U.S. Secretary of Commerce John Bryson conducted a swearing-in ceremony
on January 19 and met with the 32 newly appointed members of the U.S.
Travel and Tourism Advisory Board (TTAB) including Carol Wallace,
President and CEO of the San Diego Convention Center Corporation and
IAVM Past Chairman. Bryson’s discussion with the Board followed
President Barack Obama’s announcement of a National Travel & Tourism
Strategy and corresponding Executive Order from the President. The
Board, first created in 2003 by then Commerce Secretary Donald Evans,
provides stakeholder feedback on the challenges being faced by the U.S.
travel and tourism industry, as well as ideas for what the federal
government can do to help strengthen this important sector.
“This
Board represents the eyes and ears of our nation’s travel and tourism
industry and I am committed to working with each of the esteemed members
to bring more visitors to the United States,” Bryson said. “I look
forward to putting ideas into action, and to helping bolster job
creation in this critical economic sector, which already supports more
than 7.5 million jobs throughout the country.”
“Ms. Wallace
is an expert in both domestic and international travel and tourism
related to the convention industry, and San Diego is fortunate to have
her at the helm of our extremely successful convention facility. She’s
been instrumental in attracting many of the industry’s most lucrative
conventions that have placed San Diego in the international spotlight
including Comic-Con International,” said Mayor Jerry Sanders. “She will
be an enormous asset to the board.”
“Under Ms. Wallace’s
leadership, the San Diego Convention Center has become one of the
region’s strongest economic engines, supporting thousands of jobs
countywide,” said Nikki Clay, Chair of the San Diego Convention Center
Corporation Board of Directors. “She is passionate about advancing the
interests of the convention industry in the U.S., and internationally,
she has been highly successful at forging global relationships and
seeking new opportunities to bring international business to San Diego.”
“I’m
honored to lend my expertise to help strengthen the international
travel and tourism market, a sector so vital to the national economy,”
said Wallace. “In San Diego, tourism is also the lifeblood of our local
economy and our region’s third leading industry. I’m excited about
working with my fellow board members to expand and create new
opportunities to grow the industry and to help position the U.S. as a
preeminent destination for international visitors.”
Travel
and tourism is a $1.2 trillion sector of the U.S. economy or nearly
three percent of Gross Domestic Product. Critical to the nation’s
overall economic health, the travel and tourism industry is one of the
top employers for more than half of the U.S. states and territories. The
U.S. travel and tourism industry is on pace for a record-setting year.
Through November 2011, international visitors spent an estimated $139.4
billion on U.S. travel and tourism-related goods and services year to
date, an increase of 13 percent compared to the same period in 2010. The
United States recorded a $38.4 billion trade surplus for travel and
tourism through November 2011.
Wallace, well-known
throughout the national and international convention and meeting
industry, has led the San Diego Convention Center Corporation since
1991. Since then, the 2.6 million-square foot facility has become one of
the top rated facilities in the world and one of San Diego’s strongest
assets, generating $1.6 billion in economic impact last year and
supporting 12,500 jobs region wide.
In Wallace’s 30-year
career, she has earned a reputation as a top industry executive working
for the Dallas Convention Center as well as the Colorado Convention
Center. In San Diego, she played a pivotal leadership role convincing
key constituents to expand the San Diego Convention Center, resulting in
an expansion opening in 2001. The expansion has exceeded all
expectations, and she is currently working with San Diego Mayor Jerry
Sanders and community stakeholders on efforts to expand once again.
Specific
to the international community, Wallace serves as the North American
representative on the board of directors for AIPC (International
Association of Congress Centres), the industry association for
professional convention and exhibition center managers world-wide, with
representation from more than 53 different countries. She is also on the
Professional Convention Management Association’s (PCMA) Education
Foundation board of trustees.
Wallace will serve a
two-year term on the Board. The previous Board delivered significant
policy recommendations regarding travel facilitation, travel promotion,
and data and research, some of which played a role in the Executive
Order announcement. For example, the previous Board made important
recommendations regarding visa facilitation, which have been
incorporated into the President’s strategy to bolster tourism.
Wallace
said her areas of focus will be the use of tourism as an economic
development tool; outreach and advocacy; and job creation and training
for the travel and tourism industry.