Science–tourism intersections onboard Arctic expedition cruise ships: Reflective insights from a fieldwork at the geographic North Pole
In August 2023, we both embarked on an icebreaker cruise ship in order to conduct fieldwork with and among cruise passengers and together with four other scientists. Departing from Longyearbyen, Svalbard, this two-week ship-time fieldwork took us to the geographic North Pole, across the Arctic Ocea...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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The Geographical Society of Northern Finland
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Nordia Geographical Publications |
| Online Access: | https://nordia.journal.fi/article/view/146646 |
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| author | Alix Varnajot Élise Lépy |
| author_facet | Alix Varnajot Élise Lépy |
| author_sort | Alix Varnajot |
| collection | DOAJ |
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In August 2023, we both embarked on an icebreaker cruise ship in order to conduct fieldwork with and among cruise passengers and together with four other scientists. Departing from Longyearbyen, Svalbard, this two-week ship-time fieldwork took us to the geographic North Pole, across the Arctic Ocean sea ice, and to several locations in northern Svalbard. While cruise vessels operating as platforms of opportunity for researchers are not new, cruise tourism in the polar regions has raised ethical and sustainable concerns in times of increasing awareness regarding climate change. In addition, cruises bringing together tourists and scientists are currently objects of vivid discussions both in academia and the media. Drawing from our ship-time fieldwork experience, we aim to contribute to these recent debates. Building on the work of Lamers et al. (2024), we argue that misunderstanding on the concept of platform of opportunity can lead to potentially poor data collection, scientists’ disappointment, and detrimental reputation for both science and tourism actors. We argue that carefully selecting research projects that align with the specificities of expedition cruise tourism, and facilitating nighttime research are effective strategies to avoid these misunderstandings. This may also enhance the credibility of cruise companies that may often be accused of science- and greenwashing.
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| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-eae0f7d82d174d2ebe96cdb0700c0fa4 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1238-2086 2736-9722 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | The Geographical Society of Northern Finland |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Nordia Geographical Publications |
| spelling | doaj-art-eae0f7d82d174d2ebe96cdb0700c0fa42025-01-18T04:52:28ZengThe Geographical Society of Northern FinlandNordia Geographical Publications1238-20862736-97222025-01-01Science–tourism intersections onboard Arctic expedition cruise ships: Reflective insights from a fieldwork at the geographic North PoleAlix Varnajot0Élise Lépy1University of OuluUniversity of Oulu In August 2023, we both embarked on an icebreaker cruise ship in order to conduct fieldwork with and among cruise passengers and together with four other scientists. Departing from Longyearbyen, Svalbard, this two-week ship-time fieldwork took us to the geographic North Pole, across the Arctic Ocean sea ice, and to several locations in northern Svalbard. While cruise vessels operating as platforms of opportunity for researchers are not new, cruise tourism in the polar regions has raised ethical and sustainable concerns in times of increasing awareness regarding climate change. In addition, cruises bringing together tourists and scientists are currently objects of vivid discussions both in academia and the media. Drawing from our ship-time fieldwork experience, we aim to contribute to these recent debates. Building on the work of Lamers et al. (2024), we argue that misunderstanding on the concept of platform of opportunity can lead to potentially poor data collection, scientists’ disappointment, and detrimental reputation for both science and tourism actors. We argue that carefully selecting research projects that align with the specificities of expedition cruise tourism, and facilitating nighttime research are effective strategies to avoid these misunderstandings. This may also enhance the credibility of cruise companies that may often be accused of science- and greenwashing. https://nordia.journal.fi/article/view/146646 |
| spellingShingle | Alix Varnajot Élise Lépy Science–tourism intersections onboard Arctic expedition cruise ships: Reflective insights from a fieldwork at the geographic North Pole Nordia Geographical Publications |
| title | Science–tourism intersections onboard Arctic expedition cruise ships: Reflective insights from a fieldwork at the geographic North Pole |
| title_full | Science–tourism intersections onboard Arctic expedition cruise ships: Reflective insights from a fieldwork at the geographic North Pole |
| title_fullStr | Science–tourism intersections onboard Arctic expedition cruise ships: Reflective insights from a fieldwork at the geographic North Pole |
| title_full_unstemmed | Science–tourism intersections onboard Arctic expedition cruise ships: Reflective insights from a fieldwork at the geographic North Pole |
| title_short | Science–tourism intersections onboard Arctic expedition cruise ships: Reflective insights from a fieldwork at the geographic North Pole |
| title_sort | science tourism intersections onboard arctic expedition cruise ships reflective insights from a fieldwork at the geographic north pole |
| url | https://nordia.journal.fi/article/view/146646 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT alixvarnajot sciencetourismintersectionsonboardarcticexpeditioncruiseshipsreflectiveinsightsfromafieldworkatthegeographicnorthpole AT eliselepy sciencetourismintersectionsonboardarcticexpeditioncruiseshipsreflectiveinsightsfromafieldworkatthegeographicnorthpole |