Ko Koens

Ko Koens is a Lecturer at Inholland University of Applied Sciences, leading the New Urban Tourism lectorate since 2020. His research focuses on sustainable urban tourism design, aiming to balance tourism growth with livability and social equity in cities like Rotterdam and Amsterdam through Living Labs. He holds a PhD from Leeds Beckett University and collaborates with institutions like Wageningen University and the United Nations World Tourism Organization.

Education: PhD in Social Geography, Environmental Sciences, and Social Psychology. Research interests include overtourism mitigation, tourism's socio-cultural impacts, and regenerative urban tourism practices. He co-authored the UNWTO report on sustainable urban tourism and is affiliated with the Centre of Expertise Leisure, Tourism & Hospitality.

Collaborations involve international networks and EU-funded projects, emphasizing interdisciplinary approaches. Ko aims to establish an internationally recognized urban tourism expertise center within five years. His work addresses post-pandemic tourism recovery and integrates tourism into broader urban development frameworks.