PHILIPSBURG–After the recently added extra masterclass of Terry Jones on the future of tourism, visitors of St. Maarten Innovations, Initiatives and Industries Link-Up Event (SMILE) have received the final schedule in their SMILE-App.
The number of registrations has so far surpassed the 2018 edition. The event will kick-off on Friday at 7:00pm with a networking event at University of St. Martin (USM), while the masterclasses and workshops will take place Saturday between 9:00am and 7:00pm.
SMILE was developed in 2018 to create a platform for inspiration, new thinking and doing business after Hurricane Irma. SMILE will provide a platform for experienced as well as new companies and Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs).
Assistance for growing one’s business will be supported by presentations of special local entrepreneurs like Denicio Wyatte (Spaceless Gardens), Sega Songha (ShareXMobility) and Nalia Muriel (St. Maarten Nectar), who will share their experiences on how they built their businesses and what lies ahead. For companies doing business beyond borders either on- or off island, the Kingdom Ministry of Foreign Affairs will provide insights into the toolbox that is available for companies. Aruban innovation entrepreneur Bianca Peters will share how to
“Think Big, Start Small and Move Fast,” while using technical innovations as a tool.
Additional economic outlooks will be presented for companies to anticipate future developments. The St. Maarten Tourism Board (STB) will provide insight into its marketing strategies for the upcoming period. The National Recovery Project Bureau (NRPB) will provide outlooks on what projects can be expected. Bureau for Intellectual Property (BIP) and the Netherlands Patents Office will provide information on registering patents for start-ups.
Jones, Travelocity’s founder will share his experiences as start-up investor and entrepreneur and in addition presents his internationally renowned outlook on the future of Tourism.
For Human Resource professionals, the Emigration Expo 2020 Dutch Caribbean will be highlighted, trying to create matches between specialist vacancies on island and St. Maarten and Dutch Caribbean professionals in the Netherlands. Labour compliance workshops for temporary projects will be provided by Grant Thornton and preventive medical exams to keep the workplace healthy by Medwork.
The Ministry of Public Health, Social Development and Labour VSA will provide the latest insights on health and safety at work. The Red Cross will hold a workshop on disaster preparedness for organisations.
On the topic of marketing, local companies InspireFocus and Studio WOW will share recommendations how to optimise company presence on social media and via websites. ShowMeCaribbean (Curaçao/St. Maarten) and Caribious Solutions (Bonaire/St. Maarten) will present how to do online company reputation management. The main speaker will be YouTube’s Bas van Teylingen from Online Cookie Collective, who will provide a masterclass on social media influencing. He was central to a YouTube song gaining 1.2 million hits on YouTube supporting the Red Cross after Irma.
Sustainability workshops will entail “Seed Bomb” Preparation by the St. Maarten Green Initiatives federation, sustainable housing development by ORCO Bank and a presentation of the Statian StaBlu App. DYNAF (Curacao/St. Maarten) will provide insight on Island Innovations from the energy sector.
The St. Maarten Chamber of Commerce and Industry (COCI) will share information on how businesses in St. Maarten can be done by using sustainable innovation technologies.
NPower, an association of local NGOs launched during SMILE’s 2018 edition, will share insight into building communities through corporate social responsibility.
As many NGO’s will be present at SMILE, special guest speaker is Susan Alzner of US Company SHIFT 7. She specialises in creating networks amongst international communities by using Information Technology (IT). She cofounded the organisation together with the former Chief Technology Officer of former US President Barack Obama.
Visitors to the event will come from Anguilla, Aruba, Bonaire, Curaçao, both sides of St. Maarten/Saint Martin, the Netherlands, Mexico, Panama, Germany and the United States.
The event will start with the Design Awards of the Waste 2 Work programme, for which 17 St. Maarteners submitted designs. As its climax, SMILE will host the Micromentor Caribbean Innovation Contest. Some 15 prizes valued at US $37.000 will be granted to the best innovative St. Maarten ideas during an award ceremony to be held.
Tables for SMILE’s 2019 edition have been sold out. Walkaround tickets are still available at events@shta.com / 5420108.
Source: The Daily Herald https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/91941-smile-registration-exceeds-that-of-2018
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