Margarita Zaera Espinos
World Tourism Organization (UNWTO)
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The title of plenary lecture: SUSTAINABLE TOURISM DEVELOPMENT: POST-PANDEMIC RECOVERY WORLDWIDE AND NEW TRENDS IN TOURISM |
Margarita Zaera is a Project Specialist at the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) since 2021. She graduated from University Autónoma de Madrid and holds a specialization in NGO’s Management from CEU University.
As part of the World Tourism Organization, the United Nations agency responsible for the promotion of responsible, sustainable, and universally accessible tourism, she works with different stakeholders ranging from the private sector universities and civil societies to promote tourism as a driver of economic growth, inclusive development, and environmental sustainability. Additionally, she is responsible for the Secretariat of the Committee on Matters related to Affiliate Membership, composed of nine Sovereign States, and the Chair of the Board of Affiliate Members. Her role is to coordinate all the necessary actions to ensure the proper functioning of the Committee and to strengthen the synergies between the public and private sectors
Faizan Ali
School of Hospitality and Tourism Management, Muma College of Business, University of South Florida, USA
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The title of plenary lecture: EXPERIENCE DESIGN FOR ENGAGED AND EMPOWERED TOURISTS |
He received his Ph.D. in Marketing from the International Business School, University Technology Malaysia and a Master's in Management from Glyndwr University, United Kingdom. Dr. Ali has also authored more than 140 international refereed journal articles and international conference papers. His recent research has been accepted and published in internationally refereed top tier hospitality, tourism and services related journals. Dr. Ali has received numerous research awards and is an active member of academic hospitality associations. Currently, he serves on the editorial boards of numerous journals. He also serves as the Associate Editor for International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology, The Service Industries Journal and Coordinating Editor for International Journal of Hospitality Management. Dr. Ali is a trained expert and sought-after speaker around the globe. He also manages a dedicated YouTube Channel "ResearchBeast" to discuss issues related to research and researchers. Recently, he was included in the Stanford University's list of Top 2% Scientists of the World for the year 2019 and 2020.
https://www.usf.edu/business/about/bios/ali-faizan.aspx
Tina Šegota
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The title of plenary lecture: CHILDREN AS DRIVERS OF SUSTAINABILITY IN TOURISM |
Dr Tina Šegota is a Senior Lecturer in Advertising and Marketing Communications at the University of Greenwich in the United Kingdom and an Associate Professor in Tourism at the University of Maribor in Slovenia. She is a multi-award-winning academic with research and teaching experience in marketing and tourism worldwide. Tina holds a doctoral degree in Marketing Communications from the Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Ljubljana, and has been actively working towards completing second doctoral studies in Tourism at the School of Economics and Business, University of Ljubljana. Her research revolves about destination advertising and marketing, tourism seasonality, tourism and quality of life, place branding and place attachment, and children in tourism destinations. She has received several national and international awards, including the Emerald Literati Award and Best Paper Awards for her publications.
https://www.gre.ac.uk/people/rep/faculty-of-business/tina-segota
Georg Christian Steckenbauer
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The title of plenary lecture: FOREST AS A DRIVER OF SUSTAINABLE TOURISM DEVELOPMENT: CHALLENGES & CHANCES |
Prof. Dr. Georg Christian Steckenbauer is a tourism expert with a focus on health tourism, experience design and product development. Since 2017, he has been appointed professor at the Deggendorf Institute of Technology, Bavaria, in the field of "Economy in Tourism Management" and has been Dean of the internationally oriented "European Campus Rottal-Inn" since 2018.
His academic work focuses on experience design, evidence-based health tourism and development of (health) tourism products based on natural resources. His list of publications includes contributions on product development, staging and branding in health tourism. At the European Campus he promoted the development of a specialized academic program. In addition, Georg Christian Steckenbauer advises tourism providers and destinations.
In addition to his academic career, Georg Christian Steckenbauer looks back on many years of professional experience in different areas of tourism and destination marketing.