James Mabey Mr James Mabey is the recipient of the most prestigious honour for young tourism professionals in Asia Pacific - the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) Face of the Future 2013 award. Mr Mabey is the Senior Director of Development for Marco Polo Hotels, based in Hong Kong. At Marco Polo Hotels, he is responsible for the company's growth and development across the Asia Pacific region. Marco Polo Hotels, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Wharf (Holdings) Ltd, owns and operates hotels across Asia Pacific. Mr Mabey has over a decade of business consulting and real-estate development experience in the region, and was previously Director of Development for Jumeirah Private Island, Phuket. He also served as Economic and Tourism Development Advisor to the Thailand Ministry of the Interior and Phuket Governor's Office from 2005 to 2011. A native of the US, Mr Mabey holds a MBA in Hospitality and Tourism, and is completing a Doctorate in Hospitality and Tourism Management from Hong Kong Polytechnic University. He is a frequent speaker at major industry conferences and events and the author of multiple published articles and studies on hotel development. He has lived in Asia since 1999. He is fluent in Thai, Mandarin, Spanish and Laotian. Mr Mabey will receive the award at a social function on April 25 called, “PATA and the Siam Center: Next Generation Synergy,” which is being held to celebrate PATA's 15 th Anniversary in Bangkok. The event will take place at Siam Discovery Plaza. It is hosted by Siam Center and is supported by Thai Beverage PLC.