SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – Three journalists – from the Cayman Islands, St. Maarten and Puerto Rico – were recognized for their outstanding contributions to sustainable tourism development in the Caribbean.
Counterpart International’s Journalism Excellence Awards went to Cliodhna Doherty of Cayman Free Press, Judy Fitzpatrick with the Daily Herald in St. Maarten and Susan Soltero with Univision Puerto Rico at the Caribbean Media Exchange on Sustainable Tourism (CMEx)’s Awards Dinner at the Holiday Inn San Juan in Isla Verde, Puerto Rico, May 15 to 19, 2008.
“These three journalists are the headliners of the deep pool of reportorial talent serving the people of the Caribbean,” said Lelei LeLaulu, president of Counterpart International. “Their skill in covering sustainable development issues has benefited the people and environment of the region.”
Journalist Judy Fitzpatrick of The Daily Herald in St. Maarten (right) is congratulated by Dr. Basil Springer of Counterpart Caribbean and Lisa Coffi of the St. Maarten Tourist Bureau.
LeLaulu also showered praise on the host nation and its visionary tourism leader Terestella González Denton for superbly executing another CMEx event for the third consecutive year in Puerto Rico. “Tourism intersects all of the Caribbean’s development sectors, and Terestella fully understands that an integrated approach to sustainable tourism development and management is imperative,” said LeLaulu.
“Sustainable tourism has to be an integral part of overall Caribbean sustainable development, and other Caribbean countries could profit from Puerto Rico’s successes in integrating communities and preserving the environment, while aggressively promoting tourism and investment opportunities,” he added.
Angel La Fontaine (left) receives a CMEx Special Appreciation award on behalf of Terestella González Denton, Executive Director of the Puerto Rico Tourism Company who was overseas during the Awards Dinner. At right is the Puerto Rico Tourism Company’s Ivan Cardona.
The 12th full edition of the Caribbean Media Exchange – launched by Counterpart International in 2001 – attracted more than 100 reporters, editors, young people and development specialists who interacted face-to-face with representatives of the hospitality sector, civil society and government and explored the theme “Embracing the Diaspora: Connecting Communities.”
Winners of the highly anticipated talent competition were broadcaster Bobby Vieira of One Caribbean Radio in New York who stole the show with a special rendition of Barry Manilow’s “I Write the Songs.” Also in winners’ row were Nicaraguan journalist and dancer Adelayde Rivas, and poet Theo Chambers of Positive Tourism News in Jamaica. They won respective hotel stays at Puerto Rico’s La Concha – A Renaissance Property, Almond Casuarina Beach Resort in Barbados and Coco Palm in St. Lucia.
ABOUT THE WINNERS
Cliodhna Doherty
Cliodhna Doherty is a photo-journalist with Cayman Free Press in the Cayman Islands. She covers tourism issues for the company’s daily newspaper The Caymanian Compass and also contributes to many of Cayman Free Press’ other publications, such as Key to Cayman, a tourist magazine; Inside Out, an interior décor magazine; The Journal, a broadsheet business newspaper; What’s Hot, a local feature magazine; and various other newspaper supplements. Before moving to the Cayman Islands, she worked in the print news industry in Ireland.
Judy H. Fitzpatrick
Guyana-born journalist Judy H. Fitzpatrick began her career in Guyana as a television news reporter and programme producer before switching to print media and working with the Stabroek News. She now resides and works in St. Maarten as a reporter with The Daily Herald, which in addition to St. Maarten is also distributed in Anguilla, Nevis, Saba, St. Eustatius, St. Kitts and St. Martin. Fitzpatrick also writes for several local and regional publications and is a multiple winner of journalism awards from the United Nations Population Fund in 2006 and 2007, the Pan American Health Organisation, United Nations Children’s Fund and the Kaiser Family Foundation in 2007.
Susan Soltero
Susan Soltero is a National Weather Association certified meteorologist and Emmy Award winning environmental reporter for Univision Puerto Rico. She has been working in television for 25 years and has received numerous awards, including Best Reporter by the Premios Ixa and Lion’s Clubs of Puerto Rico. She was also chosen Woman of the Year by the Puerto Rican House of Representatives, chosen Most Outstanding Graduate from the University of Puerto Rico in 2003 and honored for her environmental reporting by the Environmental Protection Agency in 2006 and by the Puerto Rican Senate in 2004. She is a member of the Puerto Rican House of Representatives’ 12 member Caucus on Climate Change, and is currently involved in a program to train teachers about environmental issues. She also is an author of two books and is working on her third.
