THRIVE 2030: Supporting the sustainable growth of the regional visitor economy
Grant Ferres, Acting General Manager, Visitor Economy and Client Programs, Austrade

View Grant’s presentation HERE.

A helicopter view of the economy
Rob Cocco, CEO, RDA Greater Whitsundays

View Rob’s presentation HERE.

Crisis Management Planning and Communications
Mark Olsen, CEO, Tourism Tropical North Queensland

View Mark’s presentation HERE.

“Riding the Wave: Mackay’s Strategic Journey to Becoming a Mountain Biking Mecca”
Teona Cousin, Executive Manager Economic Development and Tourism, Mackay Regional Council

Charlotte Prouse, Director, Destination Marketing Store

Ben Andrews, Head of Digital, Destination Marketing Store

Take a look at Mackay Regional Council’s brave,…

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There has been substantial growth in the cruise industry sailing in Australian waters as it continues to recover post-pandemic with almost 50% in total economic impact over the past cruising season. Providing a welcoming visitor experience is paramount to delivering on the expectations of cruise lines and passengers.

Building upon the…

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Regenerative tourism. A marketer’s take on what it is, and how you should evolve your RTO’s strategy for the future of tourism
Dave Hockly, Director, Datastory

In
this thought leadership piece, Dave Hockly will take you through what
regenerative tourism is and how your locals, culture, environment and economy
can all benefit from evolving…

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Regional Events
Linda Tillman, Managing Director, Tilma Group & Co-Founder, Australian Centre for Regional Events; and

Stu Speirs, Director, Silver Lining Strategy

The need to re-think why government invest in events – Stu Speirs

Visitation and subsequent economic impact have long been the primary reason for Government investment in major events.…

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Scaling the mountain of vertical video
Hannah Statham, CEO, Media Mortar

You’ve heard the importance of creating vertical videos. You know that’s how consumers prefer their content served. There’s just one problem … you don’t know how to create one yourself.

What if we told you, you have all the correct tools in your hand? This is a deeply…

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How My Daughter Will Travel When She is 20
Hamish Fell, Founder, Smarter Tourism Technology

When my daughter was born in 2020, Starlink had not arrived in Australia, ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini were not publicly available, non stop flights from London to Perth had been running for less than two years, and I am willing to bet that most people had…

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International Keynote Address

Peter Syme, Scotland
Explore AI’s role in smart destination
management, predictive analytics for demand forecasting, and the integration of
virtual assistants to enhance customer interactions.

View Peter’s presentation HERE.