Events
Conferences, workshops, and seminars from the Scholardemia research community.
Fri, Apr 9, 2027 · 9:00 AM GMT+1
Beyond the sidelines: Championing women, inclusion and marginalised voices in sport, leisure and tourism
Women and marginalised groups continue to face structural barriers in employment, leadership, public space, media representation and access to capital across sport, leisure and tourism. This webinar examines how gender interacts with ethnicity, disability, social class, sexuality, age and migration status. It will move beyond broad commitments to diversity by considering the institutional rules, informal practices and material conditions that determine who can participate, progress and exercise authority within organisations and public programmes. Panellists will evaluate recruitment, career progression, pay, workplace safety, accessible services, procurement and leadership representation. The discussion will address tokenism, unpaid consultation and policies that create visibility without transferring resources or influence. It will also consider the quality of organisational data and the risk that aggregate categories conceal different experiences. Attention will be given to mechanisms for reporting discrimination, protecting those who raise concerns and holding senior decision makers responsible for measurable progress. Participants will learn to identify indicators that assess outcomes rather than intentions. They will consider representation at different levels, retention, pay equity, budget authority, contract allocation and access to protected routes for challenge. The webinar will also examine how institutions can work with affected groups without treating them as a single voice or repeatedly extracting unpaid expertise. Delegates will leave with a framework for determining whether inclusion is embedded in governance and resource control or remains primarily a symbolic feature of organisational communication. This approach directly connects institutional culture with the distribution of safety, opportunity, recognition, resources and power across workplaces, organisations and sectors.
Zoom link to be confirmed
Free · Webinar
Fri, Apr 16, 2027 · 9:00 AM GMT+1
Crafting unforgettable experiences: The art and science of destination management and stakeholder collaboration
Memorable destination experiences emerge through interactions among transport, public space, hospitality, cultural interpretation, information and encounters with other people. This webinar connects research on attention, emotion and memory with practical destination management. It examines how expectations are formed before arrival, how significant moments occur during a visit and how later recollection shapes advocacy or return. Experience design will be considered within the wider social and environmental setting of a destination rather than as a sequence controlled by one commercial provider. Panellists will analyse collaboration among municipal authorities, businesses, community organisations and cultural institutions. The discussion will consider shared objectives, unequal influence, conflicting interests and mechanisms for resolving disagreement. It will ask who defines a desirable visitor experience and whether that definition supports resident life, accessibility and cultural integrity. Attention will also be given to operational handovers between organisations, since failures in transport, information or public services can shape the whole journey even when individual hospitality providers perform well. Participants will learn to map the complete experience, identify critical interactions and select measures that connect visitor response with destination outcomes. They will consider qualitative feedback, behavioural evidence and indicators of resident value and environmental care. The webinar will also provide questions for testing whether collaboration has clear authority, resources and accountability. Delegates will leave able to design coherent experiences while recognising that a destination is first a place of everyday life and that memorable tourism should not depend on compromising local access, meaning or wellbeing. This strengthens accountability across destination partnerships.
Zoom link to be confirmed
Free · Webinar
Fri, Apr 23, 2027 · 9:00 AM GMT+1
Building back better: Destination resilience, service experience and marketing in the face of crisis
Natural hazards, extreme weather, public health emergencies and geopolitical conflict can disrupt tourism infrastructure and local livelihoods with little warning. This webinar connects preparedness, service continuity and marketing across the periods before, during and after a crisis. It argues that recovery should involve more than reopening facilities or restoring visitor numbers. The session will examine whether reconstruction reduces established vulnerabilities, protects affected groups and strengthens the capacity of destinations to respond to future disruption. Panellists will discuss hazard planning, operational dependencies, backup capacity, financial protection for small businesses and support for displaced workers. The discussion will consider how services can adapt while maintaining safety, accessibility and reliable information. It will also examine the timing and content of destination marketing during recovery. Promotional activity can support livelihoods, but premature campaigns may minimise continuing harm, compete with local needs or invite visitors before essential services and communities are ready. Participants will learn to assess recovery plans through clear responsibilities, evidence of readiness and the distribution of resources. They will consider how to identify critical services, establish communication thresholds and monitor both economic and social recovery. The webinar will also address community participation and the need to document lessons before institutional attention moves elsewhere. Delegates will leave with a framework for determining whose resilience has improved, which risks remain and whether recovery investment creates a safer and more equitable destination rather than restoring fragile conditions that existed before the crisis. This approach connects immediate recovery decisions with continuing public learning and future preparedness.
Zoom link to be confirmed
Free · Webinar
Fri, Apr 30, 2027 · 9:00 AM GMT+1
The evolving tourist: Understanding consumer behaviour and quality management in a digital, globalised market
Search platforms, social media, online reviews and instant communication shape traveller expectations long before arrival. This webinar examines how consumers assess quality, risk, value and brand trust across connected digital channels. It considers how expectations move between platforms and how organisations respond when public reviews influence future demand. The session will avoid treating the evolving tourist as a single universal type by recognising differences in culture, access, digital confidence, travel experience and the resources available to make choices. Panellists will explore service quality management, continuing feedback, bias in review systems and the challenge of interpreting cross-cultural expectations. The discussion will examine how real-time information can support service recovery while also encouraging reactive management based on incomplete or unrepresentative data. It will address privacy, consent and fairness in the collection and analysis of consumer information. Particular attention will be given to how automated personalisation affects which offers, prices and service options different users can see. Participants will learn to connect consumer evidence with inclusive and transparent quality improvement. They will consider how to combine digital feedback with staff knowledge, direct research and operational measures. The webinar will provide questions for assessing data quality, identifying groups whose experiences may be missing and determining when a response requires human judgement. Delegates will leave able to use timely consumer insight without reducing quality to a single score or compromising privacy, accessibility and consistent service standards across diverse guest populations. This supports quality management that remains evidence based, proportionate and centred on people.
Zoom link to be confirmed
Free · Webinar
Fri, May 7, 2027 · 9:00 AM GMT+1
Placemaking with purpose: Sustainable community planning and tourism geography in the Asian context
Land use, transport, public space, heritage and access to everyday services determine how tourism becomes part of a place. This webinar applies geographical analysis and community planning to varied Asian contexts. It examines how spatial evidence can reveal relationships among visitor activity, local livelihoods and environmental limits. The session will avoid treating Asia as a single tourism model by recognising differences in governance, development patterns, culture, ecology and the scale at which tourism is experienced. Panellists will compare fragile coastal areas, mountain settlements, historic urban districts and expanding cities. The discussion will use mapping to examine displacement, concentrated visitor activity, environmental exposure and community access to public resources. It will consider how infrastructure and property investment change the distribution of opportunity and risk. Attention will also be given to informal economies and uses of space that may be absent from official datasets but remain essential to the social and economic life of a destination. Participants will learn to combine spatial data with community knowledge when identifying planning priorities. They will consider accessibility, land tenure, public space, heritage protection and ecosystem capacity within a shared analytical framework. The webinar will also address participation in planning and the authority required to influence investment decisions. Delegates will leave with methods for developing community-led spatial plans that protect livelihoods and cultural meaning while supporting ecological stability, and for comparing destinations without erasing the distinct histories and institutions that shape each place. This approach places spatial justice alongside commercial feasibility in destination planning decisions.
Zoom link to be confirmed
Free · Webinar
Fri, May 14, 2027 · 5:00 PM GMT+1
The AI-powered hotel: Balancing service delivery, consumer behaviour and sustainability in global hospitality
Hotels increasingly use artificial intelligence for demand forecasting, dynamic pricing, guest communication, maintenance, workforce scheduling and energy management. These systems may improve speed, consistency and resource planning, but they can also expose private data, reproduce bias and reduce employee authority. This webinar examines artificial intelligence across service delivery, consumer behaviour and hotel operations. It will distinguish specific applications with measurable purposes from broad claims that present automation itself as evidence of innovation or sustainability. Panellists will evaluate evidence concerning reductions in energy use, water consumption and food waste. The discussion will consider data quality, baseline selection and whether efficiency gains persist as occupancy or service demand changes. It will also address the energy and water required by digital infrastructure, together with rebound effects that can reduce expected savings. Workforce displacement, workplace monitoring, automated pricing and responsibility for harmful decisions will be examined as governance questions rather than unavoidable consequences of technological adoption. Participants will gain criteria for assessing proposed systems according to operational value, environmental performance, privacy, fairness and human oversight. They will learn to identify which decisions require human approval, what evidence should be available before procurement and how outcomes should be monitored after implementation. The webinar will also consider correction, appeal and responsibility when systems fail. Delegates will leave able to distinguish beneficial automation from unsupported corporate positioning and to establish governance arrangements that protect guests, employees and environmental commitments throughout the life of a technology investment. This supports responsible adoption throughout procurement, operation, review and eventual replacement.
Zoom link to be confirmed
Free · Webinar