This is the standard format for presentations. Oral presentations consist of the presenter verbally communicating their research findings to the audience, frequently supplemented with a PowerPoint slideshow. In general, oral presentations are structured into parallel sessions consisting of four to five presentations, organized by stream.

A workshop is a concise yet impactful course, with a duration of 50 minutes, that is instructed by a seasoned practitioner or researcher, typically possessing a doctoral degree. A reduced number of participants engages in information exchange and group interaction is promoted, in contrast to the typical format of a plenary session. Workshops frequently encompass activities such as skill development, problem-solving, and the distribution of novel scholarly materials or approaches. In contrast to oral presentations, conference workshops are generally characterized by an emphasis on instruction and interaction. Participants collaborate with the workshop presenter to address a specific topical issue.

Panel presentations are conceptualized and coordinated by individuals who solicit presenters to participate in an engaging discourse pertaining to a particular subject matter. The presentations delivered by the panellists do not have titles attached to them. The topics that are to be addressed ought to be explicitly delineated in the proposals for panel discussions. Joint papers may be submitted by presenters for publication in the Conference Proceedings. Their duration is sixty minutes, and their structure is generally as follows:

• Introduction
• Brief presentations by panelists
• Discussion

Muna Haddad is the founding CEO of BARAKA, a social enterprise in sustainable tourism development that provides consulting services for governments, NGOs, and private sector looking to utilize tourism as an economic development tool. BARAKA operates Baraka Destinations, a cluster of community owned, locally embedded tourism experiences in secondary tourism destinations including two bed and breakfasts that offer a unique taste and experience of Jordan’s villages.

Muna has been contributing new models of community-based tourism, revitalizing secondary tourism destinations in 9 countries, engaging women in rural areas in the workforce and developing community driven micro-enterprises that are creating thousands of jobs and restoring dignity to marginalized communities. Muna is the Founding President of the Jordan Trail Association, and was instrumental in the creation of the Meaningful Travel Map of Jordan.

She sits on the board of the Global Ecotourism Network, bringing the world’s regional and national ecotourism associations, networks and destinations, together with indigenous and rural peoples, global operators, professionals and academics, to grow the industry, provide advocacy, encourage thought leadership and innovation, and add greater authenticity to ecotourism. She is the recipient of the Tourism Cares Agent of Change Award and King Abdullah Bin Al Hussein Royal Decoration of the Second Degree for excellence and recently Business Woman of the Year in Jordan.

Maribel Rodriguez joined WTTC in 2014. She has built an extensive network within the Travel and Tourism industry public and private sector, accumulating over 20 years of sales, marketing, communication and commercial experience in Europe and Latin America in the airline and hospitality industry. She was an Executive Commercial Director and Board Member for Travelodge Hotels Spain from 2008 to 2014.

Prior she spent 11 years in the aviation industry, gaining extensive experience in all aspects of commercial aviation managing among others the introduction of low-cost airline operations into the Southern European market for Virgin Express, Go-Fly, EasyJet and Ryanair. She also worked for British Airways for Spain, Portugal and France. Maribel has an Executive MBA at ICADE Business School, a Degree in Industrial Psychology from the University of Salamanca and holds a Senior Executive Program for Travel & Tourism at IESE & JSF. She speaks fluent English, Portuguese and a good level of French and Dutch.

Michaela is the Managing Director of Rera Partners. She is proud and honored to lead a firm of women who are exceptionally talented and who have integrity and a deep sense of social responsibility. She is passionate not only about the development of Rera Partners and the services it has to offer but about the impact the firm and its people are able to make in the lives of its clients, their businesses and the communities they operate in.

She found her passion for Corporate Finance when she moved to Botswana in 2010. Michaela is an ardent transaction advisor who specialises in Mergers & Acquisitions, Valuations, Due Diligence and Turnaround advisory services. Michaela is a locally respected transaction advisor, known by her clients to be personable, approachable, passionate and solution driven.

Michaela is a qualified Chartered Global Management Accountant with over 15 years’ industry experience. She has worked in the UK, South Africa, Botswana, China and Kenya. Having been employed in industry and practice in senior roles she has a wide range of hands-on practical experience and is able to relate to her clients in a unique manner. She has successfully managed the implementation of various projects and her local clientele has included private, listed and government entities.

Michaela has a passion for training and development. She has delivered corporate finance training for the last three years across Europe, the Middle East and Southern Africa, where she has trained over 200 finance professionals. She has also mentored and trained many young professionals locally.

As the Marketing and Sales Director, Lee-Anne is responsible for the sales and marketing at The Singer Group, a well-known travel and hospitality company with a track record of almost 60 years in the business.

With over 20 years of experience, she focuses on business development, identifying new business opportunities and partnerships for the Group. She was recently appointed as Chairperson of FEDHASA Cape, and serves on the board of Glendale, a home for intellectually disabled adults.

Her career highlights include speaking at the International Travel Tech Conference in Tel Aviv and winning the ‘Western Cape Positive Role Model’ title in the Gender Mainstreaming Awards.

Lee-Anne has worked in various roles within the media industry, including CNBC Africa, The Property Magazine and Top Women in Business and Government.

Collins has over 30 years of hospitality experience and is a 20-year veteran with Marriott International. A graduate of the Shannon College of Hotel Management in his native Ireland, Collins started his career with Marriott International in Scotland at the Marriott Dalmahoy Hotel and Country Club in Edinburgh in 2001, before leading the Marriott Druids Glen Hotel and Country Club near Dublin.

Richard moved to the United Arab Emirates in 2013 where he was General Manager of Dubai’s first JW Marriott Hotel. Following a successful period at the JW Marriott Hotel Dubai, Richard then took the helm at The Ritz Carlton, Dubai where within a three-year period the property saw unprecedented success growing its business, profit, associate engagement, RevPAR index, and guest voice scores.

In 2018, Collins was appointed his first multi-property role as Area General Manager of Abu Dhabi for Marriott International, during which he also managed the successful transition of all Starwood Legacy properties to the Marriott network.