Marta Soligo, Ph.D., is the Director of Tourism Research at the UNLV Office of Economic Development. She is the academic lead for the UNLV Tourism Development, Diversification, and Resiliency Initiative, a project that aims at diversifying Las Vegas’ tourism economy and its beneficiaries. In particular, the initiative centers around cultural, sports, and medical tourism in Southern Nevada, with a focus on support programs for disadvantaged businesses. The initiative is funded by a $2.1 million grant under the U.S. Economic Development Administration's (EDA) Travel, Tourism, and Outdoor Recreation program.

Soligo is a Visiting Assistant Professor at the UNLV William F. Harrah College of Hospitality and at the University of Bergamo (Italy) for the master’s course in Planning and Management of Tourism Systems. Moreover, she teaches Sociology of Leisure for the UNLV Department of Sociology, a course that is part of the UN World Tourism Organization’s “Tourism for the Sustainable Development Goals for 2030” program.

Soligo’s interests center around tourism and social justice, community development, and immigrant labor within the hospitality industry. Additionally, her sociological research focus on a wide range of themes, such as film induced tourism, dark tourism, and gambling studies. She has presented her works at several conferences by professional associations and international institutions, such as UNWTO (World Tourism Organization) and ASA (the American Sociological Association).