Management and Program Team

Melanie Deline

Melanie Deline is TIES Global Outreach Coordinator. Melanie has a Master’s degree in Tourism and Leisure from the Angers University, France. She recently published a thesis titled "Ecotourism in the San Francisco Bay Area: Is a myth? A reality? Or a unique kind of tourism?". Melanie has gathered work experience over the last two years with the Visit California Bureau in France, and the San Mateo County/Silicon Valley Convention and Visitors Bureau in California, where she overlooked the production of the sustainable tourism visitors guides.

Ayako Ezaki

Ayako Ezaki is TIES Director of Communications. She leads TIES communications, marketing and media outreach initiatives, and is the editor of TIES newsletters and Your Travel Choice Blog. Ayako graduated from Wesleyan University with a Bachelor of Arts from the College of Social Studies. Through her academic career, she developed a keen interest in the CSR movement and non-fiction writing. She is originally from Japan and has traveled extensively throughout Europe and Asia.

Katharina Hess

Katharina Hess is TIES Research and Communications Coordinator. She recently graduated from the University of Brighton with an MSc in Tourism and International Development and a thesis on the power relations within sex tourism in the developing world. Afterwards, she spent four months at the UN in New York as an intern with the Department of Economic and Social Affairs and then moved on to work for an international NGO concerned with sustainable development with an emphasis on urban areas and local governments.

Mercedes Hunt

Mercedes Hunt is TIES Events Manager. She recently graduated from San Francisco State with her master's in Recreation, Parks, and Tourism and an emphasis in sustainable tourism where she published her thesis titled, Addressing Climate Change: Conventional Resorts Tackle the Need to "Go Green". Over the last year she worked with the California Travel and Tourism Commission and Dr. Pavlina Latkova to survey travelers who visited California Welcome Centers.

Debra Kriensky

Debra Kriensky is TIES Communications and Outreach Coordinator. Debra previously worked in the independent film industry, and in her role at National Geographic Films she was able to combine her interests of film and nature. Passionate about environmental conservation, she is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Conservation Biology at Columbia University, where she plans to focus her research on the role ecotourism and protected areas can play in the preservation of endangered species and fragile ecosystems.

Laura Morgan

Laura Morgan is TIES Assistant Editor. Laura graduated from Colorado State University with a Bachelor of Science in Natural Resource Recreation and Tourism and a minor in Global Environmental Sustainability. As a part of her degree she worked for TIES as a communications intern and attended the ESTC12, where she assisted with social media communications. Laura spent over five years working in various hotel departments, developing a strong hospitality ethic. She also holds an Associate’s in Culinary Arts from the Art Institute and is especially passionate about sustainable food systems, new and different cuisines, and cooking.

Ferdinand Weps

Ferdinand Weps is TIES Director of Membership and Operations. He leads TIES membership department, and oversees general operations and outreach tasks at TIES. Originally from Germany, Ferdinand has a B.A. in Cultural Geography and Area Studies with concentrations on livelihood assurance in developing countries, sustainable tourism, urban studies, and migration research. Aside from his academic career, Ferdinand has a background in the hospitality management and a breadth of travel and volunteering experience in Central America and South East Asia.