PolyU plays host to the 9th APacCHRIE Conference
More than 500 delegates from 37 countries and territories are gathering in Hong Kong to attend the 9th Asia-Pacific Council on Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Education (APacCHRIE) Conference organised by the School of Hotel and Tourism Management (SHTM) of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) from 2 to 5 June 2011.
The Conference was officially opened today (3 June) at PolyU's teaching and research hotel, Hotel ICON, by Mr Anthony Lau, Executive Director, Hong Kong Tourism Board; Mr Stanley Yen, Chairman, Landis Management Co. Limited; Ms Cynthia Deale, President of International Council on Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Education (CHRIE); Professor Manat Chaisawat, President of APacCHRIE; Professor Timothy W. Tong, PolyU President; Dr Andy Nazarechuk, Dean of the William F. Harrah College of Hotel Administration, University of Nevada Las Vegas (Singapore Campus); and Professor Kaye Chon, Dean and Chair Professor of the School of Hotel and Tourism Management, PolyU.
Themed "Hospitality and Tourism Education: From a Vision to an Icon", the Conference provides delegates as well as the international hospitality and tourism community with an inter-disciplinary platform to exchange information, ideas and views, and to consolidate the research efforts and industry experiences in the field. Together with the APacCHRIE Youth Conference 2011, it will stand as an iconic academic milestone of the industry.
Founded in Hong Kong in 2002 by Professor Kaye Chon, APacCHRIE is the regional advocate of hospitality and tourism education for schools, colleges, and universities offering programmes in hotel and restaurant management, foodservice management and culinary arts. It has played an instrumental role in promoting academic and research exchanges in the Asia-Pacific region over the years.
Some of the key topics featured at the conference include:
- Catering, Dining and the Foodservice Industry
- Education: Practices and Prospects
- Human Resources Issues in Hospitality and Tourism Industry
- Information Technology and its Influences
- MICE and Event Tourism
- Operational and Management Issues of Hotel Industry
- Sustainability and Social Responsibility
- Service Quality & Customer Relationship Management
- Tourism Planning and Destination Marketing
- Understanding Consumer Behavior
- Other Important Issues of Hospitality & Tourism Industry
Many prominent international and local scholars and experts have been invited as the speakers of the Conference. They are (in alphabetical order):
- Mr Perry Hobson, Director, The International Centre of Excellence in Tourism and Hospitality Education
- Mr Anthony Lau, Executive Director, The Hong Kong Tourism Board
- Mr James Lu, Executive Director, Hong Kong Hotels Association
- Mr Pradeep Kumar Nair, Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Taylor's University
- Mr Stanley C. Yen, Chairman, The Landis Taipei Hotel
- Ms Belinda Yeung, Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer, Regal Hotels International
The organizing committee is grateful to the following sponsors for their support to the Conference:
- MCI Hong Kong
- Francesca Limited
- Meetings and Exhibitions Hong Kong
- Finessa Hong Kong Limited
- Taylor and Francis Asia Pacific
- The Mira Hong Kong
- The Upper House
For more details of the Conference, please visit its official website at: http://www.polyu.edu.hk/htm/conference/APacCHRIE2011
About PolyU School of Hotel and Tourism Management
For more than four decades, the School of Hotel and Tourism Management (SHTM) of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University has refined a distinctive vision of hospitality and tourism education and become a world-leading hotel and tourism school. Ranked No. 1 in the world in the "Hospitality and Tourism Management" category in ShanghaiRanking's Global Ranking of Academic Subjects 2024 for the eighth consecutive year; placed No. 1 globally in the "Commerce, Management, Tourism and Services" category in the University Ranking by Academic Performance in 2023/2024 for seven years in a row; rated No. 1 in the world in the "Hospitality, Leisure, Sport & Tourism" subject area by the CWUR Rankings by Subject 2017; and ranked No. 1 in Asia in the "Hospitality and Leisure Management" subject area in the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2025, the SHTM is a symbol of excellence in the field, exemplifying its motto of Leading Hospitality and Tourism.
The School is driven by the need to serve its industry and academic communities through the advancement of education and dissemination of knowledge. With a strong international team of over 90 faculty members from 21 countries and regions around the world, the SHTM offers programmes at levels ranging from undergraduate to doctoral degrees. Through Hotel ICON, the School's groundbreaking teaching and research hotel and a vital aspect of its paradigm-shifting approach to hospitality and tourism education, the SHTM is advancing teaching, learning and research, and inspiring a new generation of passionate, pioneering professionals to take their positions as leaders in the hospitality and tourism industry.
Website: https://www.polyu.edu.hk/shtm/.