Kelsey Johansen undertook a PhD (Tourism) at the University of Otago under the guidance of Associate Professor Anna Thompson (nee Carr), and Professor Tara Duncan with funding from a prestigious Graduate Research School Doctoral Scholarship. Her research examined the culture of World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms (WWOOF) participation in New Zealand,  exploring the convergence and divergence of programmatic, host and guest values, and the role of food in the WWOOFing experience while drawing on the fields of tourism, anthropology, and geography. In December 2013, Kelsey achieved Early Confirmation at her six month Progress Meeting and moved to Confirmed Candidature. In April 2015, she completed phase two of her Ethnographic Fieldwork, which involved seven months of WWOOFing on the South Island of New Zealand. Kelsey submitted her dissertation, having completed analyzing her interview data and fieldnotes, in June 2020. Having presented at several seminal overseas conferences between 2015 and 2019, including the 2017 Leisure Studies Association (LSA) Conference in Leeds, UK where she was awarded the Best Paper Prize, feedback from these conferences help solidify the final dissertation. Kelsey's dissertation passed external examination in October 2020. She will graduate in April, 2021.

In addition to research, Kelsey enjoys teaching. Starting July 1st, 2020 Kelsey commenced a 2-Year Definite Term Lecturer role in the Department of Recreation and Leisure Studies, Faculty of Applied Health Sciences, at the University of Waterloo (Waterloo, Canada). She teaches broadly in the areas of Tourism, Recreation and Leisure Studies, with a focus on Nature-Based and Rural Tourism, Outdoor Recreation and Therapeutic Recreation.

 

For the 2019 - 2020 academic year, Kelsey was a Lecturer in the School of Outdoor Recreation, Parks and Tourism, Lakehead University (Thunder Bay, Canada). While there, Kelsey taught Adventure Therapy and Therapeutic Recreation, Programming, Foundations of Outdoor Recreation, and Risk Management and Legal Liability in Outdoor Recreation.

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Previously, Kelsey held a 3-Year Limited Term Appointment as an Instructor (Level II) in the Faculty of Kinesiology and Recreation Management at the University of Manitoba (Winnipeg, Canada) from July 2016 to June 2019. She continues to supervise Masters students at the University of Manitoba, as an Adjunct member of the Faculty of Graduate Studies.

 

Prior to this, and while studying in New Zealand from May 2013 to June 2016, Kelsey was employed as a tutor in the Departments of Tourism and Anthropology and Archaeology (University Otago, Dunedin). From 2011 to 2013, she was appointed as a Lecturer at Lakehead University (Canada), teaching in the School of Outdoor Recreation, Parks and Tourism, and the Departments of Anthropology and Geography. 
 

In addition to research and teaching, Kelsey believes strongly in the importance of service - to the University and the wider Community. As such, she has been involved in a number of University Committees, including serving on the Indigenous Engagement Circle (Faculty of Kinesiology and Recreation Management, University of Manitoba) and as the International Student Representative on the University of Otago's Graduate Research Student Liaison Committee (a committee of the University's Council and Senate).

 

In August 2019, Kelsey was appointed the League Commissioner for the National Collegiate Water Polo Association, after serving as the High Performance Director for the Manitoba Water Polo Association from September 2017 - June 2019. Previously, she was an active volunteer with Dog Rescue Dunedin (New Zealand), and has been involved with the Voyageur Trail Association (Canada) since 2010. You can read more about Kelsey's service work here.

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When not working or volunteering, Kelsey enjoys hiking / trekking with her dog Kiera, paddling (canoe, kayak, SUP), snowshoeing, SCUBA diving or traveling. An avid baker, and home cook, Kelsey enjoys experimenting in the kitchen, taking pastry classes and hosting dinner parties and celebratory events.