Transitioning to truly sustainable tourism in New Zealand

Victoria University of Wellington - Podcast

Sustainable tourism, which takes full account of its current and future economic, social, and environmental impacts, is an increasingly important focus for the tourism industry, particularly in New Zealand where tourism is one of our major exports. So, as we move to a more sustainable future—what will tourism look like and what will the impact on New Zealand be? Dr Ina Reichenberger speaks with Associate Professor Christian Schott and Associate Professor Ian Yeoman about sustainable tourism in New Zealand. Dr Christian Schott is an Associate Professor in Tourism Management at the Wellington School of Business and Government and is an expert in sustainable tourism development, tourism’s interrelationship with climate change, and sustainable tourism education. Christian is currently leading a research-driven VR-for-sustainability project which was recently awarded the Gold Award in the highly competitive Sustainability Category at the QS-Wharton Reimagine Education Awards 2020. The same project was also awarded AACSB’s prestigious ‘Innovations that Inspire’ honour in 2018. Associate Professor Ian Yeoman, who describes himself as a professional crystal ball gazer, is a futurologist specialising in travel and tourism. Ian learned his trade as the scenario planner for VisitScotland where he established the process of futures thinking within the organisation using a variety of techniques including economic modelling, trends analysis and scenario construction. Ian was a Senior Lecturer in Tourism and Hospitality Management at Edinburgh Napier University and University College, Birmingham. He has extensive experience within the hospitality industry, for which he was a hotel manager with Trusthouse Forte. Dr Ina Reichenberger is a Senior Lecturer in Tourism Management at the Wellington School of Business and Government. She previously taught at MCI Management Center Innsbruck in Austria after completing her PhD at VUW in 2014. Her industry experience includes tourism market research, destination development and consultancy roles in Germany. Ina's research interests centre around tourist experiences and the social aspect of tourism, with a particular focus on popular culture, value co-creation, tourism lifestyles, backpacker travel and consumer behaviour. Recent projects focus on sense of community through popular culture in a tourism context and charitable behaviour in natural conservation tourist attractions