Wednesday, May 16^th, 2012

8:00am – 9:00am

Great Marten Room & Big Eagle Room (these rooms adjoin one another, and represent the main conference area)

Registration, continental breakfast

All meals served at the conference are complimentary; included in the conference registration fee.

9:00am – 9:45am

Opening Ceremony: Veterans flag ceremony, prayer, and welcoming remarks.

Opening prayer by: Fred Ackley, Sokaogon Chippewa

Welcoming remarks by: Richard D. Ackley, Jr., Sokaogon Chippewa

Featuring:

Benedicte Riis, Danish author/adventurer

9:45am – 10:30am

Keynote Address: “Building a Sustainable Tourism Economy in Northern Wisconsin's Wolf River Area.”

Keynote topics:

• Defining a sustainable tourism economy
• A summary of several types of projects that a sustainable tourism economy may benefit from; projects such as site planning, ecological planning, and adaptive reuse and historic restoration.

Keynote address by:

• Susan Thering, PhD, Executive Director, Design Coalition
• Wayne Gannaway, Byways Specialist, America's Byways Resource Center

10:30am – 11:00am

Break; networking and visiting vendors

11:00am – 12:30pm

Panel Discussion: “Building a Sustainable Tourism Economy in Northern Wisconsin's Wolf River Area.”

The panel discussion is intended to elaborate on the theme of the keynote address, in terms of strategies and best practices toward building a sustainable tourism economy in the Wolf River area.

Panelists:

• Susan Thering, PhD, Executive Director, Design Coalition
• Wayne Gannaway, Byways Specialist, America's Byways Resource Center
• MeLissa Ward, President, Outdoor First Inc.
• Paul Ackley (Sokaogon Chippewa), Ojibwe graphic designer

12:30pm – 1:30pm

Lunch; networking and visiting vendors

1:30pm – 3:00pm

Gathering Room and Council Room (down the hall near the hotel lobby)

Business Breakout Sessions - Image and Branding the Wolf River Area Experience:

Business breakout sessions (classified by industry sector):

1. Recreation (off-road/water/winter sports, hunting...)
2. Arts and Culture (arts, history, Native culture...)
3. Accommodations (bed and breakfast, cottages, camping, condos, hotels...)
4. Food and Drink (clubs, taverns, orchards, markets...)
5. Retail (general merchandise stores, specialty shops...)
6. Entertainment (gaming, fairs, festivals...)

• Participants choose whatever session interests them, while trying to have at least 5-7 people for each session.
• Each session meets for about an hour, then all the sessions meet together for about a half hour to share what they each have respectively observed regarding imaging and branding the Wolf River area experience.
• More details provided at the conference.

3:00pm – 5:00pm

Trade show:

Vendors can include business, government, nonprofits, and woodland Indian artists.

This provides extended time to visit vendors participating in the conference.

5:00pm – 5:30pm

Dinner on your own

5:30pm – 8:00pm

Great Marten and Big Eagle conference rooms

Honoring Veterans Folk Concert: Listen to the "organically grown acoustic music" of the Tomahawk-based bluegrass band HAND-PICKED BLUEGRASS; and see editorial cartoonist Paul Ackley working his craft off-stage beforehand.  For more info, click here.

FREE concert admission for tourism conference registrants (show conference registration receipt or official conference nametag at the door).

Net proceeds from the concert help to support programs offered to veterans and artist-veterans by the Mole Lake Veterans Office.

8:15pm – 8:45pm

Outside the main outdoor entrance to the conference

Celestial Photography Outing (weather permitting): Bring your cameras and learn a variety of night sky photography tips from a skilled guide.

Thursday, May 17^th, 2012

8:00am – 9:00am

Great Marten and Big Eagle conference rooms

Continental breakfast

9:00am – 10:00am

Seminar: “International Tourism: The Danish Connection.”

Facilitator:

Benedicte Riis, Danish author/adventurer

10:00am – 10:30am

Break; networking and visiting vendors

10:30am – 12:00pm

Field Trip: Tour of the historic Dinesen House log cabin, in Mole Lake.

More details to be provided at the conference.  A related Discover Wisconsin video ("Wisconsin's Tribal Lands: Learn and Enjoy") is available online.  

Facilitator:

Richard D. Ackley, Jr., Sokaogon Chippewa

Note: There are many other scenic, cultural, and historic attributes of the Wolf River area in Forest, Langlade, and Menominee Counties; including among the Indian tribes indigenous to the area.  Refer to the Links to Visitor Information on the left for more information.

12:00pm – 1:00pm

Lunch

Conclusion: Closing remarks, visions for the future.