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Introduction
Tourism is one of the world’s largest industries and recovered to 88% of its pre-pandemic level by the end of 2023 (UNWTO, 2024). Its expanding influence across environmental, managerial, and public health domains calls for a reassessment of tourism’s broader implications through integrated perspectives. Academics and the public have newly considered tourism’s place in modern society beyond conventional perceptions (e.g., sightseeing) since COVID-19 emerged in 2019 (Wen, Kozak, & Jiang, 2022). The relationships between tourism-related organizational practices/tourist behavior and environmental issues have been extensively studied in literature across various disciplines, such as in terms of overtourism (e.g., Butler, 2000; Pearce, 1985; Pigram, 1980; Wang & Wang, 2018), sustainability marketing (Bhattacharyya, 2023), healthcare management (Moreira, 2014). However, few limited attention has been given to environmental sciences in this context (Shaheen et al., 2019).
In addition, the accelerating integration of emerging technologies, such as generative artificial intelligence, augmented and virtual reality, and smart systems, has created transformative pathways that connect sustainability, digital innovation, and public health in tourism and hospitality. Recent research (e.g., Foroughi et al., 2024; Foroughi et al., 2025) demonstrates how technology-mediated experiences influence consumer well-being, sustainability behaviors, and eco-friendly decision-making. This growing body of evidence underscores the importance of addressing the digital–environmental–health nexus within tourism and management studies.
Public health practices, in the meantime, have evoked growing interest from a tourism perspective alongside COVID-19 (e.g., Jiang et al., 2022; Nunkoo, Wen, & Kozak, 2022; Wen, Wang, & Hu, 2023; Wen et al., 2025a). Tourism has thus come to be recognized as a unique research context applicable to management, marketing, medical science, public health, and other disciplines (e.g., Wen et al., 2025b). However, the interconnected pathways linking tourism practices/tourist behavior, environmental outcomes (e.g., destination pollution, sustainability marketing and management), and public health measures remain unexplored, both conceptually and empirically, through integrated research across tourism, management, marketing, environmental science, and public health.
Accordingly, this special issue intends to spotlight innovative and interdisciplinary research that bridges tourism, management, marketing, environmental science, public health, and emerging technologies. It seeks to advance knowledge by integrating perspectives from these fields to address contemporary challenges related to sustainability, wellbeing, and responsible business practices. We welcome well-designed interdisciplinary research across aforementioned relevant disciplines that expands theoretical and practical understanding in this vein. We invite submissions employing diverse methodologies, including qualitative, quantitative, mixed methods, and conceptual approaches, to generate innovative insights into these interconnected domains. While the Asia-Pacific region remains central to the journal's scope, studies from other regions are equally welcome. This special issue will consider submissions from any geographical context, provided the research addresses regulatory concerns in environmental sciences and demonstrates meaningful collaboration with management and marketing disciplines.
List of Topic Areas
- Tourism and environmental issues
- Tourism and sustainable environmental practices
- Tourism and environmental regulatory issues
- Tourism and pollution
- Tourism, environmental issues, and public health practices
- Tourism, sustainability marketing and management
- Environmental protection and public health practices
- Environmental issues and human wellbeing/health
- Tourism types and their impacts on environmental issues and public health regulations
- Lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic regarding tourism, environmental recovery, and public health regulations
- Tourism, climate change and public health
- Best practices for tourism, environmental issues and wellbeing
- The role of emerging technologies (e.g., robots, big data analytics, smart systems) in enhancing environmental management and public wellbeing in tourism
- Technology-enabled sustainability and health innovations in tourism (e.g., generative AI, augmented reality, data-driven decision systems)
- Generative AI applications in sustainable tourism and eco-conscious consumer behavior
- Digital transformation and its implications for tourism resilience, well-being, and ethical environmental management
Submission Information
Submissions are made using ScholarOne Manuscripts. Registration and access are available here:
Author guidelines must be strictly followed. Please see:
Authors should select (from the drop-down menu) the special issue title at the appropriate step in the submission process, i.e. in response to “Please select the issue you are submitting to”.
Submitted articles must not have been previously published, nor should they be under consideration for publication anywhere else, while under review for this journal.
Key Dates
Opening date for manuscript submissions: 1 December 2025
Closing date for manuscript submissions: 31 July 2026
References
Bhattacharyya, J. (2023). The structure of sustainability marketing research: a bibliometric review and directions for future research. Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Administration, 15(2), 245-286.
Butler, R. (2000). Tourism and the environment: A geographical perspective. Tourism Geographies, 2(30), 337-358.
Foroughi, B., Yadegaridehkordi, E., Iranmanesh, M., Sukcharoen, T., Ghobakhlo, M., & Nilashi, M. (2024). Determinants of continuance intention to use food delivery apps: findings from PLS and fsQCA. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 36(4), 1235-1261.
Foroughi, B., Naghmeh‐Abbaspour, B., Wen, J., Ghobakhloo, M., Al‐Emran, M., & Al‐Sharafi, M. A. (2025). Determinants of generative AI in promoting green purchasing behavior: a hybrid partial least squares–artificial neural network approach. Business Strategy and the Environment, 34(4), 4072-4094.
Jiang, Y., Wen, J., Zheng, D., Phau, I., & Wang, W. (2022). Pandemic prevention via tourism: A conceptual framework. Annals of Tourism Research, 96, 103463.
Moreira, P. (2014). Health and medical tourism: health management and marketing research challenges. International Journal of Healthcare Management, 7(4), 221-222.
Nunkoo, R., Wen, J., & Kozak, M. (2022). Handbook on tourism, public health and wellbeing. Edward Elgar Publishing.
Pearce, D. (1985). Tourism and environmental research: A review. International Journal of Environmental Studies, 25(4), 247-255.
Pigram, J. (1980). Environmental implications of tourism development. Annals of Tourism Research, 7(4), 554-583.
Shaheen, K., Zaman, K., Batool, R., … Gani, S. (2019). Dynamic linkages between tourism, energy, environment, and economic growth: Evidence from top 10 tourism-induced countries. Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 26, 31273-31283.
UNWTO. (2024). International tourism to reach pre-pandemic levels in 2024. Retrieved from: https://www.unwto.org/news/international-tourism-to-reach-pre-pandemic-…
Wang, M., & Wang, C. (2018). Tourism, the environment, and energy policies. Tourism Economics, 24(7), 821-838.
Wen, J., Hu, F., Zheng, D., Hou, H., & Wang, W. (2025a). Interdisciplinary research among tourism, public health, and global health: A promising stream focusing on populations with suboptimal health status. International Journal of Tourism Research, 27(2), e70012.
Wen, J., Kozak, M., & Jiang, Y. (2022). Beyond sightseeing: How can tourism affect public/global health in modern society? Journal of Global Health, 12, 03035.
Wen, J., Wang, W., & Hu, F. (2023). Tourism and public health in the post-pandemic era: Emerging trends and policy implications. Travel Bulletin. Retrieved from: https://travelbulletin.com.au/rants-raves/tourism-and-public-health-in-…
Wen, J., Zheng, D., Hu, F., Phau, I., Kozak, M., Hou, H., & Wang, W. (2025b). Calling for cross-disciplinary research on tourists with mental disorders: A neglected population requiring more scholarly attention. Tourism Management, 111, 105239.
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