Liv Gussing Burgess
Cornell degree: BS 1991 (School of Hotel Administration)
“The pandemic’s disruption of the global economy and the traditional higher educational model provides an opportunity to reimagine a new educational and financial model and learning experience that attracts a diverse group of faculty, students and staff while promoting Cornell’s motto of “…any person… any study.”
Professional experience
- Luxury Hospitality Consulting, UK, Founder & Managing Director, 2011-present
- Aman Resorts – Amandari, Bali, General Manager, 2003-2010
- Aman Resorts – Amanpuri, Thailand, Resident Manager, 2000-2003
- Aman Resorts – Corporate Pre-Opening Team, US, Morocco, Indonesia, French Polynesia Pre-Opening Team, 1997-2000
- Aman Resorts – The Strand, Myanmar, Rooms Division Manager, 1996-1999
- Dusit Hotels and Resorts, Thailand, Operations Systems Manager, 1992-1995
- The St Regis, New York, Butler, 1991-1992
Alumni service (2010-present)
- Cornell Club of the United Kingdom, Vice-President, 2016-2021
- Cornell Hotel Society Foundation, President, 2016-present
- Cornell University Council, member, 2004-2008 and 2015-2019
- Dean’s Advisory Board, School of Hotel Administration, Board Member, 2014-2016
- President’s Council of Cornell Women, member, 2014-2015
- Cornell Hotel Society, Global President, 2013; member, 1993-present
- Class of 1991, School of Hotel Administration, Director, 1991-2011
Community/public service/philanthropic priorities
- Sea Cadets, Youth Charity, UK, Trustee, 2020-2021
- Amnesty UK, Human Resources Committee Board Member, 2014-2016
- Kasayan Orphanage Bali, Fundraiser Chair, 2003-2010
Other education
- University of Brighton, MSc Tourism and International Development
- Awarded: “Best Post Graduate Student of Tourism 2016, UK,”, Association for Tourism in Higher Education
- Published: ‘No Ebola…still doomed,’,The Ebola-Induced Tourism Crisis, Annals of Tourism Research 70 (2018) 76–87
Student involvement/activities
- Hotel Ezra Cornell, Managing Director, 1991; Marketing Director, 1990
- Drown Award Finalist, 1991
- Dean’s List, 1990-1991
- Kappa Alpha Theta, Philanthropy Officer, 1990
- Teaching Assistant: Marketing, Human Resources, Restaurant Management, 1988-1991
Additional information
I now reside in London with my husband, Brian, and teenage children, Isara and Akash. As a child, I moved between Sweden, Ethiopia, Somalia and Switzerland due to my father’s work with the International Red Cross. This sparked my life-long love affair with travel but also a deep awareness of the wide array of human experiences. I am fluent in Swedish, French and Spanish, and conversational in Thai and Indonesian. When I am not hiking, exploring a new destination, or running, I enjoy cooking and eating.