Casey Hanisko
From starting her travel career at a space voyage division of well respective Zegrahm Expeditions to launching new events and business solutions at ATTA (Adventure Travel Trade Association), CASEY HANISKO has spent over 20 years taking bold steps and pushing the boundaries of comfortable. Over the years she has marketed countless new innovative travel itineraries from deep sea submersible trips to in depth expeditions to countries such as Brazil, Japan, and Namibia. A creative and results driven executive, Casey’s roles have included business strategy and development, marketing, communications, and innovative product development.
As president of the business services and events division of the ATTA, Casey manages the strategic direction and dynamic team delivering an ecosystem of events and business solutions for destinations and adventure travel brands around the world. Former head of the ATTA’s marketing and communications efforts, Casey was responsible for communicating the place global adventure travel has in the context of the greater tourism industry. As president, Casey will lead the success of long term partnerships that are built to advance destinations’ efforts to support economic- and community-based initiatives. A speaker at industry events around the globe, Casey shares her expertise on adventure travel trends, branding, and travel’s evolving role in the future of communities, culture, environment, and wildlife around the world.
3 words to describe Nature?
Unexpected, Beautiful, and Necessary
3 things Nature taught you?
To be introspective, respectful, and wild
3 most treasured Nature spots?
My most treasured nature spots are close by because access to nature daily makes me a happier person - so first is a park just down the street in Seattle because I go there daily for walks with my dog, second is the Cascade Mountains in Washington, and third is the Puget Sound because there are small pocket beaches that can be accessed across the city and then also South and North. For years I would scuba dive those waters looking for octopus, ling cod and nudibranchs.
When you look at the ocean, it makes you feel...?
Calm
When you see a forest, it makes you feel...?
Alive
When you see a volcano, it makes you feel...?
Honored
When you see a sunrise or sunset, it makes you feel...?
Peaceful
When you hear thunder, it makes you feel...?
Excited
When you hear the wind howling, it makes you feel...?
Alert
Are you an Ocean, Mountain, Forest, or Desert person?
Ocean
On a scale of 1 to 10, how important is Nature to your well-being?
10
Share with us a childhood nature memory?
I lived in rural New Hampshire when I was young. I used to explore the woods in the back of our house for hours on my own. There were trees back there with vines and I loved to find them and swing on them. It always felt like a treasure because I never remembered where they were. I felt like a female Tarzan swinging in the wild jungle.
