TREES: Tourism Research in Economic Environs and Society

Background & History

Having conducted well over 300 major research projects for private sector and government clients in the past 27 years, the research track record of the Institute for Tourism and Leisure Studies is unrivalled in South Africa. The Institute’s tourism research programme was the first National Research Foundation-accredited niche programme in South Africa and is still the country’s only NRF-funded tourism programme. During 2008, the Institute prepared to enter the next phase of its development by achieving niche entity status within the NWU’s new research management model. Soon after the announcement that the University was introducing a new management model for research, the Institute applied for recognition as a niche research entity. The application was successful and, by July 2008, the Institute had received seed funding for the establishment of the niche area, Socio-Economic Impact of Tourism (SEIT). This development has set the scene for greater collaboration among researchers in the field, as well as an increase in national and international research output.