Maureen hails from a rural area close to the Sperrin Mountains in County Tyrone and went to school in the nearby city of Derry. She spent her weekends exploring the countryside and nearby cities, finding new places to visit and seeing what they had to offer. She has a Bachelor of Science degree in Geography from where she studied in Liverpool, followed by a Master's degree in International Tourism Management from Ulster University, Belfast. Since graduating in 2016, she has worked in a number of leading hotels across the North of Ireland, focusing strongly on sales, events and marketing. She has always loved the tourism and hospitality industry, in particular, the ability to make a difference to someone’s day, providing exceptional service and showcasing Northern Ireland’s outstanding experiential offering. Maureen now works as Business Tourism Officer at Tourism Northern Ireland, ensuring business events prosper across the destination. She works with a large range of stakeholders, partners and industry in Northern Ireland to attract future business and ensure they can facilitate this lucrative business. She is a certified incentive specialist (CIS) and also serves on Ireland’s SITE Young Leaders board, attracting the next generation to pursue a career in tourism and hospitality – something which she is extremely passionate about.