My motivation to teach comes from my love for discussion and the sharing of ideas, as well as my desire to learn new things about the world and myself. I am passionate about issues that relate to people and cultures, and their relationships to place and each other, and also about rural and remote communities and the difficult decisions they face in their quest to be vibrant, dynamic and able to respond to challenges in a way that creates positive outcomes. I examine many of these issues and interest areas through the lens of tourism, which I understand to be a powerful force that shapes people, places and communities in both negative and positive ways. By sharing my passion for these topics with students and community learners and partners, I strive to inspire curiosity and commitment to positive practices and understandings.
The ‘Courses Taught’ section outlines the courses I have taught and learning I have facilitated over the past several years, both in class and outside the classroom (e.g., field schools, international and national NGOs). In addition, and since 2011, I have supervised 7 graduate students who undertook research and thesis-based master degrees: Umeå University (3 students completed) and VIU (4 students, 2 completed and 2 in progress – expected completion 2015). My graduate students have investigated various leisure and tourism themes in diverse international jurisdictions, including: culinary tourism and identity in France; Aboriginal tourism and empowerment in northern Sweden; agritourism development in the Cowichan Valley; small cities and cultural planning with Nanaimo as a case study; and three research projects which relate to the increased mobility of Chinese nationals or Chinese immigrant communities in Canada.