Undergraduates from Macau University of Tourism (UTM) have completed three hands-on industry collaborations, tackling challenges in heritage food branding, tourism tech innovation, and rural revitalisation, according to a UTM PR statement yesterday.
As part of their final-year capstone, students from UTM’s Tourism Business Management and Hotel Management programmes partnered with local and regional stakeholders to deliver impact solutions, the statement said.
The statement highlighted that one project supported Macanese fast-food concept “Siu Saam Baa”, where students proposed business models for mainland expansion, addressing digital marketing, franchising, and menu localisation, where the founder, Adelino da Conceição de Assis, commended their “innovative and practical” strategies.
According to Wikipedia, Macanese cuisine is mainly influenced by Chinese cuisine, especially Cantonese and European cuisines, predominantly Portuguese and influences from Southeast Asia and the Lusophone world, due to Macau’s past as a Portuguese colony and long history of being an international tourist gambling centre.
It is an early example of a fusion cuisine and dates to the 16th century.[1]
In a second project, students worked with tech innovator “Cave Giant”, identifying applications for its 3D scanning and AI imaging tools in hospitality and education. Proposals included virtual cultural tours and immersive training modules, the statement added.
The statement noted that the third project focused on Taishan City in Guangdong, where students conducted on-site research and developed tourism strategies to enhance local development. Their ideas were presented to the Taishan Youth Association of Macau and aimed at fostering sustainable heritage tourism.
UTM Assistant Prof. Fernando Lourenço said that the projects illustrate how academic research can translate into tangible outcomes, noting that students applied creativity, strategic thinking, and cultural awareness to support business growth and community revitalisation, the statement concluded, adding that their efforts reflect UTM’s dedication to fostering meaningful collaboration between education and industry.
This undated handout photo provided by Macau University of Tourism (UMT) shows participants attending a session of the “Siu Saam Baa” project in an unverified location.
