Tourism and Arctic observation systems: Exploring the relationships
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Issue Date
2016-03-01
Editor
Authors
de la Barre, Suzanne
Maher, Patrick
Dawson, Jackie
Hillmer-Pegram, Kevin
Huijbens, Edward
Lamers, Machiel
Liggett, Daniela
Müller, Dieter
Pashkevich, Albina
Stewart, Emma
License
Subject
Abstract
The Arctic is affected by global environmental change and also by diverse
interests from many economic sectors and industries. Over the last decade,
various actors have attempted to explore the options for setting up integrated
and comprehensive trans-boundary systems for monitoring and observing these
impacts. These Arctic Observation Systems (AOS) contribute to the planning,
implementation, monitoring and evaluation of environmental change and
responsible social and economic development in the Arctic. The aim of this
article is to identify the two-way relationship between AOS and tourism. On the
one hand, tourism activities account for diverse changes across a broad spectrum
of impact fields.Onthe other hand, due to its multiple and diverse agents and farreaching
activities, tourism is also well-positioned to collect observational data
and participate as an actor in monitoring activities. To accomplish our goals, we
provide an inventory of tourism-embedded issues and concerns of interest to
AOS from a range of destinations in the circumpolar Arctic region, including
Alaska, Arctic Canada, Iceland, Svalbard, the mainland European Arctic and
Russia. The article also draws comparisons with the situation in Antarctica. On
the basis of a collective analysis provided by members of the International Polar
Tourism Research Network from across the polar regions, we conclude that the
potential role for tourism in the development and implementation of AOS is
significant and has been overlooked.
Description
This article was originally published as: de la Barre, S., Maher, P., Dawson, J., Hillmer-Pegram, K., Huijbens, E., Lamers, M., Liggett, D., Müller, D., Pashkevich, A., & Stewart, E. (2016). Tourism and Arctic observation systems: Exploring the relationships. Polar Research, 35, 1-13. http://dx.doi.org/10.3402/polar.v35.24980