TOURISM AND GLOBAL WARMING

The relationship between tourism and global warming is a paradoxical one: global warming has become a threat to tourism, yet tourism remains a major cause of global warming. Tis vicious circle is well known to all stakeholders of the tourism industry, but implementing meaningful change has proven difficult because of three types of resistance: politico economic resistance (from policymakers in regions and countries that rely heavily on tourism as a source of income), commercial resistance (from the tourism industry itself), and sociocultural resistance (from tourists who are not ready to change their behavior).

Several factors account for the considerable development of tourism since World War II: growing afuence, longer holidays, cheaper transportation, the availability of preorganized packaged tours, and the development of an industry catering both to mass tourists and to independent travellers. The subsequent increase in demand has resulted in an exponential rise in visitor numbers, both domestically (within countries) and internationally (especially from developed countries to developing countries). Although domestic tourism is statistically much more important (e.g., it accounts for 99 percent of all U.S. tourism and for 85 percent of all Australian tourism), international tourism is easier to measure (through a simple head count at borders); in addition, international tourism corresponds much more to the mainstream imagery of tourism: an island-hopping cruise in the Caribbean, a romantic holiday in Paris, a big game safari in Kenya. According to the World Tourism Organization, the number of international tourists increased from a mere 25 million in 1950 to 800 million in 2005. This number is predicted to double and to reach 1.8 billion by 2020, as more and more people want to travel. They may well know that they contribute to global warming and climate change, and some may feel a pang of guilt and remorse, but their desire to travel is stronger.

Climate is a key resource for tourism: favorable climatic conditions are key attractions for tourists, be it to ski in the mountains, to relax on a beach, or to experience nature. As soon as climatic conditions fluctuate and become less predictable, the tourism demand is affected and tourist flows move elsewhere: tourism, as a geographic phenomenon, is fickle and versatile. The mass media occasionally run stories about tourism hot spots that are victims of climate change and see their tourism appeal decrease; examples abound from all across the world, from less snowfall and shorter skiing seasons in Aspen, Colorado, or in Chamonix in the French Alps, to damage to coral reefs and rising ocean water in Australasia, not to mention hurricanes that affect island resorts and the cruising industry.

These media stories are not just anecdotes or isolated incidents: they are part of a wider concern already well documented in the tourism literature, both in the academic literature (with seriously researched case studies, a nascent modelization of the relationship between climate change and tourism, and an increasing number of specialists, such as the Canadian Daniel Scott, the Dutch Bas Amelung, and the French JeanPaul Ceron) and in the professional literature (industry publications such as professional bodies’ reports and newsletters, as well as travel guides for tourists).
Source: Encyclopedia of Global Warming and Climate Change (Click Here)