Nipissing University's iLEAD program is proud to have the opportunity to send a team of 11 advanced business students and faculty members for the 5th consecutive year on a special international project to Jamaica. The The trip departs on Sunday, February 14 and returns on Sunday, February 21, 2016. This year, they will be offering consulting work to an Eco-tourism resort called Fern Forest Eco-Village. For more information on iLEAD program, please visit our website.

Friday, February 12, 2016

Pre Departure Post


The 11 students and 2 faculty members from Nipissing University are getting ready to jet off to Jamaica! To prepare for our journey to the FernForest Eco-Village located near Ocho Rios the students are packing their flip-flops and sunblock. Not only have we been busy packing but we have also been busy doing background research on the newly established Eco-Village. With a main focus on eco-tourism their goals are sustainability and preserving the natural environment.

To date we have split into two groups of 5 students each to work on two different areas of interest for the Fern Forest Eco-Village. One group is focusing on creating a wedding package for the Eco-Village in hopes of generating enough revenue to support the children's summer camps that the village hosts. The other group is working on a camping and educational program to provide to the children that attend the camps. We have done extensive background research on Jamaican culture, tourism, and what various competitors have to offer in terms of Eco-weddings/Eco-resorts. We have come up with a list of questions that will help us with our further research while we are at the Eco-Village. A few days ago we received new information from the owners about specific details of the Eco-Village. We will have to rethink some of our current plans, but it’s just a small bump in the road and part of the learning process. We are looking forward to applying the knowledge we have gained from the classroom into a real world setting. 

To learn more about where we will be spending our time over The Expedition visit the Fern Forest Eco-Village website.


Katie Benson

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