The internationally acclaimed Blackstone Valley Tourism Council continues to create a sustainable visitor destination using whole place-making techniques. Under its auspices, the Sustainable Tourism Planning and Development Laboratory shares the Tourism Council's research and experience in developing planned sustainable tourism with tourism leaders and community stakeholders seeking to develop viable destinations. Through pragmatic experiences at the Lab, these constituencies learn to plan and apply innovative sustainable tourism principles within their own communities.

The Sustainable Tourism Planning and Development Laboratory’s mission was informed by significant and critical sustainable tourism development issues. The Laboratory fulfils this mission by designing and presenting a series of robust symposiums, conferences, and programs to link the Laboratory's work to the local and global arenas. The Lab staff present a learning initiative that prepares decision makers and shapers to thoughtfully develop and regenerate their communities using sustainable tourism principles. This important work has been lauded by the United Nations World Tourism Organization, US Congress, the US Council of State Travel, the RI Division of Tourism, and other noted tourism societies. As the Blackstone Valley Tourism Council continues its vital work, it contributes to the field though presentation and publication of scholarship. This dynamic Council begins its twenty third year as a viable research and practice institution celebrating, using and preserving the bounty of the tourism industry.