Dr Edwards has written extensively on sustainable tourism including: Sustainable Tourism Planning Module; Sustainable Tourism Operations Management Module; Sustainable Meetings and Event Management Module; research agendas in private sector innovation, managing risk and crisis, corporate social responsibility, and tourism’s contribution to quality of life; and case studies on innovation for sustainable tourism. Her module on ‘Sustainable Tourism Planning’ is widely used by those working in communities in developing countries. A recent article on destination management was rated as the most downloaded tourism article for all Science Direct publications for the first quarter of 2009. Deborah views industry liaison as integral to maintaining and building cooperative and strategic partnerships between industry, government and academia.
Deborah’s current research is on understanding tourist expectations and the impacts that arise from tourism development.
Dr Edwards joined the University of Technology, Sydney in 2006 after previously working at the University of Western Sydney, Australia. Prior to pursuing an academic career in 1987, Deborah worked extensively in the hospitality and hotel sectors in Australia and overseas.
Deborah has been an executive member of the BEST Education Network (BEST EN) for eight years. Her PhD was on volunteerism at cultural attractions.