Seminar

Abstract:The British Columbia tourism industry—post Olympics—is in a state of transition, and this presents an opportunity to compare practices with similar overseas destinations. There are enough similarities with the New Zealand tourism industry (population base, comparable range of tourism experiences, Pacific Rim location etc.) that we can benefit by exploring, and learning from each other, particularly in the field of tourism education and research. Terry Hood will present a brief and informal overview of the tourism infrastructure in “Super, Natural British Columbia”, and highlight current issues that are high on the radar for tourism professionals in the province.

Abstract: Previous research has shown that managers in the hotel industry perceive persons with disabilities as lacking the required embodied capacities and attributes, unable to meet industry-specific work requirements and too costly to employ. I explore the validity of these negative judgements through a case study of integrative hotels employing on average more than 60 percent of persons with disabilities. The empirical findings show that the negative judgements held by managers in non-integrative hotels regarding persons with disabilities were not supported in the case of the integrated hotels. Many disabilities had no impact on the employees’ mobility or shift work.

Abstract: Around the turn of the century the question how and to what extent tourism can address the eradication of extreme poverty and hunger (MDG1) started to gain attention. The scale and increase of global tourism, its outreach to underdeveloped regions and the dynamics of tourism in destinations underscored its potential to contribute to poverty reduction. A loose alliance of scholars and development practitioners coalesced around the concept of pro-poor tourism commissioning and executing research in a wide range of developing countries over the last decade.

Abstract: We were asked the question, "How Social is Your New Zealand RTO?" and, we provided an answer. This overview will explain how we determined the measurement methodologies to determine what New Zealand RTO uses social media best, along with why and how they stack up against a sub-set of US destination marketing organizations.

Abstract: We know that sense of community (SoC) is a good thing for volunteers to have, but how do we create it? SoC refers to feelings of membership, feelings of influence, integration and fulfillment of needs, and shared emotional connection. Previous research on volunteers indicates that SoC at the event enhances volunteers satisfaction and commitment and that higher levels of SoC are preceded by higher levels of organisational commitment and their ability to share their opinions and experiences during training. However, previous literature has not confidently identified the factors likely to lead to a sense of community within volunteers.