Close ties between tourism and science in Svalbard

“We want to highlight just how closely science and tourism in Svalbard are linked. If tourism changes, research is affected as well,” says Jasmine Zhang, researcher at SLU and lead author of the article recently published in Annals of Tourism Research.

In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the mining industry expanded in Svalbard and settlements such as Longyearbyen were established. This development created infrastructure that later enabled both science and tourism.

Closely intertwined

Despite this shared history, science and tourism are often regarded as two separate systems with different aims – knowledge on the one hand and experiences on the other. In practice, however, they are closely intertwined. Tourism contributes infrastructure that research relies on, such as accommodation and transport. At the same time, science provides knowledge on which tourism builds.

“It is easier to justify the presence of science in the Arctic, but it is important to understand that decisions about tourism also affect research, and vice versa. If tourism were to disappear, it would become more difficult to carry out research” says co-autor René van der Wal, who is Professor at SLU and has worked on Svalbard for almost three decades.

Important for sustainable development

Jasmine Zhang has interviewed people working in both tourism and science in Svalbard. The question whether they are effectively two sides of the same coin is an important one to entertain for the future.

“We certainly do not encourage mass tourism. However, science and tourism are mutually dependent, and this connection must be taken seriously in efforts towards sustainable development,” says Jasmine Zhang.

This intertwining of science and tourism can also be found in other places such as the Amazon, Antarctica and Greenland.

Scientific article

Arctic science and tourism in Svalbard-two sides of the same coin?