Sri Lanka 2014

KEYNOTE PRESENTATIONS
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Dr. Tim Coles - Exeter University, United Kingdom  -and-  Dr. Andrew Church - University of Brighton, United Kingdom

Understanding the Role of Tourism in Ecosystem Services
The concepts of ecosystem services has recently emerged as a major focus in the management of natural resources around the globe, which has resulted in significant implications for managing and developing tourism and tourism resources in a more sustainable and resilient manner.

Tim Coles  is Professor of Travel and Tourism Management in the University of Exeter Business School, where he is the Director of the Centre for Sport, Leisure and Tourism Research, a major centre of excellence and capacity building funded by UK’s the Economic and Social Research Council. His recent work has examined how travel and tourism operators have adapted their management practices, including ecosystem services, to address the grand challenge of global environmental change. His previous work examined how the processes of globalisation have shaped new types of tourism and mobility.

Andrew Church is Professor of Human Geography and Director of Social Science research at the University of Brighton. He was lead author on cultural ecosystem services for the United Kingdom National Ecosystem Assessment that was completed in 2011. Between 2012 and 2014 Andrew led the programme on cultural ecosystem services for the United Kingdom National Ecosystem Assessment Follow On phase, developing arts and humanities approaches for ecosystem assessment. His previous research examined the role of power structures in shaping tourism and leisure policy and practices.
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Dr. Jeremy Buultjens - Southern Cross University, Australia

Sri Lankan Tourism: Possibilities for a Sustainable Future
Sri Lanka's tourism sector has grown significantly since the end of the country's state of unrest in 2009, providing both opportunities and challenges for sustainable approaches.

Jeremy Buultjens is an Associate Professor in the Business School at Southern Cross University. He is also the Managing Editor of the Journal of Economic and Social Policy. He has taught in a number of units ranging from Tourism Economics and Indigenous Tourism through to Tourism Planning and Special Interest Tourism. Jeremy's research interests include Indigenous tourism and entrepreneurship, regional development and tourism and tourism in protected areas. He has also worked with colleagues from Sabaragamuwa University to examine aspects of tourism management in Sri Lanka.
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Dr. Michael Lück - Auckland University of Technology, New Zealand

The Cruise Ship Industry: A Different Perspective
The cruise ship industry's sustainability and impacts on the host communities, environment and passengers are critically examinedthrough examples from Sri Lanka and around the world.

Michael Lück is Associate Professor and Head of Department in the School of Hospitality and Tourism, Associate Director for the coastal and marine tourism research program at the New Zealand Tourism Research Institute at AUT University, NZ, and founding co-chair of the International Coastal and Marine Tourism Society (ICMTS). He has more than 10 years work experience in the tourism industry and his research interests include marine wildlife tours, the cruise industry, ecotourism, the impacts of tourism, and aviation. He has published in a number of international journals, is founding editor-in-chief of the academic journal Tourism in Marine Environments, and Associate Editor of the Journal of Ecotourism.
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Dr. Nor'Ain Binti Hj. Othman - Univerisiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM), Malaysia

Tourism Alliances and Networking for Sustainable Tourism
Alliances and other forms of networking are indespensible for the success of tourism in general, but especially so for sustainable tourism.  

Nor'Ain Othman is Associate Professor in the Faculty of Hotel and Tourism Management, Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM), Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia. She has more than 10 years working experience as an assistant director in Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board and joined UiTM in 1993. She was the former Deputy Dean (Research and Industry Linkages) and her research focuses on tourism management, tourism marketing, event management, heritage tourism and Islamic tourism. She has published in a number of articles at international journal, chapter in books and presented papers at local and international conferences. She is the vanguard researcher for the university under the Center of Research Excellent: Humanity and Quality of Life.
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