Ron Mader is a professional speaker,
communication coach and brave journalist, featured in the 2000 and
2008 editions of American
Environmental Leaders.
Ron's work catalyzes meaningful conversation and action about environmental
conservation, tourism, responsible travel and peacemaking.
His professional focus on ecotourism and responsible travel go back
to academic research conducted in Central America in the late 1980s.
In 1994 Ron launched Planeta.com,
the web's first site dedicated to ecotourism and responsible travel.
Ron is also the ecotourism and responsible travel contributing
editor for Transitions
Abroad.
Working in Oaxaca, Mexico, Ron has collaborated in the development
of the Oaxaca
Options Dialogue and grassroots tourism events since 2001. Ron
is one of the founders of the Zinacantli Rugby Club and an honorary
member of the Jabalies Rugby Club.
Ron has facilitated numerous seminars online and in the natural
world and has won many awards,
including recognition from the Mexican government for exemplary
coverage of Mexico. Presidents Fox and Zedillo presented Ron with
the Lente de Plata Award in 1999
and 2002.
In 2010 he won the Innovation
Award from the International Ecotourism Society.
ONLINE CONFERENCING
In the past few years Planeta.com has developed online events,
including the Financing
Sustainable Tourism, NGOs
in Tourism and Conservation, Ethical
Marketing of Ecotourism, Environmental
Impact of Transportation, Urban
Ecotourism Conference and the Ecotourism
Emerging Industry Forum.
2002 was the International
Year of Ecotourism, an event which sparked a lot of interest
among ecotourism nerds around the globe. The United Nations and
World Tourism Organization asked Ron to host the Sustainable
Development of Ecotourism Web Conference which was the most
attended preparatory event for the World Ecotourism Summit.
Among his most popular seminars are those focusing on Strategies
for using Web 2.0.
ACADEMIC WORK
Ron has a bachelor's degree in communication (1987) from Indiana
University where he resided at the Collins
Living Learning Center. Ron received a master's degree (1990)
from the Institute of
Latin American Studies at the University of Texas at Austin.
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