Vol. 4 / Issue 3 - DECEMBER 2009

Tourism & Events News School of Management “Before entering the festive season, the Tourism Subject Group would like to keep you informed about our most recent news: We have been elected as Chair of the Education and Science Council of the UNWTO, won a two year Knowledge Transfer Partnership, hosted a Tourism Research Seminar and appointed new Visiting Professors, Lecturers and PhD Research Fellows. Read more about these, and other stories in this newsletter. ” The Tourism Subject Group

UNWTO - Education and Science Council

Inside this issue:

The University of Surrey has been elected for a second two year term as Chair of the Education and Science Council of the UNWTO.

UNWTO - Education and 1 Science Council (EdSCo)

This brings together many of the leading centres for tourism education across the world and among its various activities it oversees the annual Ulysses Awards and conference and the TEDQUAL system which accredits tourism

programmes worldwide. The challenge for the coming term of office, as set out in the University’s election platform, is to support the UNWTO in developing its role as a knowledge-based organisation during a period of major change in world tourism. Commenting on the election result, Prof Airey said “It is a privilege to serve a second term as chair of EdSCo and we take on this task at a time when the role of research and education are a top priority for the UN specialist agency for tourism”. The elections were held at the 18th General Assembly of the UNWTO which were held in Astana from the 5th to 8th of October 2009.

World Ranking of Tourism Research Institutions The University of Surrey is the top hospitality and tourism institution in Europe and 5th in the world according to a league table in the study “A World Ranking of the Top 100 Hospitality and Tourism Programs” published in the

November 2009 issue of the Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Research. The table is based on research output in the 11 leading hospitality and tourism journals in the period from 2002 to 2006.

2009 Ranking 1

2009 Ranking 4

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Institution Hong Kong Polytechnic University Cornell University University of Nevada at Las Vegas

Institution

World Ranking of Tour- 1 ism Research Institutions Conferences, Keynote Speeches and Seminars

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Activities for and with our Students

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International Events Management

5

New Visiting Professors and Lecturers

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Research News

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Our Tourism Programmes: BSc Tourism Management BSc International Hospitality and Tourism Management MSc in International Events Management MSc in Tourism Management

Pennsylvania State University

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University of Surrey

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Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University

MSc in Tourism Marketing MSc in Tourism Development PhD in Tourism

Visit our Tourism Website: http://www.som.surrey.ac.uk/research/groups/tourismindex.asp

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TOURISM & EVENTS NEWS

18th General Assembly of the UNWTO, Astana, Kazakhstan Prof Airey attended the General Assembly, held in the capital of Kazakhstan from 5th to 8th October. The Assembly was attended by government representatives from more than 160 countries and was also visited by the President of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev and by President Sarkozy of France. During the meeting Prof Airey chaired the Working Group on “The Strategic Role of Knowledge in Specialised UN Organizations: the Case of UNWTO – Education and Science Council”. This was attended by delegates from the member states, by the UNWTO Regional Representatives as well as by other affiliate members of the Organization. The meeting reached 6 conclusions to support the drive by the

UNWTO to become a knowledgebased organisation. Professor Airey was also a speaker at the Seminar of the Affiliate members “The Role of the Private Sector in UNWTO: how can we contribute to organizing a meaningful model of global governance?” His paper addressed the role of Universities in providing knowledge to support the UNWTO in its work. While in Astana he was presented with a medal from the Mayor

of the Moscow Region for his work in tourism education. The presentation was made by Professor Alexey Sessyolkin, Vice Rector of the Russian International Academy for Tourism.

bers left to right are Prof. Shaul Krakover (Associate Editor, Tourism Geographies) Prof. Abe Pizam (Editor, International Journal of Hospitality Management), Prof. Rick Perdue (Editor, Journal of Travel Research) and Prof. John Tribe (Editor, Annals of Tourism Research). Following the confer-

ence Prof Tribe joined a brief study tour to Petra in Jordan.

Pictured below are Dr Fayos Sola who is the Executive Director of the UNWTO, Cordula Wohlmuther, Deputy Regional Representative of the UNWTO, Prof David Airey and Prof Jafar Jafari.

Publish or Perish? Prof John Tribe was invited as a keynote at an international tourism conference organised by Ben Gurion University of the Negev at their Eilat campus in Israel in October 2009. Also pictured here is the panel of journal editors who led a lively discussion session titled ‘Publish or Perish’. The panel mem-

59th AIEST Congress – Savonlinna, Finland

The 59th Congress of the International Association of Scientific Experts in Tourism (AIEST) was held this year in Savonlinna, Finland, hosted by the Centre for Tourism Studies of Joensuu University. The theme was “The Management of Change in Tourism: creating opportunities and overcoming obstacles”. Prof Airey attended the congress and chaired the panel session on “Advances in Tourism Research”.

Apart from the working sessions, highlights of the gathering included a violin recital by an AIEST member and Surrey Alumnus, Jordi Datzira (MSc 1996-97) from Barcelona; an excursion in which delegates rowed out to one of Finland’s thousands of islands (in boats of 14); and of course saunas. The next AIEST meeting, marking its diamond jubilee year, will be in South Africa in September 2010. At 60, AIEST is the longest established organisation of its type in the world and Surrey staff have been members since the early 1960s.

Prof Airey in Breda In November, David Airey led a week long undergraduate seminar on Tourism Policy and Organisation at the University of Applied Sciences at Breda in the Netherlands in November. While there he also contributed to the graduate programme in Tourism Management.

VOL. 4 / ISSUE 3 - DECEMBER 2009

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Tourism at the Surrey International Institute (SII) Dalian, China The University of Surrey has recently started tourism programmes at the Surrey International Institute (SII). SII is an academic partnership institution between University of Surrey and Dongbei University of Finance and Economics (DUFE) in Dalian, China. Students registered on the BSc Tourism Management programme at SII (which is a fouryear programme) follow a similar curriculum to students at Surrey in the UK. They are taught by lecturers based at SII as well as academics from the UK Surrey tourism team. Dr Fangfang Shi is tutor in Tourism and Research Methods at SII. Fangfang did her PhD in Tourism at Nottingham Trent University where she subsequently worked as a Lecturer in Tourism and International Business before joining Surrey in 2008. Her research interests include visitor experience, religious tourism, souvenirs, and tourism in China. She has published in these areas and presented papers at international tourism conferences. Dr Shi describes the various ways that have been cre-

ated for students to enhance their learning at SII. “Last year the students attended the Post-Olympics Era Forum organised by China Tourism Press, PATA and Liaoning Tourism Bureau, and the 5th East Asia International Tourism Expo.

shan Hotspring Resort in Zhouzhuang and 2009 China National Travel Fair. In addition, an official from Dalian Tourism Bureau has been invited to give a guest lecture on tourism policy and planning in Dalian. Every effort has been made

As part of the Tourism Management module, site visits were arranged to Dalian Swissotel, and Mr Herald Prytz, the Resident Manager, was invited to give a guest lecture on hotel management. This year we have arranged a fieldtrip to Buyun-

to ensure that Surrey’s high standards are maintained at SII and the students have a life-enriching experience here.”

Tourism and Photography In November, Dr Caroline Scarles co-hosted an evening on Tourism and Photography with The Tourism Society at the University of Surrey. Dr Scarles was joined by Dan Linstead, the editor of Wanderlust (the UK’s leading travel magazine); Adrian Phillips, the publishing director of Bradt Travel Guides and Fran Hughes, the former responsible tourism manager for Explore to discuss some of the key issues of photography facing both tourists and the tourism industry. Caroline presented the findings from her recent ESRC-funded research into the effects of tourist photography on host communities, while both Dan and Adrian discussed the issues of ethics and responsibility in tourist photography

from an editorial and commercial perspective. After the presentations, Dr Cathy Palmer from the University of Brighton chaired a very lively and stimulating discussion. Dr Scarles commented that “the evening has been a great success, prompting many thoughts and questions around the ethics of photography in tourism. Indeed, while it is almost inconceivable to think of tourists travelling without cameras or tourism media without inspiring images, until now photography has remained an area that has largely been missing in both academic and industry discussions”. For more information on this event and the presentations, please contact Dr Scarles at: [email protected].

Dr Fangfang Shi (centre) and her students at 2009 China National Travel Fair.

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TOURISM & EVENTS NEWS

The Surrey Tourism and Events Society (STES) taking off for 2009/10 On the 30th September 2009 STES launched itself for the first time at the Freshers Fayre (organized to present the currently existing societies to the new and existing students hosted by the Students’ Union) having more than 150 students (new and continuing) registering.

with alumni and students, as well as academics and the industry representatives. Moreover STES extended its network and could establish new contacts. A new events calendar has been published featuring monthly events, such as exciting trips to the WTM (London), or a literary trip to Bath (May 2010), or a discussion about Sports Tourism related to the upcoming Winter Olympics (February 2010). We are happy to announce that a new event has been added, THE (Tourism-Hospitality-Events) Careers Day, taking place on 24th

The participation proved the recognition, the Society has already been able to build in its short lifetime.

March 2010, in cooperation with The Tourism Society and the University’s Careers Centre.

Along with the Society’s success its reorganization has been completed through the AGM held Mid-October 2009. The new structure will positively contribute to the further development of the Society and enhance the effective communication

This careers event will be open for everybody interested in THE industry. For further information the THE (Tourism-Hospitality-Events) Careers Day, please contact: [email protected].

The Tourism Group Welcomes all new and returning Students On Friday, 2nd of October members of the Tourism Subject Group welcomed all new and returning students to the new academic year 2009/2010. In a relaxed atmosphere, undergraduate and postgraduate tourism and events students had a chance to

get to know each other. Everyone had a very good time. Professor John Tribe (pictured on the right among all students) spoke to students, informing them about the latest news in the School and the importance of tourism at the University of Surrey.

Recycling Tourism Textbooks Last year many of our graduating MSc and BSc students kindly responded to one of our new initiatives to recycle books to universities in the developing world which need to build up their libraries. Jasmijn Muller, one of our PhD students pictured here, organised the collection and we are pleased to report that we have now teamed up with

the local Rotary Club in Guildford who will arrange to distribute the books to a University in Tanzania. The books are all recent editions and in excellent condition. Note to students graduating in 2010 - we will arrange another collection at the end of this academic year – so please support this simple sharing scheme.

VOL. 4 / ISSUE 3 - DECEMBER 2009

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‘Doing’ the Edinburgh Festival Fringe On 3 November 2009, we were delighted to welcome Paul Gudgin, Director of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe for eight years between 1999-2007 for a guest lecture titled ‘The Edinburgh Fringe: a festival success story.’ Paul was responsible for developing the Edinburgh Festival Fringe into one of the UK’s cultural highlights. During his eight year tenure the Edinburgh Fringe effectively doubled in size, passing several significant milestones including the sale of over one million tickets for the first time in 2003 and for the following four festivals. Paul had the audience

thoroughly engaged throughout with his discussion of the factors that have led to the emergence of the festival as one of the largest and most successful arts events in the world. According to Paul, several factors have contributed to the success of the Festival including its location in the beautiful historic city of Edinburgh which acts as a fantastic backdrop for the event. A large number of venues are available in Edinburgh for the hosting of the Fringe events – indeed venues range from the traditional such as the Assembly Rooms to the more unusual such as the Underbelly with its giant inflatable upside down purple cow. The performers who participate in the festival have also led to its success as it is seen as an opportunity to showcase their talent and many have established successful careers as a result of being spotted by talent scouts at the Fringe and through the extensive media exposure that this event attracts. Paul’s lecture stimulated a great deal of discussion amongst the audience and at the end of the evening many had already started planning their 2010 outing to the Fringe!

Event Management students visit Central Hall, Westminster On October 29, 2009 students on the MSc International Event Management went on a study visit to Methodist Central Hall, Westminster, an unique venue which has hosted a number of high profile events most notably the inaugural General Assembly of the United Nations in 1946. Today the venue hosts a diverse range of events from conferences and exhibitions to music concerts and recitals. After a tour of the venue including the magnificent Great Hall, students were treated to an enjoyable lunch and then to talks including one from Managing Director, Mr. Michael Hall.

The photo shows the students with Programme Manager, Dr. Donna Chambers on the balcony of Central

Hall which is just opposite Westminster Abbey and the Houses of Parliament.

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TOURISM & EVENTS NEWS

The Tourism Group welcomes new Visiting Professors and Lecturers: Visiting Professor: Christopher Rodrigues

Christopher Rodrigues became Chairman of VisitBritain on the 1st January 2007 and Chairman of International Personal Finance in July of the same year, having joined the

Board of Provident Financial in January 2007 as Joint Deputy Chairman and Chairman of the International Division (later to become IPF) prior to demerger from Provident Financial plc on 16th July 2007. He became Chairman of the Windsor Leadership Trust in 2007 and Chairman of The Almeida Theatre in 2008. He had been President and Chief Executive at Visa International from 2004-2006. Between 1996 and 2004 he was Group Chief Executive at Bradford and Bingley, leading the company towards its initial placement in 2000 and entry to the FTSE 100 list in 2002. Between 1988 and 1996 he was Chief Operating Officer and Group Chief Executive at Thomas Cook. Earlier in his career he was a Manager at McKinsey and Co, before spending nine years with American Express. He was a founder non-Executive

Director of the Financial Services Authority (1997-2003). He has been an independent non-Executive Director at Ladbrokes plc (formerly Hilton Group plc) since 2003, is an Executive Committee Member of the World Travel and Tourism Council and was a member of the Council and Executive Committee of the National Trust. Christopher is a graduate of Cambridge University and the Harvard Business School. He rowed for Cambridge in the 1970 and 1971 Boat Races, is a past-Chairman of Leander Club and is a Steward of Henley Royal Regatta. Christopher became a Commander of the British Empire in the 2007 New Year Honours list for services to British business interests and charitable works in the UK and USA. 

Visiting Professor: Hugh Somerville Hugh Somerville has a BSc in Chemistry from the University of Edinburgh and a PhD in microbiology from the University of Sheffield. He carried out postdoctoral research at UCLA and was an assistant professor at UC Berkeley. He led a biotechnology research team in Shell for ten years before working with Shell in the UK, Houston, The Hague and in Aberdeen. He joined British Airways to lead a small team addressing corporate responsibility issues including running the annual “Tourism for Tomorrow” Awards. He has now retired from British Airways. He serves on Camelot’s Advisory Panel for Corporate Responsibility, as a

trustee of Groundwork Thames Valley; is involved in ‘Sustainable Aviation’ and ‘Greener by Design’, and has consulted on a range of

travel and environmental issues. He was one of the authors of the report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change on “Aviation and the Global Atmosphere”. He is

a special advisor on climate issues to the Travel Foundation and an editor of the Journal of Sustainable Tourism. Specific projects include producing guidance on Climate Change and on increasing local economic benefits from the accommodation sector in the Eastern Caribbean. Hugh has contributed widely to conferences on the impact of aviation on the environment. For example, he has contributed to publications by Greener by Design and Sustainable Aviation. He has also contributed some 40 peer-reviewed publications in the fields of microbiology and biotechnology.

Lecturer: Fangfang Shi Fangfang took her first degree from Xi’an University of Architecture and

Technology (China) and her MSc in Tourism Management from the University of Surrey. Then she did her PhD in Tourism at Nottingham Trent University and worked in the

same university as a Lecturer in Tourism and International Business before joining the Surrey International Institute (SII) in 2008.

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VOL. 4 / ISSUE 3 - DECEMBER 2009

Tourism Research Workshop at the University of Surrey interest in focusing attention on research in tourism. The afternoon ended with an open panel discussion, identifying potential research avenues across the variety of disciplines at the university.

On 18th November the Tourism Group within the Faculty of Management and Law held an open seminar across the university to attract colleagues from other disciplines and faculties with an interest in tourism.

The presentations covered a broad spectrum of academic disciplines and demonstrated the breadth of

To build on the success of the seminar we are planning a series of events and actions including PhD supervision across faculties, listing all tourism-related publications across the university and more workshops on topics where the university holds specialised knowledge.

The afternoon began with an introduction by Prof. John Tribe about the nature of research amongst the tourism group and then continued with presentations from colleagues in Information Systems, English Literature, Environmental Strategy and Behavioural Psychology.

Knowledge Transfer Partnership Colleagues from the Hospitality and Tourism Division have won a two year Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) worth £123,672 with Milton Keynes based company, Elliott People. Elliott People currently offers outsourced Marketing and Public Relations expertise to the leisure and hospitality sectors in three areas: consumer (pubs/ hotel/ restaurants), Business to Business (BTB) and Education/Contract Catering (Public Sector). The team from the Knowledge Base Partner are Dr Angela Roper, as Lead Academic, Dr Hesham Al-Sabbahy, as Academic Supervisor and Dr Graham Miller. The company hopes to develop the knowledge, advanced business processes and skills required to enter the tourism market and establish this market as a strong income stream. In the longer term, the project will

provide the company with the capabilities needed to develop more strategically and systematically, maintaining its competitiveness in existing markets and gaining this in new markets. KTP’s enable a relationship to be formed between a company and an academic institution ('Knowledge

Base' partner), which facilitates the transfer of knowledge, technology and skills to which the company partner currently has no access. Pictured below in sunny rural Buckinghamshire are the Surrey team with Ann Elliott, Managing Director of Elliott People and the Regional KTP Adviser, Dr Ian Eddison.

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TOURISM & EVENTS NEWS

New PhD Student: Patricia Pupek After finalizing her MSc in Tourism Marketing at the University of Surrey, she joined the PhD research fellows of the department of tourism. Previously she graduated from the Free University of Bolzano (Italy) with a BSc in Tourism Management. Patricia worked in various areas of the industry (e.g. bank, medical research institute, theatre gastronomy, tourism consulting) in different countries, such as Italy,

Germany and Japan, also emphasizing her enthusiasm about cultures and languages. Her research interests lie within the area of sustainable tourism, looking especially at the concept of Fair Trade in Tourism (FFT) for her PhD. Patricia is also the President of the ‘Surrey Tourism and Events Society’ (STES), which was established in December 2008.

New PhD Student: Ercil Charles Jr. Ercil Charles Jr. began his tenure at the University of Surrey in 2008, pursuing an MSc in Tourism Development, which he has completed with Distinction. Central to his studies at postgraduate level were acquiring knowledge in Destination Management & Marketing and Project Appraisal and harnessing the immense support of the Tourism Subject Group towards his personal and professional development. He now researches, within the Tourism Research Group, in the areas of Tourism Policy and Electoral Stud-

ies as a PhD candidate. His other research interests include Cognitive Development aims within Tourism Education and Tourism Public Policy Development. Before coming to Surrey, Ercil held the post of Tourism Education Facilitator in his native Antigua and Barbuda, tutoring in Quality Customer Care, Caribbean Studies, and Introduction to the Tourism and Hospitality Industries. His future career aims revolve around academia, educational administration, and political advice.

Gang Li’s paper receives 4000 downloads! Gang Li’s article “Tourism demand modelling and forecasting—A review of recent research”, coauthored with Haiyan Song, published in Tourism Management (2008, Vol. 29: 203-220), becomes the second most popular paper in Surrey Scholarship Online—an

open-access online repository, with more than 4000 downloads over the past 14 months. According to the usage data, the downloads of this paper are from over 80 countries around the world. This paper summarises the methodological developments, key research findings and new research directions in the field of tourism demand modelling and forecasting based on a review of over 120 empirical studies. This article acts as a key reference for students, scholars and practitioners who are interested in the research in this field. The paper is accessible via the link: http://epubs.surrey.ac.uk/tourism/31/

Reminder: 2011 Surrey Tourism Conference Date: 28 June – 1 July, 2011 Title: Advancing the Social Science of Tourism Venue: University of Surrey, UK Further details, a dedicated website, costs, speakers and themes will follow. We look forward to hosting you at Surrey in 2011.