Dr. Richard Stewart, a professor in UW-Superior's Department of Business and Economics, presented a peer-reviewed paper about the Great Lakes cruise ship market at the International Association of Maritime Economists (IAME) annual conference in Santiago, Chile.

The IAME 2011 conference WAS hosted by UNECLAC - Natural Resources and Infrastructure Division, at the UNECLAC Headquarters in Santiago de Chile. The conference was held Oct. 25-28.

Stewart presented a paper titled "Regulations and Policies that Limit the Growth of U.S. Great Lakes Cruise Market." 

The worldwide overnight cruise industry has seen remarkable growth since the 1990s.  However, the cruise market on the Great Lakes has significantly lagged global market expansion. 

The paper reviews the history of the cruise industry on the Great Lakes with particular focus on the U.S. flag segment  Research into the historical records indicate that the overnight cruise industry on the Lakes is operating at small fraction of its full potential.

The specific impacts of current and future cabotage, gambling, security, pilotage and environmental policies and laws on Great Lakes cruise ship operations are examined.  Recommendations are made regarding policy changes to improve the business climate for U.S. flag cruise ships to expand operations on the Great Lakes.

On October 29, Stewart toured the Pacific Ocean port of Valparaiso, Chile.  Funding for the paper's research and presentation is provided by the Great Lakes Maritime Research Institute www.glmri.org

Stewart teaches transportation and logistics management courses at UW-Superior. He also directs the Transportation and Logistics Research Center and is co-director of the Great Lakes Maritime Research Institute.