Francisco Calheiros is a graduate of Management and Business Administration, Universidade Católica Portuguesa. With 30 plus years of experience in tourism, he has received the Tourism Merit Medal from Prime Minister António Guterres and the Commercial Merit Commendation from Portugal’s President Jorge Sampaio. In 1995-2008, he was Portugal’s representative at European Association of Travel and Tour Operators Association and acted as its President for three years. He has held management positions at Grupo Espírito Santo Viagens, Springwater Capital, Springwater Tourism Group, Macrotur, Poligrupo, and Sonicel; has been Vice President of Portuguese Association of Travel Agencies; President of Tourism Confederation of Portugal; as well as active membership in education and industry institutions. geral@confederacaoturismoportugues.pt