Tourism and Climate Change

Session organizer: Janet Dickinson (Bournemouth University)

Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers) Annual Conference, London, 27-29 Aug 2008

First call for papers

Following the Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change assertion that climate change is now unequivocally taking place, the Davos Declaration has prioritised the need for the tourism sector to respond to the climate change challenge. This call for papers explores tourism’s contribution to climate change. This presents new geographical challenges as tourism research has tended to focus on localized impacts at destinations while analysis of climate change impacts requires a more holistic view. To adapt tourism practices for a lower carbon future requires public engagement with a complex debate with particular representations of climate change having powerful consequences for behaviour decisions. Research in this field calls for new methodologies which explore how and why particular practices have arisen and how conventional assumptions, including widespread misconceptions about what constitutes sustainable tourism practice, have emerged.

While this session invites papers on any geographical aspect of tourism and climate change, three areas are of particular interest: studies focusing on transport since the travel components are responsible for the largest share of the climate change impact of tourism; the impact of climate change on tourism; and studies which apply more critical approaches to analyse assumptions about the environment and the practice that underlies tourist behaviour.

Abstracts for 15 minute papers addressing any aspect of tourism and climate change research should be submitted to Dr Janet Dickinson ([log in to unmask]) no later than 25th January 2008. You can contact Janet Dickinson if you require any further information about the session.

Many thanks

Janet Dickinson ([log in to unmask])