Kevin has worked in close partnership with regional tourism in NSW and, more particularly, the Hunter region to develop and conduct research that has helped address the needs of the regional tourism industry. His findings and the subsequent industry report he authored has been instrumental in shaping NSW State Government policy on regulating the Sharing Economy.
A recent example of this is evident in research he recently conducted for NSW Business Chamber on the Tourism Sharing Economy. Kevin has long recognised the importance of engaged scholarship in tourism. He has recently begun expanding this area of inquiry to examine related forms of youth-based tourism such global mobility programs being funded by governments and offered by Universities. This paper presented a detailed critique of volunteer tourism challening conventional wisdom about the transformative value of youth travel. The impact of Kevin's work on volunteer tourism research is exemplified in the content and impact of a recently published paper entitled: ‘Gap year volunteer tourism: myths of global citizenship?’ published in the A* ranked (ABDC) 'Annals of Tourism Research' – the internationally preeminent tourism journal. His published research has provided the conceptual frameworks and critical and empirical rigor necessary to transform the way that volunteer tourism is understood, not only by researchers and students but also tourism industry decision makers. Kevin's work in this area has challenged this view. Initial research in this area was largely descriptive and sought to champion volunteer tourism as a form of sustainable tourism that was helpful to host communities and volunteers alike. Volunteer tourism is one of the fastest growing area of research in leisure and tourism studies over the past two decades. AN example of the impact of Kevin's research is evident in Kevin's work in the area of volunteer tourism.
His published work is highly cited and has shaped and influenced leisure-related policies and practices of governments, non-government and private sectors who deliver leisure-related services. Kevin's research spans the fields of leisure, sports, recreation and tourism management and policy. Lyons' work has enabled the region's wine and tourism industries to work together, building strength to support regional funding bids via the NSW State Government's Visitor Economy initiatives.
This unique research provides compelling evidence of regional wine tourism's impact on the state's visitor economy. Lyons has secured funding from the Hunter Wine & Tourism Association to put together a team (Dr Paul Stolk and Dr Tamara Young) to monitor monthly revenue generated by cellar doors, the accommodation sector, restaurants, conferences, and wedding functions in Hunter Wine Country. His work provides tourism stakeholders with evidence needed to make informed strategic decisions about tourism in the region. Lyons addresses local issues including tracking regional tourism impacts, knowledge transfer among stakeholders in the tourism industry, the effects of volunteering models upon regional tourism, and tracking the education and marketing intelligence needs of Tourism SMEs in the Hunter region. His research has involved projects in collaboration with Tourism Hunter and Hunter Wine & Tourism Association, regional tourism operators, NSW Parks and Wildlife Service, and local governments. Professor Kevin Lyons' research focuses on the Hunter as a regional tourism destination and the visitor economy it generates.
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