Bobbie is a storyteller, writer, scholar, educator, polyglot and enthusiast of the diversity of human cultures, languages, arts and traditional relationships with the living environment. Born and raised in Oklahoma and a citizen of the Cherokee Nation, Bobbie is a daughter of Cantonese, Cherokee and Euro-American heritages. Her studies, work, friendships and research have taken her to different parts of Asia, Latin America, Indigenous Australia, Canada and US Indian Country. Bobbie is particularly passionate about exploring the ways that tourism can be more than just an economic livelihood for Indigenous and post-conflict communities. She focuses on tourism’s potential for connecting people with traditional culture, Country (lands+waters+all living beings) and community.
Bobbie is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow through the University of Waterloo (Canada) and is based in Oklahoma. She completed her PhD dissertation at the University of Notre Dame Australia, Nulungu Research Institute and continues to be affiliated with Nulungu as an Adjunct Research Fellow. Her PhD thesis focused on comparative Indigenous tourism models, as well as the links between Indigenous-led tourism and cultural resurgence. This research was supported by the Western Australian Government’s JTSI Science/Tourism Fellows program, Graduate Women Western Australia and the Australian Government’s Research Training Program (RTP). Through her current Postdoctoral Fellowship with the University of Waterloo, Bobbie is able to continue the research begun during her PhD looking at supporting Indigenous communities, cultures, arts and relationships to the environment through tourism.
Bobbie has BA degrees in Chinese Language/Literature, as well as Anthropology, from Washington University in St. Louis where she was proud to be Rodriguez Scholar (2005-2009). As a Rotary Peace Fellow (Class XII) from 2014-2015, Bobbie obtained her MA degree in International Studies, Peace and Conflict Resolution at the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia. Bobbie also holds an MS degree in Arts and Culture Administration as an AIANTA Scholar from Drexel University. Bobbie has been the recipient of Mellon Mays and Fulbright Fellowships that allowed her to engage in research focused on Indigenous and post-conflict communities, tourism and resurgence in China, India, Cambodia, Australia and back home in Oklahoma Indian Country. Bobbie most recently co-edited and co-wrote (with Dr. Freya Higgins-Desbiolles), “The Local Turn in Tourism: Empowering Communities” (Channel View, 2022). The first edited volume that she co-edited/co-wrote was “Socialising Tourism: Rethinking Tourism for Social and Ecological Justice” (Routledge, 2021). In addition, Bobbie has been published and interviewed in a number of journals and outlets, including Journal of Sustainable Tourism, Annals of Tourism Research, Journal of Tourism Futures, Cultural Survival Quarterly, World Nomads and Cure, among others. Bobbie has a deep passion for Indigenous and community-based participation in tourism and believes that tourism can be used as a tool for resurgence, culture, arts and language revitalization, along with environmental stewardship.
In addition to Bobbie’s applied and research work in tourism and cultural heritage, Bobbie also has a strong background in refugee support services, including refugee education, social service delivery and language interpreting. Bobbie has worked across numerous agencies and different continents in this space, including with UNHCR (UN High Commissioner for Refugees) in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, as well as YWCA Tulsa, Catholic Charities of Eastern Oklahoma and B’nai Emunah Synagogue in helping to resettle refugees in Oklahoma.
Bobbie maintains high levels of proficiency in Spanish, (Mandarin) Chinese and Khmer (Cambodian) languages. Additionally, she has intermediate level proficiencies in Burmese, Cherokee, Mvskoke (Creek) and Italian. Bobbie is strongly guided by the philosophy that language learning is a never-ending journey for herself and for all. She is committed to being an ally and advocate for Indigenous language communities attempting language revitalization. Bobbie also has a deep passion for Asian classical dance forms, including a background of training in Bharatanatyam and Khmer dances, along with cooking, sewing and textiles.