20 Projects & 1 Tourism Resilience & Recovery Plan
RESILIENCE CONFERENCE
SHARING EXPERIENCES
BUILDING RESILIENCE
13th-14th of November 2023
We acknowledge the traditional owners of the many lands and waters within the Scenic Rim - the Mununjali in the Centre, the Wangerriburra to the East, the Ugarapul to the West, and all those of the Yugambeh and Jagera language groups.
This conference aims to bring together leading experts, industry stakeholders and local governments to exchange and share their experiences and results on innovative practices, processes and projects that have contributed to develop tourism and resilience in climate-related risk regions. It will also provide an interdisciplinary platform to discuss the most recent trends and concerns, as well as practical challenges encountered, and solutions adopted. This conference is part of the Tourism Bushfire Resilience in the Scenic Rim: 20 Projects and 1 Tourism Resilience and Recovery Plan project funded by the Federal and Queensland Governments, and organised by Griffith Institute for Tourism, Griffith University.
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Location: Kooralbyn Valley Resort 
1 Routley Dr, Kooralbyn, QLD 4285
Phone: 07 5544 6688
Free event - registration here
Contact: 20P1TRRP.2023@gmail.com
PROGRAM
Day 1 Day 2
OUR CONFERENCE SPEAKERS
----------------------- Monday 13th of November 2023 ------------------------
9.30 - Official Welcome
Margarida Abreu Novais
Senior Lecturer, Master of Ceremonies (MC)
Griffith Institute for Tourism, Griffith University
Dr Margarida Abreu Novais is a senior lecturer in the Department of Tourism, Sport and Hotel Management and the leader of the Visitor Economy Data Analytics and Indicators research cluster at the Griffith Institute for Tourism. She has a PhD in Tourism Management and has been involved with a variety of projects working with local and regional destinations. Her main areas of expertise are destination competitiveness, data-driven destination management, resilience and risk management in tourism and hospitality.
Gurruhman Kruze Summers
Acknowledgment to Country
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Kruze Summers, whose traditional name is Gurruhman, belong to the Yagara Ugarapul peoples of south East Queensland (grandfather country) and to the Bidjara peoples of south west Queensland (grandmother country). Born in Darwin, Kruze now lives in the Scenic Rim. He is a proud Goori man who is forever grateful for all the teaching and knowledge handed down by his Elders, Country, Nature, Dreaming, Sacred Spirits and Lore. He now continues the journey his grandfather left him to walk, along with his spirit.  In his Yarriba walking  tour, Kruze helps guests to connect with nature and immerse themselves in the ancient landscapes of the Scenic Rim - walking, sharing stories, learning traditional Indigenous ways of living, and considering their own place in nature. 
Sarah Gardiner
Director
Griffith Institute for Tourism, Griffith University
Sarah Gardiner has a PhD in Marketing. She is the Director of the Griffith Institute for Tourism and an Associate Professor in Tourism. She has worked in the private and public sectors of the Australian tourism industry. Her research is published in leading tourism academic journals and she has written several book chapters on the topics of travel consumer behaviour, experience design and innovation. She regularly delivers presentations, consultancies and training for government and industry in these areas. She is especially interested in youth tourism and future tourism travel trends.
Cr Greg Christensen
Scenic Rim Mayor
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Greg Christensen has served as Scenic Rim Mayor since March 2016 and is committed to delivering strong leadership to the region's communities. His professional background includes senior leadership roles at General Motors Holden, CSR Timber Products, OneSteel, WMC Resource, Wilmar Sugar and Sugar Australia, with a focus on strategy, systems and organisation alignment to unlock full business potential. It also included a period as Director for the Office of Manufacturing in South Australia.
Born and raised in the Scenic Rim, Mayor Christensen's family connection to the region dates back to the 19th century. He lives in the rural district of Tarome with his wife, Denise.
10.00 - Panel Discussion: Resilient destinations
Daniel Gschwind
Professor of Practice
Griffith Institute for Tourism
Daniel Gschwind has been Queensland Tourism Industry Council’s CEO for 21 years before passing on the reigns in 2022. Gschwind’s impressive CV also includes six years as Australian Tourism Industry Council Deputy Chair, seven years as Australian Tourism Awards Chair, current board member of Tourism Whitsundays, 15 years as a Surf Life Saving Queensland Vice Patron and he has been the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority’s tourism reef advisory committee chair since January 2020.
He is now a Professor of Practice at Griffith Institute for Tourism.
Natasha Montesalvo
Principal Consultant
EarthCheck
Natasha Montesalvo is a seasoned tourism expert, specialising in sustainability and resilience across the tourism sector. At EarthCheck, she supports destinations in delivering sustainable experiences and empowers operators to initiate and enhance their sustainability journeys. Prior to EarthCheck, Natasha worked in Policy and Research for the Queensland Tourism Industry Council, during this time supporting businesses with climate adaptation and disaster resilience. With a PhD from Griffith University focused on tourism networks, Natasha understands the industry's political systems and their impact on success. She also brings operational experience from luxury hotels in Australia and the UK, along with work in Europe for a major UK tour operator.
Damian O'Sullivan
Principal Project Manager
Department of Tourism, Innovation and Sport
Damian is an experienced project management, policy and stakeholder management professional with strategic collaborative project planning expertise in the disaster recovery, preparedness and resilience space. Damian currently works for the Department of Tourism, Innovation and Sport (DTIS) on the implementation of innovative responsive initiatives across multiple operational settings, strategies, programs, projects and response to disasters and/or external shocks. He has successfully secured several funding through DTIS with the 2021-22 Queensland Extraordinary Severe Weather Events Tourism Recovery and Resilience Program being the latest one.
Elnaz Torabi
Principal Policy Officer
Department of Environment and Science
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Elnaz (Ellie) Torabi has a PhD in urban and environmental planning. She is an adjunct member of Griffith University's Cities Research Institute and has a background in architecture and strategic city and infrastructure planning. Ellie’s research explores urban resilience and adaptation to climate change in cities and regions and her current work focuses on creating climate positive outcomes for cities and destinations using a collective impact model.
Sarah Gardiner
Director, Session moderator
Griffith Institute for Tourism, Griffith University
Sarah Gardiner has a PhD in Marketing. She is the Director of the Griffith Institute for Tourism and an Associate Professor in Tourism. She has worked in the private and public sectors of the Australian tourism industry. Her research is published in leading tourism academic journals and she has written several book chapters on the topics of travel consumer behaviour, experience design and innovation. She regularly delivers presentations, consultancies and training for government and industry in these areas. She is especially interested in youth tourism and future tourism travel trends.
11.45 - Keynote Address: Destination Marketing & Recovery
Gabby Walters
Associate Professor
University of Queensland
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Dr Gabby Walters is an Associate Professor in Tourism with the University of Queensland’s Business School. She holds significant expertise in image and reputation management and in particular market recovery following crises and disastrous events. Her research has focused primarily on the tourism sector. She has conducted numerous consultancies and projects with tourism destinations from different parts of the world, seeking to enhance or revitalise their reputations and regain trust among the tourism market as a result one or many critical events. She has a well-established publication record in the field including her co-authored book ‘Image and Reputation Recovery for the Tourism and Hospitality Industry'.
13.30 - Keynote Address: Resilience and Entrepreneurial Bricolage
Julienne Senyard
Senior Lecturer
Griffith University
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Dr Julienne Senyard is the program outcomes director and entrepreneurship lecturer at Griffith University. Her current research  studies innovation under contextual constraints including startups, role conflict in women in entrepreneurial setting, businesses response to COVID, refugee entrepreneurs. She teaches innovation and entrepreneurship with a focus problem solving, critical thinking and creativity to staff and students, and more recently, clinicians working in hospital settings as part of the Clinical Entrepreneurship Change Agents Program, an Advance Queensland project.
14.15 - Speed Networking Session
14.45 - Poster Presentations
15.15 - Panel Discussion: Local Resilience
Mark Ryan
Executive Coordinator, Disaster and Emergency Management
Lifestyle and Community Directorate, City of Gold Coast 
Mark is the Manager of Disaster and Emergency Management for the City of Gold Coast. He leads a team of 20 staff who focus each week on the prevention of, preparation for, response to and recovery from natural and non-natural disaster and emergency events across a highly complex hazard profile. The program spans risk management, bushfire mitigation and the operation of the new $24M Disaster and Emergency Management Centre in coordinating the response and recovery operations for the City, along with the supporting capabilities to ensure this work is coordinated and has a high impact on community resilience. Prior to this position, Mark had a career across three states in fire and emergency management. He has been awarded the National Medal, National Emergency Medal, along with Citations for the G20 security operation in 2014 and 2018 Commonwealth Games.
Brodie Smith
Sustainability Officer
Ipswich City Council
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As the Sustainability Officer at Ipswich City Council, Brodie delivers projects & initiatives that translate to ‘on the ground’ outcomes as well as provide strategic sustainability direction across the organisation. Some of my recent work includes; Three year Urban Heat Island (UHI) project with Griffith University (GU) & University of Sunshine Coast (USC); Adoption of Council’s Sustainability Strategy; EV Chargers & Infrastructure; Development of strategic rollout of rooftop solar installation(s); Various energy efficiency projects such as streetlighting & LED replacements working closely with Council’s electrical & engineering team; Managing Council’s energy & sustainability monitoring platform.
Kathy Forrest
Principal Specialist Community Development and Council's Local Recovery Coordinator
Scenic Rim Council
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As the Local Recovery Coordinator at Scenic Rim Regional Council, Kathy Forrest is responsible for managing and coordinating the business of the Local Recovery Group (LRG) and the recovery operational response during disaster events. It also includes performing the role of conduit between community and the Local Disaster Management Group (LDMG), liaising with functional lead agency representatives and key stakeholders, coordinating community recovery to address the immediate effects of disaster events, providing advice to relevant agencies on the needs and responses of affected individuals and communities and developing and implementing effective recovery and resilience programs and strategies that encourage community participation and partnership before, during and after events.
James Wong
Community recovery and resilience officer
Southern Downs Regional Council 
James is the Community Recovery and Resilience Officer for the Southern Downs, where he focuses on the human & social impacts of the black summer bushfires, South Qld flooding, and building resilience for future events. He is also the Chair of the Human & Social Recovery Sub-Group for the current Southern Downs Bushfires. He previously held disaster recovery positions with Townsville City Council and the Northern Queensland Primary Health Network. His programs primarily focus on vulnerable populations and have encompassed CALD communities, including refugees and migrants, young children, disability-inclusive disaster risk reduction, rural and isolated pocket communities, and a range of psychosocial and suicide prevention measures, to name a few.
Karine Dupre
Professor, session moderator
Griffith Institute for Tourism
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Karine is a practice-based researcher and an authority in social design, specifically investigating, testing and optimizing multidimensionality (engagement, scale, expertise and methods) in design processes to make better sustainable and resilient cities and communities. Within this UN-Sustainable Development Goal #11, she has developed 3 main directions towards 1/the support of inclusive and sustainable urbanisation and 2/the strengthening of tourism and urban planning for regional development, 3/the support of cultural heritage.
----------------------- Tuesday 14th of November 2023 ------------------------
9.00 - Panel Discussion: Resilient Businesses
Toni Brennan
Founder and CEO
Fun Over 50 Holidays
Toni Brennan, the Founder and CEO of Fun Over 50 Holidays, heads a multi-award-winning tour company. Her journey began from a personal frustration with the lack of quality travel experiences for the over-50s market. Toni envisioned breaking free from the stereotypes associated with extended tour travel for this demographic. Her mission is clear: to craft immersive, transformative experiences that touch the lives of travellers and the places and people they visit. Her ambition extends beyond the immediate satisfaction of guests; she is committed to leaving a lasting positive impact on local communities and natural environments. Toni's approach is underpinned by an innovative and sustainable business model, incorporating a quadruple bottom line framework encompassing cultural, economic, environmental, and social pillars.
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Innes Larkin
Owner
Mt Barney Lodge
Together with his wife, Tracey, Innes Larkin runs Mt Barney Lodge, a family-owned eco lodge established by his parents in 1991, which offers camping, cabins and glamping accommodation. A highly experienced climber and hiker, Innes has a deep connection and knowledge of Mount Barney and the surrounding World Heritage-listed Gondwana Rainforest Area, which he shares through storytelling and guided adventures. Twice a member of the Community Advisory Committee for the Gondwanan Rainforests of Australia World Heritage property, and Deputy Chair of Ecotourism Australia, Innes is passionate about sustainable tourism and the lasting legacies it can bring to a region.
Greg McKinnon
Director
BIG4 Adventure Whitsunday Resort
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Greg is a second generation caravan park owner of BIG4 Adventure Whitsunday Resort, purchased by the McKinnon Family 30 years ago. Since purchasing the park in 1993, it has seen a complete transformation into the 4.5 star, multi-award-winning resort it is today. Greg’s experience includes not only the day to day operations of the resort but also being heavily involved and a proactive mentor in the industry including several years as a Director of Caravanning Queensland of which he is a current board member, the Chairman and Insurance Advisory Panel Member for the BIG4 Holiday Parks Advisory Council which he has held for many years and more recently on the board for Tourism Whitsundays.
Kylie Petersen
Director
Tweed Eco Cruises
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Kylie Petersen has been central to Tweed Eco Cruises for 25 years.   Kylie is passionate about the water and ecosystem, leading her down a path of sustainability that ensures that the TEC business AND environment prosper regardless of the twists and turns (such as pandemics and floods!) that may come. Kylie thrives in guiding crew and customers to participate, respect, and be empowered by nature and has been involved in navigating changes to eco policies and legislation to ensure this is possible for future generations.
Iain MacKenzie
Professor of Practice, session moderator
Griffith University
Iain MacKenzie is a Professor of Practice in the Cities Research Institute at Griffith University. Iain's extensive experience with disaster management, risk reduction, and resilience building includes roles as a first responder, Deputy Commissioner of Fire & Rescue Services, Queensland's Inspector-General of Emergency Management, and Senior Advisor to the Commonwealth's Minister for Emergency Management during the 'black summer' bushfires.
An accomplished public speaker and presenter, Iain's expertise lies in enhancing and focusing organizational efforts, developing and delivering strategic policy, identifying creative solutions to complex problems, making timely decisions, and managing conflict in challenging industrial environments.
10.15 - Keynote Address
Designing with Place: First Nations Knowledge and Resilience
Tristan Schultz
Director, Design and creative lead
Relative Creative
Tristan Schultz is a designer, researcher and strategist of Gamilaroi and Australian-European descent. He has spent his life living, working and playing across the Gold Coast and Scenic Rim. Along with a Bachelor of Design, a Masters of Design Futures and a PhD in Design, he has more than 20 years of professional practice in visual communication, product, events and interpretive design, strategic foresight, futures thinking and sustainability. He is currently Director of Relative Creative and Heart & Lava, and Honorary Adjunct Fellow at the University of Technology, Sydney in the Design School and Honorary Principal Research Fellow at RMIT, Melbourne.
11.30 - Panel Discussion: Resilient People
Gretel Breytenbach
People and Culture Manager
O'Reilly's Rainforest Retreat
Gretel Breytenbach, People and Culture Manager at O’Reilly’s Rainforest Retreat has a deep-seated passion for developing human potential and fostering resilient teams. With over a decade in talent and leadership development; Gretel champions workplace environments where individuals thrive. With a commitment to innovative strategies and inclusive programs, she is committed to building capability through continuous learning and team collaboration. She believes in developing capabilities that unlock strengths, equipping teams to conquer challenges in complex, dynamic and ever-changing environments. Gretel’s vision is clear: create a thriving workplace where individuals shine, and teams conquer all.
Mike Wassing
Deputy Commissioner
Queensland Fire and Emergency Services
As Deputy Commissioner with Queensland Fire and Emergency Services (QFES), Mike is committed to enhancing and strengthening QFES capabilities and promoting an inclusive and supportive culture that enriches our ability to support our local communities. Since joining QFES in September 2015, Mike has led the development of the first QFES Climate Change Action Plan, was instrumental in driving the QFES 2030 and contemporary strategies and has championed many initiatives in the workplace to positively change organisational culture.
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Scotia Monkivitch
Founder and Executive Officer
Creative Recovery Network
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Scotia is a cultural leader who has a broad range of professional experiences working in the community arts and cultural development sector nationally and internationally- training, mentoring, strategic planning, project management, research and facilitation. Scotia is the founder and Executive Officer of the Creative Recovery Network - the national advocacy body working to develop and embed the vital role of community-connected culture, arts and creativity in Australia’s disaster management system. She has a performance background in movement based theatre and performance that crosses through traditional theatre forms, installation-performance, film, live-art and on-line exchanges.
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Paula Brough
Professor, Session moderator
Griffith University
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Paula Brough is a Professor of Organisational Psychology and Director of the Centre for Work, Organisation and Wellbeing at Griffith University. Paula’s primary research and teaching areas are occupational stress and coping, employee mental health and wellbeing, work engagement, work-life balance, workplace conflict (bullying, harassment, toxic leadership), and the psychosocial work environment. Paula assesses how work environments can be improved via job redesign, supportive leadership practices, and enhanced equity to improve employee health, work commitment, and productivity. Paula has authored over 85 industry reports, over 150 journal articles and book chapters.  
12.45 - Conference wrap up and closing
Margarida Abreu Novais
Senior Lecturer, Master of Ceremonies (MC)
Griffith Institute for Tourism, Griffith University
Dr Margarida Abreu Novais is a senior lecturer in the Department of Tourism, Sport and Hotel Management and the leader of the Visitor Economy Data Analytics and Indicators research cluster at the Griffith Institute for Tourism. She has a PhD in Tourism Management and has been involved with a variety of projects working with local and regional destinations. Her main areas of expertise are destination competitiveness, data-driven destination management, resilience and risk management in tourism and hospitality.
