The call for abstracts is now open. The abstracts must be submitted on EasyChair latest by 3 May 2022.
Workshop session 1: Advancements in Event & Festival Research
Session chairs: Tommy D. Andersson, Centre for Tourism, University of Gothenburg, John Armbrecht, Centre for Tourism, University of Gothenburg, and Erik Lundberg, Centre for Tourism, University of Gothenburg
At the time of writing, restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic are eased or removed in the Nordic countries. This means that events and festivals are back on the agenda. However, the pandemic has possibly had large impacts on the event industry and event audiences in terms of e.g. the rapid digitalization, changed mobility patterns, participants’ quality of life, bankruptcies of organizers and more. This will influence the industry going forward.
Up until the pandemic, there was an accelerating growth in events and festivals with respect to frequencies, purpose, content, form and popularity. Festivals and events constitute an important part within the experience economy, a growing type of travel and leisure activity as well as a development within the flora of cultural expressions. Under certain conditions, events and festivals seem to contribute to sustainable development of places and their local identities, to branding of places and marketing of regions, development of tourism and bridging gaps between locals, and between locals and visitors. They may enhance self-esteem and pride among local inhabitants, and facilitate their (re)discovery and (re)learning processes related to cultural and tangible items. However, there are also implications, dilemmas, paradoxes and controversies connected to events and festivals that can encumber a development in more sustainable directions.
The session is open to anyone who would submit their paper on event and festival related issues, and will contain a range of papers discussing various aspects of event and festival (tourism) issues. The objective of the session is to broaden and build relationships between researchers interested in this field in the Nordic countries and beyond.
Workshop session 2: Nordic Coastal Tourism Communities in Transition
Session chairs: Hin Hoarau-Heemstra, Nord University, Albina Pashkevich, Dalarna University, and Karin Wigger, Nord University and Laura James, Aalborg University
Many coastal communities in the Nordic region are attractive destinations for tourism activities, not at least because of the stunning nature and the cultural experiences. Tourism is often promoted in coastal communities as a way to support regional development and sustain livelihoods. At the same time, coastal communities in the Nordic region are particularly sensitive and vulnerable to disturbances, shocks, and stress caused by tourism, such as degradation of natural resources and interference with the daily life of the locals. The aim of this workshop is to discuss how these communities can transition towards a sustainable future by creating economic value while restoring and preserving natural and social resources, and perhaps even finding alternative paths.
The special workshop session invites NORTHORS members to collaborate and present research ideas and papers on development and resilience of coastal communities. The workshop is linked to the Call for Papers for a Special Issue in the Scandinavian Journal of Hospitality and Tourism.
As the travel industry rebounds from the pandemic, it is expected that tourism activities in coastal communities will increase again and new destinations will emerge. While a great debate has emerged around the impacts of tourism on coastal communities and how to manage tourism development to ensure sustainability, we know relatively little about change practices of stakeholders directly affected by and involved in tourism development. We are therefore looking for voices from coastal tourism communities that discuss and imagine ways tourism can be developed to enable human, non-human and environmental wellbeing.
Accordingly, this workshop seeks to discuss original and relevant conceptual and empirical papers on how coastal tourism activities offer opportunities and pose challenges for tourism and hospitality actors, communities, regions, and coastal environment and how these stakeholders adapt, change, and innovate accordingly. We would like to encourage a critical dialog regarding these aspects and engage in the discussions of possible futures for coastal regions, conserving the co-existing development of tourism and other economic sectors.
Workshop session 3: The Individual and the mass – rethinking relations
Session chairs: Hazel Andrews, Liverpool John Moores University and Vilhelmiina Vainikka, University of Lapland
Mass tourism has long been associated with crowds and the costs of tourism. Other touristic practices, such as cultural and alternative tourism, are often thought to favour the individual as separate from the mass. However, culture infuses all types of touristic practice and masses visit sites of cultural significance. COVID-19 stymied many tourism activities around the world and when vacations resumed many touristic practices eschewed the mass/crowds in favour of the uncrowded, whilst simultaneously creating crowds in other places. Sometimes the crowds are part of the attraction. This throws into sharp relief a need to think more carefully about the individual and their relationship to the crowd and the spaces in which holidaymaking occurs.
This workshop seeks to develop understanding of the individual in relation to the crowd on holiday. It invites contributions that consider not only the role of the tourist, but also the different mediators and ‘producers’ of tourism experiences from the hotel pool cleaner, to tour company representatives and those who work in the informal economy, such as migrant workers on the beaches of the Mediterranean. Perspectives of the viewers of tourism are also relevant here, that is anyone who evaluates and makes judgements on tourism phenomenon including artists, researchers, locals, and those who work in tourism. The central question is what is the relationship between the individual and the crowd?
Papers that take an innovative approach to individuals and crowds in tourism by, for example, considering art, architecture, literature and other forms of media are particularly welcome.
Workshop session 4: What is decent work in tourism and hospitality?
Session chairs: Åse Helene Bakkevig Dagsland, University of Stavanger, Tone Therese Linge, University of Stavanger and Tara Duncan, Dalarna University.
Even in 2022, tourism remains one of the largest export sectors of the global economy, providing jobs for millions of people worldwide. Aspects including international labor mobility and demographic changes contribute to the increasingly diverse tourism and hospitality workforce, presenting opportunities and challenges for the hospitality and tourism industry in terms of work conditions. Yet employment conditions in this sector remain regularly characterized by precarious working conditions, a higher occurrence of sexual harassment and a general lack of respect in comparison with employment in other sectors.
Challenging work conditions within this sector have only been amplified during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the industry is one of the sectors that has been most widely affected by the global pandemic. Current levels of global unrest, not only with the current conflict in the Ukraine, but also in many other parts of the world, further add to this complicated picture. Many of the workers most at risk consist of already vulnerable groups of employees such as women, migrant workers, young people, and informal workers with limited access to social protection due to informal or casual employment. The industry also faces severe challenges concerning recruitment and retention of qualified personnel. An increased focus on conditions of decent and sustainable employment in this industry as reflected in the United Nation’s Sustainability Goal 8 – “inclusive and sustainable economic growth, employment and decent work for all” – is necessary. The concept of “decent work” includes aspects such as respect, meaningful work, social protection, work rights, employment creation, social dialogue and workplace dignity.
This workshop session invites contributions that discuss various aspects concerning work conditions, decent work, and employment in the tourism and hospitality industry in light of complexity and changes in worklife due to globalization, crises and increased diversity. The aim of the session is to encourage dialogue and discussion. We invite short paper contributions (5-10 minutes maximum) that will be followed by an open session discussion of how central aspects concerning employment, workforce diversity and decent work in the tourism and hospitality industry are understood and managed on different levels and from various worklife perspectives including (but not limited to) employees, managers, trade unions, employers’ associations and other relevant stakeholders.
Workshop session 5: City tourism development – The development for a desirable tourism futures – a discussion of ongoing and future research
Session chair: Göran Andersson, Södertörn University and Saeid Abbasian, Södertörn University
A majority of the population lives, and a significant share of their production takes place in urban areas in the world today. City tourism has increased considerably and has still a development potential.
In many cities the number of residents increases. Several have also started to plan regional city centres. They have specific functions such as “the smart city” using both today’s popular smartphones services (apps) and new IT-solutions. Besides, when planning professional meetings digital solutions could be added.
Within the Smart city concept (Smart City Sweden, 2022) the city has to conduct urban planning and mobility where leisure activities have to be better planned for both residents and tourists. Mobility is important and can be seen as gateways from where visitors both start and partly experience their journey. Therefore destination developers and tourist companies must plan a whole concept for the tourism product.
The function of tourism is embedded in a network of economic and social realities and therefore has a potential to develop destination employment and economy. This calls for new ways of policies concerning city development, where Destination Management Organisations (DMO) can contribute to a high degree.
However, because tourism is mobile in nature there is a risk that tourism may consume too much resources. This also raises questions related to climate change. Instead of using flights to far-away destinations, the use of public transport to domestic destinations will have to be given new consideration. Residents’ and visitors’ use of the destination space can result in over tourism. Therefore there is a need for attractions in new places, improved transport systems and better coordination of visitor streams within the city.
Furthermore, the Corona pandemic has caused severe problems for people’s health. In addition, tourism and the hospitality industry have also got problems, which must be managed in a different way.
We invite both conceptual and empirical papers on challenges for future city destination tourism, in particular concerning development areas and problematic questions.
Workshop session 6: Open track
Any other topic or theme of interest in the Nordic tourism and hospitality research, development and project framework