Dr. Eleni Gaki

Dr. Eleni Gaki is an Associate Professor with the field of expertise “Statistical Methods in Regional Analysis” in the Department of Business Administration at the University of the Aegean. She is a graduate of the same Department and holds a PhD in Economic and Regional Analysis. Her doctoral dissertation is entitled “The impact of transport networks and geographical discontinuity on regional development.”

She joined the Department of Business Administration of the University of the Aegean in 1998 as Special Technical Laboratory Staff (ETEP), and since the academic year 2003–2004 she has been teaching in the Department’s MBA postgraduate program. As a member of the academic and research staff, she has taught a wide range of undergraduate and postgraduate courses, including Regional Analysis Methods, Statistics, Data Analysis, Sustainable Development, Economic Geography and Business Location, as well as Research Methodology. In addition, she has taught in the MBA postgraduate program of the Hellenic Open University and in the postgraduate program “Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Tourism” at the University of West Attica. At the same time, she participates as Adjunct Teaching Staff at the Hellenic Open University in the program “Public Administration,” in the thematic modules “Regional Development and Regional Inequalities” and “Administrative Decentralization and Local Government: Political and Economic Dimension.” Since 2015, she has been the Academic Coordinator of the Department’s Internship Program, and from the academic year 2025–2026 she serves as Vice Chair of the Department.

Her research activity focuses on issues of regional development, with particular emphasis on the application of statistical methods and spatial analysis techniques. More specifically, her research interests include regional resilience, sustainable development, smart cities, the impact of transport infrastructure and information and communication technologies on regional dynamics, as well as the analysis of the spatial distribution of economic activities.

She has participated in twenty (20) research projects, in one of which she served as the scientific coordinator for the University of the Aegean. Her published work includes numerous scientific papers in internationally recognized peer-reviewed journals, edited volumes, and conference proceedings. She has edited two (2) scientific volumes and has served as co-editor in an additional two (2) collective works.

Selected publications

1. Gaki, E.; Christofakis, M.; Gkouzos, A. (2025) Navigating Turbulence to Ensure Sustainability: The Role of Economic Sectors in Shaping Regional Resilience in Greece Amid the Economic Crisis and COVID-19. Sustainability, 17, 2127. https://doi.org/10.3390/su17052127  
2. Koufodontis, Ν.Ι. & Gaki, Ε. (2025). Decoupling authenticity from place: culinary tourism and the globalization of ethnic dining. British Food Journal 2025; https://doi.org/10.1108/BFJ-06-2025-0759
3. Koufodontis, N. I., Gaki, E., & Zounta, S. (2025). Smart Cities and Affective-Symbolic Urbanism: A Dual Tourist/Resident Perspective. Tourism and Hospitality, 6(2), 116, 2025. https://doi.org/10.3390/tourhosp6020116
4. Christofakis, M., Gkouzos, A. & Gaki, E. (2024), Demographic change and regional specialization: the case of Greek NUTS II Regions, Economies, 12(11), 284; https://doi.org/10.3390/economies12110284
5. Kakouri, M., Sfakianaki, E. & Gaki, E. (2024), Does ISO 9001 certification benefit micro-SMEs? Empirical evidence from the industry, International Journal of Productivity and Quality Management, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 43(1), pages 1-25. https://doi.org/10.1504/IJPQM.2024.141492
6. Tsapala, Fl., Chorianopoulos, I., Gaki, E. & Gialis, St. (2023), Mediterranean City and EU integration: Divergent resurgence paths and new forms of north-south urban divide, Cities Volume 138,2023,104352,ISSN 0264-2751, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cities.2023.104352 
7. Manousiadis, C. and Gaki, E. (2023) “Prediction models and testing of resilience in regions: Covid19 economic impact in USA counties study case”, REGION, 10(1), pp. 113–132. doi:10.18335/region.v10i1.449 .
8. Gaki., E., Koufodontis, N.I., (2022), Regional Tourism Resilience and Recovery in Times of Crises, GeoJournal of Tourism and Geosites, Year XV, vol. 40, no. 1, 2022, p.259-266, DOI 10.30892/gtg.40131-827   (Scopus Citescore: 3)
9. Koufodontis, N.I & Gaki, E. (2022), UNESCO urban world heritage sites: Tourists’ awareness in the era of social media, Cities, 127 (2022) 103744, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cities.2022.103744  (ABS 2, Scopus, IF 6.077)
10. Gaki, E., Arsenos, P., Balomenou, C. and Poulaki, P., (2022), The Impact of Financial Crisis on Tourism Disparities: the case of Greek regions, Journal of Hospitality and Tourism, Volume-20, No. 2
11. Koufodontis, N.I & Gaki, E. (2020), Local tourism policy makers and e-image of destinations, Current Issues in Tourism, Volume 23, 2020 – Issue 8, pp 1037-1048, DOI: 10.1080/13683500.2019.1584159  (ABS 2, IF: 7.578)
12. Giassa, T., Mamali, I., Gaki, E., Kaltsas, G., Kouraklis, G., Markou., K.B., Karatzas, T., (2018) Iodine intake and chronic autoimmune thyroiditis: a comparative study between coastal and mainland regions in Greece, Hormones, Volume 17, Issue 4, pp 565–571. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42000-018-0057-x 
13. Christofakis, M., Gaki, E. and Lagos, D. (2019), The impact of economic crisis on the regional disparities and the allocation of economic branches in Greek regions, Bulletin of Geography, Socio-economic Series, No. 44 (2019): 7–21, DOI:  https://doi.org/10.2478/bog-2019-0011
14. Kostopoulou, St., Gaki, E., Parisi, E., and Lagos, D. (2019), Tourist Satisfaction with Island Destinations: An Investigation on Visitors to the Ionian Islands, Greece, Tourismos : An International Multidisciplinary Refereed Journal of Tourism, Volume 14, Issue 2, 57-95, 2019 , DOI https://doi.org/10.26215/tourismos.v14i2.572