Girona, Spain, 13th September 2021 – On Friday, 3rd September, the PATA University of Girona EMTM Student Chapter organized its first on-site event, EMTM Industry Day, in collaboration with the EMTM Consortium. The EMTM Industry Day is an annual event organized for Students and Alumni of the European Master in Tourism Management (EMTM). This year’s event focused on two panel discussions and three interactive workshops about tourism entrepreneurship and sustainability. Since the speakers were EMTM Alumni and industry professionals, this was also an excellent networking opportunity for all the event participants. All the speakers shared their inspiration in working with entrepreneurship and sustainability.

The event started with a panel discussion on sustainable businesses and their connection to sustainable development goals. Stella Gonzalez, the Chapter’s chairperson, led the discussion between the speakers, Kieran Creevy, Magdalina Atanasova, Miha Bratec. Additionally, Lucia Loposova, who was unable to attend due to the current pandemic, shared her business insights through an introductory video. Similarly, the second panel was opened by a video from Lauren Kana Chan, who shared her opinion on the future trends in tourism. Magdalina Atanasova, EMTM Alumni, led the discussion between Franziska Rottig, Alessandro Grampa, and Jeffery Wong, who presented exciting facts about the trends emerging in tourism and which will significantly impact the tourism industry in the future.

In contrast to the panels, the chapter members organized the workshops to be interactive and engaging. A total of three workshops were presented to an audience that consisted of EMTM Students, Graduates and Alumni. Rowena Hennigan, a remote work professional, and Jonathan Ben-Yishai conducted a workshop on digital skills that one should possess to be a successful tourism entrepreneur. Gina Xifra and Kirsten Muller engaged the participants with interactive role-plays and outlined the importance of networking for entrepreneurs. A third workshop guided by Ioana Mereuta and Nuria Mohedano with the support of an introductory video speech by Natalia Bayona from UNWTO highlighted the role of women in entrepreneurship.

The event, which hosted around 60 participants, concluded with a PATA University of Girona EMTM Student Chapter presentation. Aletheia Tan, PATA Youth Ambassador, and Shima Ahmadi, Student Chapter’s Mentor, introduced the Chapter’s session by featuring the efforts of the chapter members in their journey as the first PATA EMTM chapter. Stella Gonzalez and Christina Katsantoni, chairperson and vice-chairperson, presented the achievements of the first Student Chapter and invited the new generation of EMTM students to get involved.

While this event represents the end and graduation of the first-generation of PATA members from EMTM, it was an excellent opportunity to develop several skills. The Chapter worked for months to brainstorm the concept of the event and find the link between two concepts that are strengthening in the industry, tourism entrepreneurship and sustainability. Additionally, the chapter members worked on teams to develop several roles, such as monitoring the panels and workshops, creating the marketing strategy, and conducting administrative tasks. Thanks to the chapter members’ belief in the Chapter’s goal and mission of connecting the academy to industry career opportunities, this event was an evident success!

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About PATA University of Girona EMTM Student Chapter

The focus of our chapter is the connection between academia and practice. Through the process of knowledge sharing and networking, we hope to create an impact in the tourism industry. We aim to investigate strategies and practices that students can follow so that their research could bring added value to the tourism industry (companies, DMOs, travellers, communities) as well as to themselves. Our objective is to connect public and private organizations for the sustainable development of the travel and tourism industry.

Learn more about PATA University of Girona EMTM Student Chapter

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Learning and connecting: EMTM Industry Day, the first on-site event of PATA University of Girona EMTM Student Chapter