Strong Coasts Links Science and Sustainable Tourism at SOTIC 2026

From Belize’s coral reefs and mangroves to Guyana’s vast rainforests and giant Amazon water lilies, an international environmental research initiative is highlighting how community knowledge, scientific discovery and storytelling can strengthen sustainable tourism across the Caribbean.

The Strong Coasts project participated in the Caribbean Tourism Organization’s State of the Tourism Industry Conference (SOTIC 2026), held in Guyana from October 5 to 9, bringing researchers and tourism practitioners together to explore connections between environmental conservation, cultural heritage and economic opportunities for local communities.

A central feature of the initiative was a presentation on October 6 by Dr. Maya Trotz, Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of South Florida (USF), and Mariko Wallen, Secretary of the Placencia Tour Guide Association (PTGA). They presented Caye in a Day: Community-Designed Monitoring of Belize’s Cayes at the conference’s inaugural Research Forum.