This handbook offers a comprehensive overview of the themes and concepts related to nature-based tourism development. Providing interdisciplinary insights from leading researchers, academics and practitioners across the globe, it delivers a critical and timely contribution to the knowledge around nature-based tourism.
Ante Mandić, PhD is an Assistant Professor of Sustainable Tourism at the Department of Tourism and Economy, Faculty of Economics, Business and Tourism, University of Split, Croatia. He is also an affiliated faculty at the Human Dimensions of Natural Resources Department, Warner College of Natural Resources, Colorado State University. He serves as a manager of the SmartCulTour Living Lab and an Associate Editor of the Journal of Ecotourism. He is a member of the Executive Committee and coordinator of Knowledge Development at the International Union for Conservation of Nature – World Commission for Protected Areas TAPAS.
His teaching predominately focuses on sustainable tourism development. In his research, he pays attention to heritage destinations, particularly protected and conserved natural areas. He has published a number of academic papers in his field in respectful international journals as well as book chapters and books. Dr Mandić has extensive experience working as a researcher or educator on international projects founded by INTERREG MEDITERRANEAN (ShapeTourism; BluTour System; Co-Evolve; DESTIMED (educator) and also the HORIZON 2020 program (SmartCulTour)).
Sandeep K. Walia, PhD is presently working as Professor and Deputy Dean in the School of Hotel Management and Tourism at Lovely Professional University, Jalandhar, Punjab, India. He is an alumnus of Himachal Pradesh University Shimla and IGNOU, New Delhi. Dr Walia is associated as Visiting Faculty to School of Tourism, Hospitality and Event Management, Universiti Utara Malaysia Kedah (a QS-ranked University), Malaysia, and Himalayan Institutes of Alternative Learning (an upcoming Mountain University) in Leh, Laddakh, as Curriculum Development/Board of Studies Expert and Visiting Faculty. His areas of interest are community-based tourism, tourism marketing and cultural tourism. He has worked as Program Director/ Paper Coordinator for the subject Aviation Industry – Ticketing and Frontier Formalities and developed E-content under MHRD Sponsored UGC Project titled EPG Pathshala for the online learning of Postgraduate Level. He has also acted as a faculty coordinator for Peer to Peer: Facebook Global Digital Challenge Spring 2017. Dr Walia is Founder Editor in Chief of the Tourism and Hospitality Research Review (International Journal of LPU), and the Managing Editor and Editor for the journals Tourism Dimensions and Tourism Spectrum (both international refereed journals). He has authored 9 books and 15 research papers in various Scopus and ABDC Journals.
