Cheng-du Giant Panda Base: signage research

Professor Roy Ballantyne and Dr Jan Packer Professor Roy Ballantyne and Dr Jan Packer have returned from a trip to China where they were engaged in an ongoing consultancy project with the Chengdu Giant Panda Base. The focus of their research was to determine the effectiveness of visitor signage at the panda base and exploring if there are differences between Chinese and Western perceptions of signs.

Professor Ballantyne and Dr Packer met with Professor John Falk from the University of Oregon while in Chengdu. The group is working collaboratively advising management at the Chengdu Giant Panda Research Base on the development of a giant panda transition zone. The transition zone is intended to be a half way house for the release of pandas into the wild.

Dr Jan Packer (left) instructs Chengdu Panda Base staff member Ya Fei in techniques of visitor observation

Dynamic duo hit South Africa

Professor Roy Ballantyne and Senior Research Officer Karen Hughes will jet off to South Africa in June. The dynamic duo will be hosted by the University of Capetown. They will deliver two papers on the topic of Wildlife tourism and visitor learning for environmental sustainability at the International Coastal Tourism Congress held in Port Elizabeth.

Karen and Roy will also take the opportunity to travel to the conference with Professor John Falk and Professor Lynn Dierking. Tourists' support for conservation messages and sustainable management practices in wildlife tourism experiences

Visiting scholars: Professor John Falk and Professor Lynn Dierking

Professor John Falk and Professor Lynn Dierking will be visiting scholars to the School of Tourism in July 2009. Professors Falk and Dierking are world leaders in free-choice learning research and are both based at Oregon State University.

During their visit Professors Falk and Dierking will be involved in a variety of activities including:

Co-presentation with the Visitor Research Team at the School of Tourism

At the Forum on Visitor Research in Natural and Cultural Heritage, Monday, 13 July, 2009.

Professor Falk will deliver the key note address at the International Council of Museums (ICOM) conference

Present a Research Seminar to the staff of the School of Tourism facilitated by Dr Brent Ritchie, Senior Lecturer and chairperson of the Discovery Committee at School of Tourism.

Prepare two Australian Research Council (ARC) grant submissions in collaboration with the School of Tourism Visitor Research Group.

Tourism and Transport Forum luncheon: highlighting School of Tourism research and consultancy capacity

The School co- hosted the Tourism and Transport Forum Leaders’ Boardroom Luncheon on Tuesday 26 May at the UQ Business School Downtown. CEOs from tourism industry groups attended the luncheon where Professor Roy Ballantyne and Dr David Solnet, Director of Industry Partnerships highlighted the value and potential of research, consultancy and professional development  through coursework the School of Tourism can offer their organisations.

Mr Anthony Hayes, CEO of Tourism Queensland delivered an informal address to the group on discussion topics including: promoting Brisbane as a destination; marketing Queensland in response to the Global Financial crisis and Regional Tourism Infrastructure Investment Plans.

Vietnam: a matter of interpretation

A two week course in Tourism Product and Market Development was conducted at Hanoi Cultural University, Vietnam by Dr. Noel Scott and Miss Char-lee McLennan from the 4th of May to the 15th May 2009. Participants were primarily university staff members along with some industry representatives. Certificates of Completion were presented to the students at the closing ceremony. It was a good cross-cultural learning and networking experience and there has since been contact with students in the course regarding research opportunities. The students particularly enjoyed learning through a more interactive style of teaching. Noel and Char-lee have now honed their skills in lecturing with an interpreter.

Dr Noel Scott and Ms Char-lee McLennan with course participants and senior Hanoi Cultural University staff members

UNWTO Education and Science Council

Dr Lisa Ruhanen has returned from Madrid where she attended the annual meeting, conference and prize ceremony of UNWTO Education and Science Council (EdSco) as the representative of the University of Queensland. Membership of the UNWTO EdSco is limited to institutions that have successfully passed the UNWTO’s TedQual certification. The Uni of Qld is the only university in Australia that has this membership.

Lisa is a member of the EdSco steering committee for Australasia.She also attended the annual UNWTO Ulysses conference. She was an invited panellist for a discussion on: Tourism Education in a Time of Change and Crisis and presented a paper titled: The state of the sustainability debate – Can lessons be learnt for the tourism industry’s response to climate change?

New ethics officer

Associate Professor Ian Patterson is the new School of Tourism research ethics officer.

Triumph in the tropics

Staff, RHD Students and members of Tourism Students Association celebrated the end of the teaching semester at the UQ Art Museum. The group was hosted by exhibition co-curator of Triumph in the tropics; Selling Queensland, Professor Peter Spearritt. The exhibition explores popular and promotional images of Queensland from the late 19th century to the early 21st century: how Queensland displayed itself to potential migrants, tourists and investors.

UQ students ‘consult’ to industry

UQ students are set to impress senior executives from the Intercontinental Hotel Group with cutting edge technology applications for the “Holiday Inn Virtuoso Hotel”. Read more

Dr Noreen Breakey and Ms Sue McKinnon (centre) with Holiday Inn Hotel Technology Competition student finalists

On the river with a paddle: Serious leisure, serious fun, serious business

Adventure and recreation students combine serious fun, an insider’s view of industry best practice in adventure tourism and learn a lot by paddling down the Brisbane River. Read more

Associate Professor Ian Patterson kayaking on the Brisbane River

UQ student finalist in national retail study scholarship

Kate Cuddihy is one of three national finalists in the inaugural Connections and Australian Consolidated Press (ACP) Magazines Retail Study Tour Scholarship.

Kate attributes part of her success to her studies at the UQ School of Tourism where she is enrolled in a Graduate Diploma in Business (International Events Management). Her understanding and insight of services management was sparked by her study in the same area.

“The competition has exposed me to employment opportunities in retail that I was not aware of in the past. It has also been a big boost to my confidence to get this far in the competition. I had an opportunity to put theory into practice, using the skills acquired in my tertiary studies and my practical retail experience gained working at newsXpress Toowong” Ms Cuddihy.

Kate flew to Melbourne to present her winning essay on Customer Service titled: What are the four drivers of customer service at a retail level, and how should management respond to this?  to the judging panel.

The competition is jointly sponsored by Australian Consolidated Press the Australian Centre for Retail Studies .

International scholarship unlocks passion for tourism

 
Mr Bernard Tan
Bernard Tan a UQ School of Tourism student passionate about forging a career in the tourism industry has continued to excel in his studies thanks to an international scholarship.
Read more

 
 

Media Contact:
Cate Clifford
UQ School of Tourism
Email: c.clifford@uq.edu.au
Phone: 3365 2524
Web: www.tourism.uq.edu.au