Biography
Dr Afiya Holder is a Lecturer/Assistant Professor of Tourism and Events and is the Director of International Student Pathways Programme within The Business School . She is a member of the Tourism Research Centre at 麻豆社区 (ENU) and is internationally recognised for her professional experience and research focuses on tourist behaviour and social sustainability. Afiya鈥檚 research pathways cover topical areas including socio-cultural aversions, diversity, equality, and inclusion (DEI), Indigenous tourism, tourism sustainability, tourism marketing and strategy, as well as, marketing and digital transformation for social good.
Afiya has actively published in top-tiered journals and presented at numerous international conferences and seminars. Her recent tourism developmental research projects include work on tourist behaviour, policy and governance with numerous international organisations (e.g. World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO), UK AID, The House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water, Oceans and Wildlife, USA), as well as destinations (e.g. Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados, as well as Queensland, Australia). Other projects include North Stradbroke Island Economic Transition Strategy (Queensland, Australia), Managing Growth and Sustainable Tourism Governance in Asia and the Pacific (Chengdu, China), Myanmar Tourism Sector Analysis-Business Innovation Facility DFID/UK AID (Myanmar, UK) and Tourism and trophy hunting ethics 2.0: The role of cyberactivism, Australian Research Council (ARC) project (Queensland, Australia). Dr Holder is also an active reviewer in top Tourism and Marketing journals. She serves in the roles of Associate Editor and Podcast Producer for Tourism Geographies.
Dr Holder has over fifteen (15) years of industry experience and contributes to multiple consulting and policy projects annually. She held senior professional roles at Tobago Division of Tourism, United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO), Brisbane Economic Development Agency, Brisbane City Council (formerly Brisbane Marketing), and Hilton International to name a few.
Afiya is also an avid educator and HEA fellow with over 5 years of teaching in higher education at the University of Queensland and Griffith University in Australia. Afiya鈥檚 teaching philosophy is underpinned by social constructivism and critical pedagogical perspectives. She aims to encourage problem solving and learning environments that embody equality, diversity, inclusion, respect, and ethical considerations in preparation for the corporate world. Afiya believes the classroom is a microcosm of the wider society and providing such teaching environments support learning, professional development and employability skills. Afiya also contributes to the United Nations Principles for Responsible Management Education (UN PRME) and was a trained educator for the Carbon Literacy Project which educates and increase awareness and integration of sustainability in business schools and corporate businesses globally.
Afiya also has extensive experience contributing to higher education professional development and was the Principal Lecturer and Coordinator of the Graduate Teaching Associates/HEA program designed to train and prepare PhD students and Early Career Teaching and professional academics for teaching excellence and professional development with focus on learning support, innovativeness and ethical and fair practices. Graduates from this program were invited to apply for Associate Fellow or Fellow within the HEA program. Afiya also served on numerous committees and is an elected Chair and Principal Reviewer for HEA.