Prof Dato’ Indera Ir Dr Lee.
Assoc Prof Dr Agoes.
Ms Matina.
Ms Jamie Chiu, presenting her paper.
Shelwyn (centre) with his peers who were all student presenters at THIC 2025.
The Tourism and Hospitality International Conference (THIC) 2025, held on 11 -12 December 2025 is a collaboration between TAR UMT’s Faculty of Social Science and Humanities (FSSH), Ciputra University, Indonesia, IMI Switzerland, Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM) and Prince of Songkhla University, Phuket. The international level conference brought together academics, industry and academic partners, researchers and students in meaningful discourse on the future of tourism and hospitality. The conference theme for this year was, ‘Navigating Change: Innovations for A Sustainable Future in Tourism and Hospitality.’
In his opening address, Prof Dato’ Indera Ir Dr Lee Sze Wei, President of TAR UMT, said: “This year’s conference theme touches on two critical dimensions of our time—innovation and sustainability. Tourism and hospitality are industries built on experience, culture and human connection, yet they are also constantly shaped by change, whether in markets, technology, traveller behaviour or the environment we depend on. We must therefore ask ourselves how can we innovate responsibly, and how we can create a future where tourism does not merely survive, but sustains ecosystems, supports communities and uplifts societies in the long run.”
Reflecting the conference’s emphasis on action-oriented thinking, the keynote speakers further reinforced these perspectives through their respective addresses. Delivering the first keynote address, Assoc Prof Dr Agoes Tinus Lis Indrianto, Dean of the School of Tourism at Universitas Ciputra Surabaya, Indonesia, remarked, “Entrepreneurship in tourism and hospitality education is about developing both venture creators and value creators. As educators, we must guide students to transform ideas into viable hospitality start-ups while ensuring that the services and experiences they design generate meaningful social, cultural and economic values.”
Meanwhile, in the second keynote address, Ms Matina Gatsou, Academic Dean of IMI International Management Institute Switzerland, shared, “Reimagining tourism requires a shared journey. We need to rethink why and how we do tourism, redesign our approaches and reconnect with nature so that travellers leave with deeper appreciation and responsibility. By reintegrating sustainability and innovation into our curricula through agile collaboration, we recognise that tourism is more than movement—it shapes human behaviour, bridges economies and has the power to be truly transformative.”
The conference also witnessed the presentation of four Best Paper Awards to recognise outstanding presentations and promising research, with one of the recipients being Jamie Chiu Suet Yiee from TAR UMT Sabah Branch. Reflecting on her Best Paper Award, Jamie shared, “My research looks at how independent hotels in Kota Kinabalu survived the pandemic and are now recovering in a more sustainable way. It highlights the strategies they used to adapt to new technologies and changing guest expectations. The study reflects the conference theme of navigating change for a sustainable future, and its practical focus resonated with the international panel. Exchanging ideas with researchers from different countries also broadened my understanding of tourism systems around the world. I hope the findings can help independent hotel operators and guide policymakers in shaping practical and sustainable recovery strategies for the industry.”
Sharing his experience as a student presenter, Shelwyn Dave Valdez from Mindanao State University said, “Participating in THIC 2025 gave me valuable insights into topics such as Chinese Metaphysics (BaZi) and helped me see how classroom learning connects with real-world industry trends, where technology continues to evolve but human interaction remains essential. It is my first international conference and overseas experience, and I have learnt a lot of valuable things not only in the conference but in my interaction with the other conference delegates.”
