It has been another momentous year in the attractions industry, and Attractions Management has been there reporting the big news, good and bad, all the way. After yesterday's look at the events of June 2019, today we move on to July 2019, considering some of the biggest stories that made the headlines that month.

Microsoft announced a new and fourth pillar to its AI for Good programme, focusing on cultural heritage, planners considered options for an iconic new seafront tower in San Diego, and Wheel the World talked about the challenges it faces in making the world's greatest natural attractions accessible to the disabled.

AI for Cultural Heritage

In July 2019, we reported on Microsoft's new focus on cultural heritage in its AI for Good portfolio, which is a five-year commitment to using artificial intelligence to tackle some of society's biggest challenges.

Already included in the US$125m (€111.4m, £100.6m) programme were AI for Earth (providing tools for startups working to protect the planet), AI for Accessibility and AI for Humanitarian Action.

AI for Cultural Heritage became the fourth pillar of the programme, seeking to preserve languages, places and artefacts.

Microsoft had previously been working on projects such as using artificial intelligence to make the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Open Access collection accessible online, and a mixed reality and AI museum experience paying homage to Mont-Saint-Michel in Normandy, France.

Seaport San Diego tower

A 170,000sq ft (51,816sq m) vertical aquarium was reported to be one of the ideas being considered for a proposed 500ft-high (152m) "iconic" observation tower at the centre of a development project on the California coast at San Diego.

The US$2.4bn (€2.15bn, £1.93bn) Seaport San Diego scheme was in the initial planning stages with developers 1HWY1 and architects Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG).

Amongst other ideas being floated for the tower were a butterfly exhibit, a high level scrambling net, a wind garden, and an outdoor auditorium for basking in the clouds. However, a number of planning hurdles were still to be overcome at the time.

A world without limits

Wheel the World's Alvaro Silberstein told Attractions Management about the challenges involved in gaining accessibility for disabled people to the world's most challenging locations, in an interview published in July 2019.

The biggest of those obstacles, he said, were effective collaborations with attractions managers, governments and tourism organisations. There has also been investment in specialist technology, including the Joëlette wheelchair, specially made for traversing rough terrain

In its first year, Wheel the World helped more than 500 disabled customers to travel to exotic locations all over the world, including a headline-grabbing excursion to the ancient Incan citadel of Machu Picchu, high in the Peruvian Andes.

Check back with Attractions Management tomorrow for a look back at the highlights from August