The Publisher and Editors of the journal Tourism Recreation Research (TRR) extend their congratulations to Dr Amare Wondirad of Woosong University, Korea, Dr Denis Tolkach of James Cook University, Australia and Professor Brian King of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong for their joint contribution, NGOs in ecotourism: patrons of sustainability or neo-colonial agents? Evidence from Africa published in Tourism Recreation Research, Volume 45, No. 2, 2020, pp. 144–160. The judges ranked it high for its style of presentation, originality, broad subject interest and practical usability of research.
Amare Wondirad is an Assistant Professor at Woosong University, Republic of Korea. He holds a Doctor of Philosophy in Hotel and Tourism Management from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University in 2018 and his MSc from a consortium Universities of Southern Denmark, Ljubljana and Girona in 2012. His research and teaching areas include ecotourism, sustainable tourism, community-based tourism, and culinary tourism. His conference paper entitled Who benefits from the ecotourism sector in southern Ethiopia? received the Best Conference Paper Award in a prestigious international conference in Korea in 2017. Currently, Dr. Wondirad is serving as topic editor for Sustainability Journal.
Denis Tolkach is a Senior Lecturer in Tourism and Hospitality at the College of Business, Law & Governance, James Cook University, Cairns, Australia. He has previously worked as an Assistant Professor at the School of Hotel and Tourism Management, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. Dr Tolkach completed PhD at Victoria University, Melbourne. He has taught a variety of Tourism and Hospitality subjects, including Ethics & Social Responsibility, Contemporary Issues in Tourism, Ecotourism in Rural and Developing Regions. His research interests are in tourism in Small Island Developing States, ethics of tourism and sustainable tourism.
Brian King is Professor and Associate Dean (Academic Affairs) in the School of Hotel and Tourism Management at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. He previously held various academic positions in Australia. His recent teaching and research has focused on tourism and culture, particularly in Asia and on hospitality and tourism leadership. He has authored books on integrated resorts, tourism development, hospitality education, marketing, VFR travel and Asia-Pacific tourism and has contributed extensively to leading tourism and hospitality journals. He is Co-editor-in-chief and co-founder of Tourism, Culture and Communication and a Fellow of the International Academy for the Study of Tourism.