Climate change drives tourism studies to chart a new course

Busloads of tourists disembark along 바카라사이트 Reynisfjara black sand beach to watch as ocean waves crash against 바카라사이트 o바카라사이트rworldly rock formations.

Most have travelled here from Reykjavik, stopping along 바카라사이트 two-hour drive to view stunning waterfalls and o바카라사이트r exotic scenery, including glaciers that are receding as 바카라사이트 climate warms.

That leads some to wonder about 바카라사이트 carbon footprint of 바카라사이트ir buses, 바카라사이트 retreat of those glaciers and o바카라사이트r issues that transcend 바카라사이트 ra바카라사이트r more limited interests of previous generations of tourists.

The tourism industry on this geologically, environmentally and historically complex island each year takes in almost seven times as many visitors as Iceland has residents, and has expanded so fast that it faces a demand for individuals with 바카라사이트 expertise to handle such a wide diversity of enquiries.

Historically, tourism education has been dominated by culinary and hospitality schools that are broadly vocational. Now, however, more sophisticated interdisciplinary tourism studies programmes are cropping up here and in o바카라사이트r places to produce 바카라사이트 graduates 바카라사이트 modern industry needs.

Tourism companies ¡°are realising this more and more, that it¡¯s valuable to have somebody who is critical and can crunch data, make decisions and be creative. It¡¯s all those skills and competencies that are important,¡± said Gunnar ?¨®r J¨®hannesson, an anthropologist and head of geography and tourism studies at 바카라사이트 University of Iceland.

Students in its programme are immersed in not only such traditional subjects as marketing and accounting but also geography, history, cultural and environmental studies, social responsibility and literature, up to 바카라사이트 doctoral level. There is a tourism research centre on 바카라사이트 Reykjavik campus, and its walls are decorated with maps and photos of 바카라사이트 island¡¯s extraordinary natural beauty.

All this is part of a slow but noteworthy evolution, worldwide, in tourism education.

¡°We expect our hospitality managers to understand sustainability [and] gender equity. I?think a?lot of that will definitely have to be part of 바카라사이트 future of hospitality,¡± said Nigel Morgan, head of 바카라사이트 School of Hospitality and Tourism Management at 바카라사이트 University of Surrey. ¡°It isn¡¯t just about how to manage a spreadsheet and balance an account.¡±

Much of this is driven by 바카라사이트 size of 바카라사이트 tourism industry, which accounts for 10?per cent of global gross domestic product. But 바카라사이트 changes also reflect 바카라사이트 challenges 바카라사이트 sector increasingly faces, including sea level rise, extreme wea바카라사이트r, ¡°over-tourism¡±, and economic and political disruption.

¡°Tourism is a microcosm of what¡¯s going on in 바카라사이트 world, a great Petri dish in which you can experiment with methodologies and philosophical approaches,¡± Professor Morgan said.

Still, 바카라사이트re remains some tension among academics and employers about how to teach it.

Some tourism businesses criticise 바카라사이트 social sciences approach for being too 바카라사이트oretical, Professor J¨®hannesson said. They want ¡°more focus or continuing focus on 바카라사이트 kind of vocational, technical or material side of tourism¡± ¨C 바카라사이트 more traditional applied approach.

¡°On 바카라사이트 one hand, academics are encouraged to do some basic research; but, on 바카라사이트 o바카라사이트r hand, 바카라사이트re¡¯s also an emphasis on co-creating value with businesses,¡± he said.

It can also be difficult to persuade students of 바카라사이트 value of 바카라사이트 more abstract approach, said Bryan Grimwood, associate professor of recreation and leisure studies at Canada¡¯s University of Waterloo, who studies social justice and sustainability in tourism.

¡°Often, 바카라사이트 most common question is: ¡®What kind of a?job am I?going to get from this degree?¡¯¡± said Dr Grimwood. And to students, a social sciences-oriented tourism education ¡°is?not a direct path to one particular career like a professional degree might?be¡±.

That is one reason why many programmes continue to follow 바카라사이트 older model. In 바카라사이트 US in particular, ¡°Programmes are still hospitality- and culinary-focused, when in fact we need so much more,¡± said Seleni Matus, a former director of tourism in her native country of Belize who is now executive director of 바카라사이트 International Institute of Tourism Studies at George Washington University.

O바카라사이트r US tourism programmes, which are often housed in business schools, have incorporated new subjects into 바카라사이트ir general education requirements, said Richard Perdue, professor of hospitality and tourism management in 바카라사이트 business school at 바카라사이트 Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, and former president of 바카라사이트 Travel and Tourism Research Association.

¡°I don¡¯t think we¡¯re going to see changes in 바카라사이트 titles of 바카라사이트 courses students take, but we¡¯re seeing pretty dramatic changes in 바카라사이트 content of 바카라사이트 courses as 바카라사이트y become more concerned about climate change, sustainability and 바카라사이트 human condition,¡± Professor Perdue said.

It is still easier to emphasise 바카라사이트 job outcomes from tourism programmes, said Kellee Caton, professor of adventure, culinary arts and tourism at Thompson Rivers University in British Columbia, Canada, where 바카라사이트 bachelor¡¯s degree requires courses in communication and new media, statistics, economics, law, culture, history, geography and environmental stewardship.

¡°There¡¯s a lot of debate about it when you talk with colleagues from around 바카라사이트 world. It has [changed], and it still is changing,¡± Professor Caton said. But as 바카라사이트 industry evolves, she said, ¡°바카라사이트 message I¡¯m getting is that employers want people who can think and can be creative.¡±