WORLD FOOTPRINTS

Today World Footprints will go on some remarkable adventures and we’ll review the history of friendship between the United States and Japan.

Mary Anne Potts started on the editorial staff of National Geographic Adventure magazine in 2001 and has moved up the ranks from there.  She has run the magazine’s website and launched its social media presence to run Adventure as a standalone digital brand for National Geographic.

Richard Wiese has been called the modern day Indiana Jones.  He is a world-class explorer and host of ABC’s  Born to Explore.  As an explorer and field scientist Richard has traveled to all seven continents.  From tagging jaguars in the Yucatan jungles to discovering new life forms on Mt. Kilimanjaro, Richard became the youngest President of The Explorers Club.

Each year, the National Cherry Blossom Festival celebrates spring in Washington, DC, with the gift of the cherry blossom trees, and the enduring friendship between the people of the United States and Japan.  This year marks the the 101 anniversary of the gift of cherry trees from Tokyo, Japan.

On today’s show World Footprints will showcase some remarkable young women who are doing extraordinary things.

World Footprints was invited to attend the Girl Up Leadership Summit in Washington, DC.  Girl Up is an innovative campaign of the United Nations Foundation that gives American girls the opportunity to become global leaders and channel their energy and compassion to raise awareness and funds for United Nations programs that help some of the world’s hardest-to-reach adolescent girls.

We are pleased to share highlights from this first Girl Up Leadership Summit which included remarks from actress Monique Coleman from High School Musical; Sarah Hurwitz, Speechwriter for President Obama; and moments between Girl Up teen advisors and young girls from the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls in South Africa.

Also, we are delighted to introduce a dynamic teenager who is making waves on the air with her weekly radio show—Pavlina’s Kids Place.  Pavlina Osta shares interviews with celebrities, politicians and newsmakers.  In addition to her radio show, Pavlina is an honor-roll student and an accomplished steel drum musician. Truly a wonderful role model.

World Footprints is joined by New York Times Bestselling Author of The Secret Life of Bees, Sue Monk Kidd, and her daughter Ann Kidd Taylor. The mother/daughter pair talk about their new book, Traveling with Pomegranates, that chronicles their journey of self-discovery that they embarked on together when the idea of Bees was just an idea in Sue’s head and when both she and Ann were at a cross road in their lives. Then author and women’s travel expert Marybeth Bond, the “Gutsy Traveler”, joins us to talk about great girlfriend getaways.

Today, World Footprints broadcasts Part 2 of the 3-part interview with Emmy Award winning actor Eric Braeden, who plays Victor Newman on The Young & the Restless (CBS Daytime).   Eric talks about his favorite travel destinations and his efforts to foster peace and understanding between Germans and the Jewish community.  Then, enjoy a feast with Spain’s celebrated chef Maria Jose San Roman as she shares the secret ingredient that appears in all of her dishes (and cocktails).  Finally, in celebration of World Animal Day this month we will be joined by Paul Butler, SVP of Global Programs at RARE Conservation, who will discuss RARE’s animal conservation efforts and the world-wide Pride Campaign.

World Footprints returns to New Orleans for our signature broadcast from Jackson Square during  French Quarter Festival! During this hour we’ll continue sharing “must see” and “must do” attractions.  This hour you’ll meet John Hankins from the New Orleans African American Museum.and you’ll meet Errol LaBorde, editor of New Orleans Magazine. 

Two dear friends from the New Orleans Convention and Visitors Bureau will join us—Communications Director Kelly Schulz and President Stephen Perry aka "Mr. New Orleans".  In addition to being the President/CEO of the New Orleans CVB, Stephen is also  an Obama appointee to the U.S. Travel & Tourism Advisory Board. 

Then our most special guests—our moms Nancy Peterson (Tonya’s mom) and Minnie Johnson (Ian’s mom) will join us to discuss why they love traveling to New Orleans with us year after year.  Our moms have been adopted by the New Orleans family and they’re collectively referred to as “The Moms”.  Their presence is sought every year and they have come to adopt New Orleans as their second home.  Also, our friend and remote engineer Ed Cole is another staple figure in our broadcasts and Ed will share his thoughts and feelings on New Orleans.

World Footprints will present two powerful stories of survival from unlikely human trafficking victims and how they’re using their ordeals to support other victims and raise awareness about this elusive crime.  We will also share the story of a former Peace Corp volunteer whose experience inspired the development of a new community-based adventure travel resource.

Holly Smith is not what many think a human trafficking survivor would look like.  She’s a blond American and was raised in a middle-class two parent home.  But when Holly was only 14 years old she was taken from her home planted immediately into the sex trade.  Hear how she survived her ordeal and uses her experience to raise awareness today.

Stacy Jewel Lewis was a 19 year old student and aspiring actress when she was abducted by an elderly man who was working on behalf of traffickers.  Only after Stacy’s trafficker was arrested two years later was she able to leave the sex trade and begin rebuilding her life.  Today Stacy has returned to acting and playwriting where she uses theatrical performances to share her story and raise awareness about human trafficking.

Jack Fischl is a former Peace Corp volunteer who helped create a tourism initiative for a small village in Panama.  Upon returning from his assignment, Jack was inspired to continue the work he started so he built a powerful online resource, Keteka.com, that connects the dots between socially conscious travelers and Peace Corp communities.

Can 4 friends travel through 5 countries on two continents to get 10 major music artists to appear on a tribute album to 1 unknown songwriter?  That is the question we'll  have answered with today’s Book Club reading, A Far Cry From Sunset. The unknown songwriter is our book’s author, Billy Franks.

The first chapter has Billy admitting that he is a man whose dreams didn’t come true. The latter chapters describe a verbal altercation with singer Bryan Adams and everything in between offers a cross between science fiction, suspense and comedy relief.  Did Billy and his friends achieve their goal or realize new unexpected dreams?  Tune in to hear the answer to this question and others:

When did Billy's lifelong friendship with Prince Harry begin?  Did Billy's dreams come true? What was the biggest lesson he learned on the road?

Click HERE to purchase "A Far Cry From Sunset<

World Footprints will journey inside the life of musician/actor Frank Stallone, we’ll also preview a film festival just for travelers and we’ll talk to the founder of the G.I. Film Festival.

Frank Stallone knew he wanted to be a singer at an early age. Although he has joined his brother Sylvester on the big screen, music has been the driving force in Frank’s life and has earned him several Grammy and Academy Award nominations. Frank’s unique music style has paved the way for artists like Harry Connick, Jr., Rod Stewart and Michael Buble.

New York played host to a new film festival that’s been created just for travelers. The Nomading Film Festival entertained, educated and brought to life authentic travel experiences. Co-founder Josh Wolff will take us a cinematic journey that is shared from the travelers’ perspective.

The G.I. Film Festival is the nation’s most significant venue for screening military films. Laura Law Millett channeled her military service, entrepreneurial spirit and entertainment experience to co-create the G.I. Film Festival so that filmmakers could share the story of our troops, their successes and their sacrifices.

Join World Footprints as we take you on a journey through a national treasure—the State of Montana.  We covered just a small section of this wonderful state—Glacier Country--but as you’ll discover from Part I of this series, there’s a reason why many celebrities (Ted Turner, David Letterman, among others) call Montana a “home away from home.”   Our first stop through Glacier country begins in the town of Whitefish, an enchanting art and cultural center, and you’ll meet the proprietors of the Good Medicine Lodge. (One of the most extraordinary places we have ever stayed.)

Whitefish is also the gateway to our second stop—Glacier National Park.  We will take you deep inside Glacier National Park to share some of its charm with the help of Mike Davies of Glacier Guides.

Then we’ll travel by rail on the Amtrak Empire Builder to Havre, Montana, where we’ll experience the Havre Underground, a town beneath the town.  Finally, we’ll end the first part of this journey with a stop that takes us on safari (yes, a safari) on the Great Plains with Jacob Dusek of Sage Safaris.

World Footprints returns to St. Vincent and travels through the village of Layou on St. Vincent’s Leeward Coast.  Layou, which sits against a stunning backdrop of rockscapes and ridges, is filled with historic homes and churches, a small beach and crescent shaped bay.  On the ridge above the village you’ll find the Layou Petroglyph Park; the spot where we begin today’s broadcast with our guide Marlon Joseph.

From Layou we travel to Argyle, where, in the near future St. Vincent will welcome the thousands of visitors in its newly built international airport.  The quarter-of-a-billion dollar Argyle International Airport is the large development project in St. Vincent’s history.  Jennifer Richardson of the Airport’s Development Corporation takes us onsite to talk about the mega project.

We end today’s show at one of our favorite resorts, the newly built Buccament Bay.  General Manager Gianluca Cugnetto, a powerhouse in the hospitality industry, will discuss his passion for food, nature, and hospitality, and his desire to incorporate them all to provide visitors with a unique experience.

Speaking of one of the many unique features that Buccament Bay offers, Tonya enjoyed an afternoon with two of London’s West End talents at the resort’s Harlequin Performing Arts Academy.  Actor & Singing Coach John Barr (Convict #5 in Les Miserables) and Musical Director Tim Davies helped Tonya find her true voice as she performed the song “I Dream A Dream.”

For more information about St. Vincent and the Grenadines visit www.DiscoverSVG.com

Hang out with World Footprints on Twitter and Facebook @WorldFootprints.