Nicola Kountoupes/University Photography

Hotel School Drown Prize winner Astrid Baumgarten in the Beck Center, Statler Hall. From Paraguay, she eventually hopes to promote sustainable tourism as well as use tourism to encourage economic development in the country where she grew up and elsewhere.

ITHACA, N.Y. -- When Astrid Baumgarten '05 chose to attend Cornell University's School of Hotel Administration, she was planning on one day opening her own resort. "But as I learned more in school, I realized that just opening my own business wasn't going to do it for me," she explains. "I really needed to give back to the community." Now, Baumgarten, winner of the Hotel School's prestigious 2005 Joseph W. Drown Prize, hopes to use her knowledge of the hospitality industry -- and her prize money -- to increase tourism in the country where she was born and grew up, Paraguay.

Baumgarten's fascination with the hospitality industry has its roots in the frequent traveling she did as a child, accompanying her family -- her father was a manager with a multinational pharmaceutical company. Along with living in Paraguay, Mexico and Colombia, she also traveled extensively in Europe as a teenager. During these trips, she stayed in a variety of hotels and hostels and was always impressed by the friendliness and attentiveness of the owners. Part of what attracted her to the field was that "[hotel managers] are in the business of making people happy," she explains.

However, over the years, Baumgarten's goal has shifted from managing her own business to promoting sustainable tourism on a national level. "By sustainable, I mean something that respects the local culture as well as the actual environment," she says. She is especially grateful to Malcolm "Mac" Noden, senior lecturer emeritus in the Hotel School, for opening her eyes to the role that tourism can play in the greater economic health of developing countries. "He helped me see tourism as more than just an industry," she says.

Recalling her own experiences growing up in Latin America, Baumgarten pointed out that creating a thriving hospitality industry can be very beneficial for economically challenged areas. "Having lived in countries like Mexico and Colombia, you really see poverty," she says. "I've learned that tourism is a great way to invest [and] create jobs for people in developing countries." She goes on to explain that, if handled correctly, a strong and sustainable tourism trade can also help a country protect both its environment and its native cultures.

As a student, Baumgarten has been very active on campus. She was a member of the Hotel School's Ye Hosts Honorary Society, served as a Hotel School Ambassador to visiting prospective students, alumni and other guests to campus and was a mentor for minority students. She also was a teaching assistant for two classes and was vice president of student affairs for the Cornell University Spa Association. All these activities, along with her outstanding academic record, contributed to her being selected for the Drown Prize. Awarded to a graduating senior who holds the promise of making a significant contribution to the hospitality industry, the Drown Prize is considered the Hotel School's most prestigious award and comes with a $15,000 stipend.

After graduation, Baumgarten will be working as a manager in training with Fairmont Hotels and Resorts in Aventura, Fla. However, in eight to 10 years, she plans to return home to Paraguay and use the stipend from the Drown Prize to establish her own nongovernmental organization to promote tourism in that country. She also hopes to someday work for Paraguay's Ministry of Tourism. "I feel that once you're working for the government you can actually pass legislation and policies to influence what happens in the country," she explains. "Being in the Ministry of Tourism, you can influence policy to make sure that whatever is being built there is sustainable and has a long-term potential."

Courtney Potts is a writer intern at the Cornell News Service.