BTM, MA.URP (Hons), DSocSci
Instructor
paolofresnoza@capilanou.ca
Education
DSocSci, Interdisciplinary Studies, Royal Roads University, 2021.
MA.URP (Honours), Urban and Regional Planning, University of the Philippines, 2008.
BTM, Capilano University, 2005.
"It's good to have firm direction but better to have an open mind."
Bio
Paolo Fresnoza (DSocSci, Royal Roads University, 2021) is an accomplished tourism expert with a wealth of experience in the tourism industry in Canada, Australia, Thailand and the Philippines. Armed with over 15 years of experience, his specialties include tourism planning, destination and policy development, tourism sustainability, advanced tourism theories, and disaster risk management in tourism.
Fresnoza brings together his experience and expertise into the classroom environment, as a former assistant professor at the University of the Philippines - Asian Institute of Tourism and as a current instructor at Capilano University in North Vancouver.
Also wearing his urban planner hat, Fresnoza believes in the synergy of tourism and urban planning in creating a progressive and innovative approach to develop sustainable communities that prosper through tourism. His latest achievement was the tourism planning of a 4,000-acre mixed use, integrated tourism and heritage destination in the Philippines. This project is expected to generate CAD $200 million worth of investments and provide over 800 meaningful jobs for just the first two phases in its 10-year development.
Fresnoza is a graduate of Capilano University's Tourism Management Degree program and holds a Master's degree (with honours) in Urban and Regional Planning from the University of the Philippines. He recently completed his doctoral dissertation, which focuses on disaster risk management in tourism in the perspective of Indigenous systems and practices.
As a think-outside-the-box advocate, Fresnoza is passionate about transforming communities to become more resilient, encouraged and empowered, realized through sustainable tourism.
I have always been deeply imbued that changing the world for the better starts in the classroom. With this in mind, I have valued my students as future leaders of the tourism industry.
As a mentor, my role is not merely to transfer knowledge but to espouse a sense of responsibility, values, activism and accountability. My goal is to enlighten my students, to remind them that beyond leading the tourism industry, the hope for bettering the world is in their hands.
Having taught for over a decade, it is my form of service and giving back. I love enabling my students with the capacity to analyze deeply, critique circumstances, challenge the status quo, innovate and form radical ideas and solutions.
My students are my inspiration.
My research interests revolve around post-tourism, theories and epistemologies of tourism, tourism interdisciplinarity, the emergence of tourism disruptors, rethinking destination development, and the continuous quest for managing mass tourism.
I am currently spearheading initiatives in establishing tourism research at Capilano University. Tourism research is invaluable especially in creating new knowledge, meaning and practical solutions in light of the new challenges and ever-growing complexity of the world.
Unpublished Work
Fresnoza, Eli Paolo. A Study on the Preparation for and Management of Disaster Risks and its Impacts on the Hotel and Accommodations Sector: The Case of Baler, Philippines Jakarta, University of Indonesia, Indonesia, 2013.
Fresnoza, Eli Paolo. Re-establishing Tourism as a Driver to Reverse Cultural Commodification, University of the Philippines, Baguio City, Philippines, 2009.
Research Contributions
2015: Fresnoza, Eli Paolo. "Emerging Trends in the Tourism and Hospitality Industries in the Philippines." Cagayan de Oro City, Philippines. Guest Lecture.
2013: Fresnoza, Eli Paolo. "A Study on the Preparation for and Management of Disaster Risks and its Impacts on the Hotel and Accommodations Sector: The Case of Baler, Philippines." International Symposium on Coastal Cities, Marine Resources, and Climate Change in the Coral Triangle, University of Indonesia, Depok, Indonesia. Conference Presentation.
2012: Fresnoza, Eli Paolo. "The 10 Steps of Sustainable Tourism Development Planning, Tourism Carrying Capacity, and Value Chain Analysis." Manila, Philippines. Guest Lecture.
2012: Fresnoza, Eli Paolo. "Philippines' and Asia's Tourism Situationer." Panglao Island, Philippines. Keynote Lecture.
2011: Fresnoza, Eli Paolo. "Harnessing Agritourism Opportunities in the Philippines." SEARCA Agriculture and Development Seminar Series, University of the Philippines, Los Baos, Philippines. Keynote Lecture.
2010: Fresnoza, Eli Paolo. "Relationships of Spatial Theories and Planning for Tourism and Hospitality." National Conference of Tourism Majors, Asian Institute of Tourism, University of the Philippines, Quezon City, Philippines. Conference Presentation.
2009: Fresnoza, Eli Paolo. "Re-establishing Tourism as a Driver to Reverse Cultural Commodification." Baguio Centennial Conference, Cordillera Studies Center, University of the Philippines, Baguio City, Philippines. Conference Presentation.
Publications & Activities
Fresnoza, E. (in press). Transcending from Structural Functionalism to Theoretical Pluralism in Disaster Research. In Royal Roads University National Doctoral Conference on Socially Engaged Applied Doctoral Research in Canada: Approaches to Contemporary Social and Management Opportunities and Challenges. Victoria.
Note: won best paper award for contribution to theory
Fresnoza, E. P., Balcombe, D., & Choo, L. (2021). Rightsizing than Supersizing Recovery: Examining Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in Canadian Tourism Restart Policies. Manuscript submitted for publication.
Fresnoza, E. P. (2021). Reaching the Intersection of Indigenous and Modern: A Critical Analysis of Disaster Risk Management Modernization in Ivatan Indigenous Communities. Royal Roads University. https://viurrspace.ca/handle/10613/23748
Unified Award (peer adjudicated) for Critical Analysis of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Initiatives in Post-COVID-19 Tourism Restart Strategies, Creative Activity, Research and Scholarship (CARS), Capilano University, 2021.
Certified Planning Technician, Canadian Association of Certified Planning Technicians (CACPT), 2016.
Environmental Planning Board Licensure Examination, Philippine Institute of Environmental Planners, 2009.
Dean's Medallion, the highest award of the School of Urban and Regional Planning (SURP), University of the Philippines, 2008.
University Scholar, School of Urban and Regional Planning (SURP), 2006.
College Scholar, School of Urban and Regional Planning (SURP), 2006.
Dean's List Honorary, Tourism and Outdoor Recreation Management, Capilano University, 2000-05.