Sustainable Tourism Development and Local Partnerships

PRESENTATION

	Speakers:
	Mike D. Woods Professor Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service		Deborah Sharp County Educator Wes Lee County Educator
	Amy Morris Cowley County Educator
	Jack Frye Community Development Specialist
	Description: Murray County, Oklahoma received a grant from the Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service to build a strategic plan for sustainable tourism and economic development. The grant provided a mechanism to bring people together with open discussion. Specific goals and an action plan were identified. Issues addressed included beautification, customer service training, promotional efforts, and organization. County-wide partnerships have led to several key successes. In this presentation we propose to provide an overview of the local organizational efforts, describe key leadership training materials and technical assistance tools developed and utilized, and to present an evaluation of the project including "lessons learned." To quote one participant, "you can't put a price on what this project has done for Murray County. How does one put value on building communities, developing working relationships, connecting to work together and building partnerships"!. The presentation will review efforts to develop a local tourism industry based on natural resources and small town charm. Knowledge gained can be utilized by other rural communities with similar circumstances.