The Tourism RESET

Rebecca Woolford
  • 5.0 (1)
  • Places & Travel
  • Updated Weekly

One of the world's largest industries and most powerful vehicles to either regenerate or extract from places. Tune in to tap into leading expertise, fresh ideas and compelling stories that give us hope, clarity and direction. Each episode, host Rebecca Woolford invites academics, leading experts, entrepreneurs and voices often missed in the conference rooms to challenge the traditional tourism model, ask better questions and challenge the status quo for the future of tourism.

  1. 1d ago

    44. From Five Stars To Five Senses With Beàta Szablics

    What does it mean to really 'arrive' in a place? And what's the compelling business case for stillness in tourism? Some of what we'll explore in today's episode... My guest today is Beáta Szablics, a tourism business strategist, experience designer, and certified forest therapy guide. She was the first-ever guide to host nature therapy sessions on the icy continent of Antarctica. Most tours or hotel experiences are built on motion. Beáta's work does something quote different. Her work is already enabling guests around the world to truly connect with a place, and to themselves. Here's what stayed with me after this conversation... 🌍 What Beáta means by place-based sensory experiences, why it's one of the most underused tools in tourism for guest engagement. 🌍 How to make the business case for slowing down in an industry where the entire model has been built on more, and why demand is growing for experiences like this. 🌍 Why guests are sharing that the most powerful moment of their entire trip is moving from 'doing' to 'being', and what that means for the future of designing travel experiences. This episode is powered by Your Nature Anew, where tourism meets wellbeing. Enjoyed this episode? Explore 40+ Masterclasses from the industry's leading minds at thetourismreset.com. Video-first. On-demand. Access for All.

    1h 3m
  2. 43. From Climate Dread To Direction With Dr. Thomas Doherty & Jeremy Smith

    Jun 11

    43. From Climate Dread To Direction With Dr. Thomas Doherty & Jeremy Smith

    The New York Times called Dr Thomas Doherty (author of Surviving Climate Anxiety) the most prominent American advocate of eco psychology. Jeremy Smith is co-author of the Glasgow Declaration on Climate Action in Tourism and has spent more than 20 years at the front line of tourism's response to the climate crisis. This episode goes somewhere most industry conversations and sustainability conferences don't. Not the spreadsheets, not the pledges - but the psychological reality of operating in an industry navigating one of the defining tensions of our time. This episode is powered by Your Nature Anew, where tourism meets wellbeing. Beàta Szablics supports hotels, tour operators, agencies, DMCs and DMOs to move beyond five stars to five senses. Find out more at yournatureanew.com Here's what stayed with me after this conversation... 🌍 Why the anxiety you feel about the climate and nature (as someone working in tourism) isn't a weakness, why it's a healthy sign and what it's actually telling you 🌍 What's missing from most tourism businesses' climate response that no emissions spreadsheet will ever fix! 🌍 What Jeremy witnessed on a small island off the coast of Cornwall that completely changed how he sees tourism's role in the world to come 🌍 The three-step framework Thomas uses with clients navigating climate anxiety — and how to apply it to where you are right now Enjoyed learning from Dr. Thomas and Jeremy? Catch their 5 Minute Reset over at The Tourism Reset. Access on-demand Masterclasses from 40+ of the industry's leading voices. Video first. Zero paywalls. thetourismreset.com. Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction to Climate Anxiety and Eco-Anxiety 06:56 Personal Journeys: Thomas and Jeremy's Experiences 15:11 Understanding Eco-Anxiety: A Healthy Response 24:04 Navigating Climate Anxiety in the Tourism Industry 34:59 The Human Connection: Emotions vs. Technical Solutions 38:55 The Power of Duality in Environmental Perspectives 41:14 Gendered Perspectives on Nature and Nurturing 43:34 Complexity and Connection in Environmental Education 46:55 Navigating Climate Distress and Information Overload 49:33 Finding Grounding in Nature and Local News 51:06 Slowing Down in an Accelerated World 56:10 Environmental Identity and Personal Connection to Nature 01:01:19 Engaging with Nature Through Tourism 01:06:25 The Role of Tourism in Climate Awareness 01:11:24 Identifying Personal Environmental Identity 01:14:03 Personal Practices for Grounding and Reconnection

    1h 8m
  3. 42. Truths the Aviation Industry Hopes You'll Miss With Ex-Pilot Katie Thompson

    May 28

    42. Truths the Aviation Industry Hopes You'll Miss With Ex-Pilot Katie Thompson

    Join Katie Thompson and a panel of leading experts live on the 2nd of April for Rethinking Flying, a live learning event only at thetourismreset.com. Or catch the recording. What truths would the aviation industry rather you didn't know? In this episode we find out. This week I sat down with Katie Thompson. Twenty years in the cockpit. Head of Flight Safety at NetJets. Responsible for hundreds of aircraft and thousands of pilots. An insider. And someone who walked away from a career she loved. Katie isn't criticising or finger pointing from the outside. She's here to create change and share the solutions which already exist. Including how to reduce aviation emissions by up to 50%, today. Not as a promise of tomorrow. Want to learn more and equip yourself with the facts? A brand new MASTERCLASS on this topic drops in spring 2026, developed with leading researchers, professors and experts. Available only at thetourismreset.com If you'd like to read the book Katie recommended: All We Can Save - Katharine Wilkinson & Ayana Elizabeth Johnson (Editors)

    46 min
  4. 41. The Three Eras of Tourism With Tina O'Dwyer

    May 14

    41. The Three Eras of Tourism With Tina O'Dwyer

    Is tourism growing for the sake of growing? Who benefits? And who pays the cost? Just some of the questions we unpack in this episode. This week I sat down with Tina O'Dwyer from Ireland, a renowned strategic advisor in tourism, and one of the few people I've heard put vulnerability and leadership in the same sentence in this industry. Find out why that matters more than you think. Why this is worth a listen: 🌍 The three eras of tourism, what the era of navigation means and why you need to know this to make sense of what you're probably feeling right now 🌍 Why vulnerability and leadership belong in the same sentence, and what that really means for how we lead 🌍 Why someone said to Tina "stewardship is on all our policy documents but we don't know what it means" and why that gap matters more than you think If what you've been hearing on the podcast resonates with you, join us over at thetourismreset.com. On-demand video learning built for tourism pros, teams and students, where the world's leading voices and experts come together on the topics shaping the future of the industry.

    41 min
  5. 40. Turtle Island, Not North America With Dr. Lyla June

    Apr 30

    40. Turtle Island, Not North America With Dr. Lyla June

    Welcome back to The Tourism RESET with me, your host, Rebecca Woolford. My guest today is Dr. Lyla June Johnston, aka Lyla June, an Indigenous musician, author, and activist of Diné nation and European heritage. Lyla’s creativity and passion have engaged audiences around the globe. She blends her study of Human Ecology at Stanford with doctoral research focused on how pre-colonial Indigenous Nations shaped Turtle Island (now called the Americas). Lyla’s wisdom and guidance have completely reshaped how I think about the tourism industry. Here's what you'll discover in this episode: 🌍 What Turtle Island really means, and why understanding this is foundational for anyone promoting travel in North America 🌍 How generational trauma shapes Indigenous communities, and why tourism professionals and businesses need this context to shape how we see the world 🌍 Three key challenges Indigenous communities face, and how tourism done right can support regeneration rather than extraction 🌍 The critical Indigenous principles of solidarity and reciprocity Enjoyed listening? Visit thetourismreset.com, on-demand video learning for tourism pros. A great place to begin is the 5 Minute Reset series, (one expert, one topic, less than five mins).

    53 min
  6. 39. From 'Crazy' to Conservation Legend With Cristalino Lodge

    Apr 16

    39. From 'Crazy' to Conservation Legend With Cristalino Lodge

    Welcome back to The Tourism RESET with me, your host, Rebecca Woolford. My guests today are Vitória and Alex, mother and son from Cristalino Lodge, a world leading ecotourism lodge in the Southern Amazon, Brazil. What began as a deep knowing for Vitoria grew into Cristalino Lodge, now safeguarding 11,399 hectares of rainforest (equal in size to two Manhattans). It's a world-leading research hotspot, a sanctuary of immense biodiversity, and a living classroom where over 13,000 children have explored its trails. Enjoyed listening? Visit thetourismreset.com, on-demand video learning for tourism pros, covering the topics shaping your industry. A great place to begin is the 5 Minute Reset, one expert, one topic, less than five minutes!

    1h 6m
  7. 38. Who Really Benefits From Tourism With Dr Freya Higgins-Desbiolles

    Apr 2

    38. Who Really Benefits From Tourism With Dr Freya Higgins-Desbiolles

    Welcome back to The Tourism RESET with me, your host, Rebecca Woolford. My next guest is Dr Freya Higgins-Desbiolles, an academic powerhouse and author who's spent her career advancing justice in tourism. Freya helped create the Code of Conduct for Tourism in the Holy Land, she's co-authored books on climate justice and community empowerment, and she's working with communities worldwide to reimagine what's possible. Here's what you'll discover in this episode: 🌍 Why Freya believes traditional tourism has been hijacked and by whom 🌍 Why community-owned AND community-led aren't the same as community-based 🌍 Real world examples where local communities are self-determining their futures 🌍 How to inform yourself. Understand what you're missing. Then choose a pathway. Enjoyed listening? Visit thetourismreset.com, on-demand video learning for tourism pros, covering the topics shaping your industry. A great place to begin is the 5 Minute Reset, one expert, one topic, less than five minutes!

    1h 4m
  8. 37. How Tourism Can Transform Women's Lives With Alessandra Alonso & Florbela

    Mar 19

    37. How Tourism Can Transform Women's Lives With Alessandra Alonso & Florbela

    Welcome back to The Tourism RESET with me, your host, Rebecca Woolford. My guests today are Alessandra Alonso, award-winning founder of Women in Travel CIC - named one of 50 most important women in travel by Wanderlust AND Florbela, a tour guide. For two decades, Alessandra has been championing women in tourism. It started when she noticed she was always the only woman in the boardroom. Women are 54% of tourism's workforce, yet rarely are they in decision-making roles (even today). So, she built the Tour Guiding Academy to change that. It trains women like Florbela, who at almost 50 reinvented herself as a tour guide fuelled by passion, cultural heritage, and storytelling. Here's what you'll discover in this episode: 🌍 "There is a lot of talent still totally invisible to industry" - where we're missing out 🌍 Alessandra's journey: from being the only woman in every boardroom to building an academy that transforms lives 🌍 Why curiosity matters: "Don't do things how they've always been done" Enjoyed listening? Visit thetourismreset.com, on-demand video learning for tourism pros, covering the topics shaping your industry. A great place to begin is the 5 Minute Reset, one expert, one topic, less than five minutes!

    57 min
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About

One of the world's largest industries and most powerful vehicles to either regenerate or extract from places. Tune in to tap into leading expertise, fresh ideas and compelling stories that give us hope, clarity and direction. Each episode, host Rebecca Woolford invites academics, leading experts, entrepreneurs and voices often missed in the conference rooms to challenge the traditional tourism model, ask better questions and challenge the status quo for the future of tourism.

Information

  • Creator
    Rebecca Woolford
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    44
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2026 Rebecca Woolford
  • Show Website
    The Tourism RESET