Committee

Wendi Aylward (Chairperson)Managing Director AIFS Australia

Wendi has worked in the youth tourism sector for the past 25 years including management roles with DFAT and CIEE. She has lived and worked in Boston, London and Tokyo, and speaks Japanese. Wendi has been a member of the Backpacker & Youth Tourism Advisory Panel (BYTAP) for the past 6 years, was a founding member of the Australian Internship Industry Association (AIIA) and was co-founder of the Cultural Au Pair in Australia Association (CAPAA) in 2014 – serving as its chair until 2019. Since 2005 Wendi has been the managing director of AIFS Australia, a cultural exchange provider facilitating programs for over 3,000 young people into and out of Australia every year.

Silke Kerwick (Secretary)Communications Manager, Scouts NSW

Silke has decades’ of experience in youth tourism and cultural exchanges, gained on several continents. For many years, she worked for YHA Australia in marketing, communications & Public Affairs, promoting a network of 70+ youth hostels. Prior to this, Silke was with The British Council in Australia, developing bi-lateral cultural and educational exchanges. She has also worked in student travel in London, and for CIEE (Council for International Educational Exchanges) in New York. She currently serves as a Board member on the Australian Society of Travel Writers. Silke speaks Spanish and Greek and is also a teacher of English as a Foreign Language and tour guide.

Silke is passionate about the benefits that cultural exchanges can bring to the lives of young people and to their host countries. Originally a Working Holiday Maker herself, and an author for Rough Guides, she’s still a backpacker at heart!

Peta ZietschDirector of Sales - Cairns Adventure Group

Peta has been immersed in youth tourism for 25 years working in sales, marketing & operational roles for much loved brands such as Fitzroy Island, Wayoutback Australian Safaris, and most prominently, Raging Thunder Adventures.

Over this time, Peta has held multiple positions on the boards of both Adventure Cairns and Adventure Queensland and is currently Secretary and Vice Chair, respectively. Peta joined BYTAP in 2022 and is passionate about helping rebuild the youth tourism sector.

Mark BaldwinDirector, The Tourism Co

Mark has been working in the youth tourism industry for 15 years. He started as a hostel manager in Bath, UK, followed by 3 years in of operating and opening new hostels in London. After a year in Canada, he made his way to Sydney to continue managing hostels before landing at the newly opened Bounce Sydney in 2010. He still contracts to the Bounce company overseeing operations of their current assets and their future development. Mark has a management company looking after multiple backpacker operations and the development of backpacker resort in Noosa which he shares ownership.
Mark was the founder of Hostels Australia which connected the best independent hostels throughout the country. He was previously a member of the Backpackers Operators Association NSW for 6 years and has been a member of BYTAP for the last two years.

George JosevskiDirector - Leisure & Tourism Solutions Pty Ltd

George brings over 30 years’ experience in tourism businesses to BYTAP. He built a fledgling company running tours of Neighbours’ “Ramsay Street” into an award-winning major transportation business that was inducted into the Hall of Fame in The Victorian Tourism Awards. George was also a co-founder and vice president of the Backpackers Operators Association of Victoria, a judge at the Victorian Tourism Awards (2010-2015 & 2019) and a National Tourism award Judge in 2013. He currently serves as a Director of the Victoria Tourism Industry Council (VTIC) and as a member of the Adventure Tourism Victoria (ATV) Committee.

Brendan McKenna (Treasurer)General Manager Australia - JUCY Group

Brendan has been involved in the Tourism & Hospitality sector for almost 30 years working in numerous locations with multinational hotels to island resorts & casinos. The past 15 years have been in the youth & adventure sector where he as been a board member of Adventure Queensland & BYTAP for the past 10 years. Brendan holds a Masters of Hotel Management from Griffith University on the Gold Coast & is a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Andy CowanGroup Sales & Marketing Manager - Millett Group

Andy has been working in the tourism and hospitality sector for the last 15 years. During his time at the Millett Group over the last 9 years, he’s transitioned from operations to his current role with a key focus on connecting the international youth market to the group’s flagship brand Wake Up! Hostels.

Andy joined the Youth Tourism NSW committee (formally Backpacker Operators Association NSW) in 2017 and currently holds the position of Vice President. He took out the ‘Young Industry Legend Award’ at the 2019 Adventure Tourism Awards.

Katrina GreevesConsultant

Katrina has worked in the youth and adventure tourism industry for over 15 years. As a product specialist and customer experience evangelist, Katrina’s passionate about purpose driven tourism and its ability to change lives. For the past 12 years, she’s helped grow WorldNomads.com from a start-up into a respected global travel insurance provider, honing the brand’s travel insurance product mix for adventurous travellers in over 130 countries. In addition to exploring the world for over 5 years as a working holiday maker and seasonal worker, Katrina also worked for ski tour operators in Australia and Canada, dabbled in business events for a UK law firm and a multi-national hospitality group, and has fond memories cutting her sales and marketing teeth for a Whitsundays tour operator back when Hotmail started and well before Google became a verb. As a past President of the Backpackers Operators Association NSW and member of the Backpacker Tourism Advisory Panel for 2 years, Katrina re-joined BYTAP in 2020.

Jennifer WoodbridgeRegional Director, Alliance Abroad Australia

Jennifer has nearly 30 years’ international and Australian tourism industry experience working in government, industry association and private sector capacities.

Currently serving as Regional Director for Alliance Abroad Group’s business in Australia, Jennifer is charged with expanding the company’s portfolio of inbound cultural exchange programs that offer working holiday makers, students, trainees and young professionals from around the world the opportunity to obtain a cultural exchange experience in Australia.

Born in Canada and raised in Sweden, Jennifer first landed on Australia’s shore as a backpacker….fell in love with the country and decided to complete her university studies in Sydney. Ever since, Jennifer has been passionately committed to international mobility for young people and of course, promoting Australia as the best destination in the world.

Prior to her current role, Jennifer served as Head of Policy and Destination Development for WYSE Travel Confederation for a number of years and also held positions within in the Australian Tourism Export Council (ATEC) and Tourism Australia.

Jennifer played a key role in the establishment of BYTAP 20 years ago and designed and implemented a range of successful business development initiatives for the Australian youth travel industry.

She is really looking forward to contributing to BYTAP again and supporting the youth travel industry to post COVID recovery.