SQU Summer Training 2013

SQU Summer Training 2013
// SQU students during their visit in the city of Bad Lippspringe //

For the fifth consecutive year, undergraduate students from the Department of Tourism of the College of Arts & Social Sciences at Sultan Qaboos University, completed their summer training in Germany, with the support of INTEWO | World Habitat Society GmbH. In this summer, four male and two female students majoring in Hospitality Management, participated in the six weeks summer training with INTEWO in the Teutoburger Forest Nature Park, Germany. Results of the training will be published in a booklet later this autumn.

Think tank to develop sustainable concepts in Oman

Think tank to develop sustainable concepts in Oman

// Khalid Al Toubi, INTEWO, and Michele De Lucchi during the visit in Muscat //

To respond to Oman’s growing need to develop projects that can enhance the awareness of its natural environment and cultural heritage a consortium of Omani, German and Italian consultants have been instituted that can provide services for the conception, design and execution of projects for museums, information and edutainment centres that will further increase Oman’s identity and attractiveness in the Middle East.

The consortium is represented by the Omani company INTEWO and is already engaged in advising and conceiving innovative ideas that embrace tourism, education, sustainable architecture and new media technologies. All projects are aimed at creating benefits for both national and local economies that in turn will support social and educational improvement within the countries regions.

Each partner in the consortium brings specific knowledge and international experiences that when combined bring to Oman the most contemporary thinking and creativity in helping realize the ambitious plans of the tourism sector.

During a recent meeting in Muscat the management and key executives of the affiliated firms visited main attractions and the architectural masterpieces in Oman. A workshop and discussions on the diverse cultural and natural heritage in the context of sustainable development, tourism and education trends and services complemented the expert’s visit.

INTEWO, headquartered in Germany with agencies in Oman and Ethiopia, is specialised in the planning, coordination and implementation of sustainable tourism projects and environmental conservation.

RLS JAKOBSMEYER is a leading promotional and media development organization based in Germany that can provide all the production and marketing requirements to provide print, photography and film services.

STUDIO DR ULRICH HERMANNS is one of Germany’s leading specialists that develops comprehensive research, concepts and planning for the execution of museum display and interior design.

STUDIO DE LUCCHI is an internationally recognised architect and designer based in Milan that has created numerous projects that focus on the cultural identity and physical expression of its private clients and public institutions.

Corvey Castle ties with Oman

Corvey Castle ties with Oman

Tourism students from Sultan Qaboos University (SQU) visited the Corvey Abbey and Castle in the Höxter District, Germany.

In the context of their summer training in Germany, students from the Tourism Department at SQU, Oman, visited the Corvey Abbey and Castle in Höxter. The Castle of Corvey, lying on the River Weser, was founded in the 9th century as a Benedictine monastery. Currently a regional initiative is working towards listing Corvey as a Cultural World Heritage Site with UNESCO.

To follow up with the field visit to the castle, the SQU students, which undergo a six weeks tourism and sustainable development training in the Nature Park Teutoburger Wald / Eggegebirge, has to work out a proposal for the potential twinning of the Corvey Castle with the Bahla Fort, a World Heritage Site in Oman.

Twinning of World Heritage Sites in Germany and Oman is one of the activities of a formal cooperation between governmental and non-governmental organizations in Germany and Oman. The cooperation is entitled “Tourism and education for sustainable development” and was officially inaugurated in 2010, in the UN Year for the Rapprochement of Cultures.