Waves of terrorism throughout the world have cost lives, provoked panic and wreak havoc on economies. Tourism is one hard-hit industry. But as CGTN's Stephanie Freid reports from Jerusalem, rather than wait for the next attack, governments and industry leaders are banding together to create proactive plans.

From Las Vegas to Berlin, Barcelona, Jakarta, Sydney & Paris, the global reality is mass casualty attacks can happen almost anytime, anywhere. It's a reality the tourism industry is fighting.

ILANIT MELCHIOR ISRAELI TOURISM MINISTRY "It's about all of us sharing the same challenges and learning to live with the elephant that is in the room."

Israel hosted a first-of-its-kind international Tourism Security Summit - a conference bringing together world industry leaders from Trip Advisor, the OECD, Israel's military, and the U.S. Department of Commerce.

ALAIN DUPEYRAS ORGANIZATION FOR ECONOMIC CO-OPERATION & DEVELOPMENT "We know this is key and crucial for the long term competitiveness of the industry and so for this to happen, we need that type of discussion as we are having it today, you know, and then to say: Okay. What's the next step? What have I been doing right and where should I do more to address safety and security issues?"

Europol's 2018 Terrorism Situation and Trend report cites a 45% increase in terror attacks in Europe in 2017 compared with the previous year.

STEPHANIE FREID JERUSALEM "Terror affects travel decisions for 45% of international travelers - that's a statistic that comes from ITB Berlin which is the world's leading trade travel show. Who are most influenced by travel warnings? Asians. Least impressed? Single travelers."

Despite almost daily knife attacks in 2016, Israel's tourism increased by 25% a year later credited to marketing strategies and security measures. Summit organizers say they initiated the Jerusalem forum because of the number of official advice requests Israel's government has received on safeguarding civilians and tourism. Summit takeaways include communicating a "back to normal" message soon after an attack and forging a global strategy - even when challenges differ dramatically.

MICHAEL GOLDSMITH, VP MARKETING LAS VEGAS CONVENTION & VISITORS AUTHORITY "What happened with our incident had a beginning and an end. It was a random, one-time event where a lot of destinations are dealing with ongoing crisis due to terrorism."

One industry leader noted that tourists should be educated on developing quote un-quote: "an inner sense of discretion" when planning excursions. STEPHANIE FREID, CGTN, JERUSALEM.