This webinar will feature a collection of research-led findings that inform our understanding of how crises and disasters impact regional tourism destinations. The presentations will include detailed insight into how destinations can best respond to such events from both a demand and a supply perspective focusing on tourists, organisations and host communities. The presentation will include a Case Study on the Whitsundays region’s response to Cyclone Debbie that will demonstrate the importance of dynamic capabilities and organisational resilience and proven strategies to achieve them.

In follow up to our successful Rural Economic Development courses in 2019 and in conjunction with our partners CQUniversity, USQ, UQ and James Cook University, the Rural Economies Centre of Excellence will offer a series of economic development training courses throughout 2020.

Our intention is to build on the foundations laid by the initial training courses that were offered around the state in 2019.

The program is aimed at people working with economic development issues in regional Queensland, with more specific aims including:

1. Offer more targeted training that follows on from the introductory programs in 2019

2. Make the courses accessible to a broad range of people across regional Queensland

3. Build awareness and familiarity of different economic tools

4. Providing skills development for professionals especially those working in and with rural and regional communities

Virtual Mode of Offering

The courses will be offered in virtual mode by Zoom and via link provided once the participant is registered.

Each session will involve a one hour lecture, followed by another hour of discussion, examples and exercises.

This will be streamed from UQ Bisbane and other locations such as Rockhampton, Cairns, and Toowoomba. Anyone with an internet connection should be able to participate however we will limit registrations to a maximum of 40 participants per session so as to allow for active participation in the Q & A section of the webinar.

Introducing the Presenters: Assoc Prof Gabby Walters, Assoc Prof Judith Mair & Ms Yawei Jiang

Associate Professor Gabby Walters is a researcher with the University of Queensland Business School, Australia. Gabby has been working in the area of Crisis Recovery Marketing and tourist behaviour for the last 10 years. She was worked with both domestic and international destinations on issues relating to destination image and the management of tourism perceptions post crisis.

Associate Professor Judith Mair is Discipline Leader of Tourism at the University of Queensland Business School. Her research interests include tourism and events consumer behaviour and she has particular expertise in post-disaster recovery for tourism destinations.

Ms Yawei Jiang is a final year PhD candidate in the UQ Business School. Her research focuses on small business resilience in the face of extreme weather events. Her thesis examines how small businesses develop capabilities to build their resilience and the factors that influence their capability development – looking specifically at the impacts of Cyclone Debbie in Northern Queensland. Yawei has recently worked with EarthCheck to audit templates and global best practices related to tourism risk and resilience programs.