluded Martin.