Dr Anke Winchenbach


Senior Lecturer in Tourism and Transport
Dipl Tourism Management, MA Tourism, Environment and Development, PhD
+44 (0)1483 686138
49 AP 02
Please email for an appointment

About

Biography

Dr. Anke Winchenbach joint the University of Surrey as a part-time PhD researcher and ESRC scholar in January 2016, and has since developed from Teaching Fellow to Senior Lecturer in the School of Hospitality and Tourism Management.

Previously, Anke worked at NEF Consulting (the consultancy arm of the New Economic Foundation), supporting a diverse range of clients from private, public and third sector organisations on their journey towards a new sustainable economy by developing an understanding of value for money that includes social and environmental outcomes alongside the economic costs and benefits. Key areas of expertise include evaluation & impact assessment, training & capacity building and strategy & culture change. 

Anke also managed the innovative 'Total Impact Measurement and Management' (TIMM') project for The Travel Foundation in partnership with PwC, which measured TUI Group's holistic impact in Cyprus. Anke holds a Masters with distinction in Tourism, Environment and Development from King's College London, and has worked in several managerial roles in Travel & Tourism since more than 20 years.

University roles and responsibilities

  • Member of the University's Ethics Committee
  • Module Leadership
  • Sustainability and Wellbeing research group
  • Menopause Champion
  • Personal tutoring
  • Programme Leader BSc International Tourism Management & International Tourism Management with Transport (AY 2021-22)
  • Academic Integrity Officer (2018-2021)

Academic networks

    Research

    Research interests

    Research projects

    Teaching

    Publications

    Maria Della Lucia, Frédéric Dimanche, Ernestina Giudici, Blanca A Camargo, ANKE WINCHENBACH (2021)Enhancing tourism education: The contribution of humanistic management, In: Humanistic management journal6(3)pp. 429-449 Springer International Publishing

    The tourism industry is a significant driver of the global economy and impacts societies all over the world that are currently experiencing radical change. Responding to these changes requires economic paradigms and educational systems based on new foundations. Humanistic tourism proposes a values-based disciplinary perspective for tourism at the intersection between humanistic and tourism management, and is rooted in human dignity and societal wellbeing. Integrating humanistic management principles into higher education tourism management programs, and changing the nature of what is taught and how, would benefit students, future managers and all stakeholders. This paper aims at improving higher education tourism programs by combining humanistic management education and the Tourism Education Futures Initiative’s (TEFI) values-based tourism education. It draws on an integrated Humanistic Tourism Education framework to help develop future tourism managers’ skills and abilities to adopt alternative leadership models within the sector and to foster critical and responsible tourism thinking and practice. With best-practice examples from three universities in three different countries, this study illustrates new pedagogical approaches and proposes recommendations for implementing humanistic tourism management in higher education with the aim of training ethical and responsible managers equipped with an awareness of the social, cultural, and environmental challenges – and possible solutions to these – in their respective destinations.

    Anke Winchenbach, Paul Hanna, Graham Miller (2019)Rethinking decent work: the value of dignity in tourism employment, In: Journal of Sustainable Tourism27(7)pp. pp 1026-1043 Taylor and Francis

    This paper focuses on establishing a conceptual grounding for the value of dignity in tourism employment for achieving decent work as part of the sustainable development agenda. Dignity is widely acknowledged as a key driver for ‘good’ work, but little conceptual grounding on the value of dignity in tourism employment has been established. This paper will contribute to the theoretical debate on sustainable tourism by providing a critical review of frameworks for decent work, workplace dignity (or its absence), and understandings of identity. We will explore how the context and conditions of tourism employment are conducive (or not) for offering dignified and sustainable employment. This paper makes two original contributions to knowledge. First, it introduces a psychosocial understanding of dignity in tourism employment, reflecting its deeply rooted individual, organisational, societal and policy aspects, and recognising the actors involved. Second, the critical importance of dignity in tourism employment for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is discussed, with future research directions identified.

    Blanca A Camargo, ANKE WINCHENBACH, Mario Vázquez-Maguirre (2022)Restoring the dignity of indigenous people: Perspectives on tourism employment, In: Tourism management perspectives41100946 Elsevier Ltd

    The importance of dignity in tourism employment and the positive impact of Indigenous tourism activities are increasingly acknowledged. Nevertheless, the dignity and well-being of Indigenous people in urban tourism workplaces have received limited attention. Drawing on Indigenous Mexicans as a case study, we use cross-disciplinary concepts of dignity and humanistic management to address this gap by developing recommendations for restoring dignity to Indigenous groups through tourism employment in urban destinations. We explore how tourism employment has resulted in violations of the dignity of Indigenous peoples and illustrate how changes in employment practices across economic, sociocultural, and psychological dimensions can contribute to dignity restoration. By doing so, we advance a conceptual understanding of dignity and guide its practical implementation in tourism employment and management, and policy. Finally, we argue that dignity-restoring practices may also result in improved company performance and reputation as well as contribute to the sustainable development goals. •Poverty, climate change, and other pressures have forced Indigenous people migrate to cities in search of work opportunities•In urban areas, many Indigenous people are trapped in precarious forms of work that violate their dignity•Changes in tourism employment practices can contribute to dignity restoration of Indigenous people•Dignity-restoring employment practices can improve organizational performance while contributing to sustainable development goals

    ANKE WINCHENBACH, PAUL HANNA, GRAHAM MILLER (2022)Constructing identity in marine tourism diversification, In: Annals of tourism research95103441

    Diversification into tourism is often suggested as a potential solution for the increasing concerns over globally declining fishing opportunities, particularly for small-scale fishers. Through the lens of psychosocial identity, qualitative data analysis from interviews with current and previous fishers in Cornwall shows how people are deconstructing and reconstructing their identities in the transition from fishing to tourism work, and that experiences of marine tourism diversification are dynamic, multifaceted, and embedded in social encounters. This article expands current discussions on work transitions by giving insight into the lived experiences of marine tourism operators from a psychosocial perspective, to go beyond the dominant economic narrative of diversification and social change, which has implications on how transitions into tourism work are facilitated.

    ALBERT NSOM KIMBU, Irma Booyens, ANKE WINCHENBACH (2022)Livelihood Diversification Through Tourism: Identity, Well-Being, and Potential in Rural Coastal Communities, In: Tourism review international Cognizant Communication Corporation

    Traditional rural livelihoods are disappearing due to natural resource decline, climate pressure and, also modernization. This study explores livelihood diversification from primary economic activities into tourism employment in rural communities. We examine the developmental role of tourism in areas where traditional activities, in this case fishing, have declined and tourism is growing. This article presents the findings of two case studies: the coastal communities of Padstow (UK) and Paternoster (South Africa). The approach is qualitative and draws on sustainable livelihoods and social well-being notions to examine how affected people “cope with change” with respect to tourism diversification, and individual and community well-being. While the socioeconomic and sociopolitical contexts in the two research sites differ, the findings show that narratives about belonging and identity feature prominently with respect to fishing livelihoods in both cases. Small-scale fishing, perceived as a way of life for fishers, is under threat in both areas, yet there is limited evidence of concerted efforts to plan and manage the potential diversification processes into tourism. Nonetheless, we observe that tourism does provide some opportunities for fishing-dependent communities and outline some avenues for stronger collaboration, particularly by focusing on culinary tourism.

    Additional publications