Yu–Fai is a Professor in the Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism Management at North Carolina State University. His research program addresses the sustainability challenges of visitor use in parks, protected areas, heritage sites, wildernesses, and other natural areas from local to global scales. He has focused on developing visitor use and impact indicators and monitoring protocols for protected areas in the United States and abroad. He has examined how use, environmental, and technology factors influence visitor use and impacts, which in turn shape subsequent visitor behavior and experience. More recently, Yu–Fai has been exploring the net positive impacts of tourism and recreation on protected area conservation, not only by minimizing visitors’ negative effects, but also increasing their pro-environmental outcomes and direct contributions, such as participation in citizen science/monitoring efforts.

“Tourism and visitor impacts are a global challenge, but they provide opportunities for collaborative research and learning to understand causes and influential factors, explore innovative solutions, and share best practices such as Leave No Trace.””

-Yu-Fai