Dive Tourism in Luganville, Vanuatu: Shocks, Stressors, and Vulnerability to Climate Change

Abstract

Luganville is a developing dive tourism destination region (DtDr) in Vanuatu, which relies on tourism. this article reports on the shocks and stressors faced by Luganville's dive tourism sector and climate change's exacerbation of these. the study's methodology was based on rapid rural appraisal and case study principles, involving methods of semistructured interviews, group discussions, and personal observations. Data were analyzed using a thematic analysis approach. key shocks identified include cyclones, earthquakes, effect on demand due to media footage, and changes to international flights. Main stressors were starfish outbreaks and environmental degradation. Unlike the indigenous communities, expatriates show little concern for the potential impact of climate change, presenting response challenges that must incorporate different perspectives to develop effective adaptation options.

Stakeholder perspectives on climate change effects on tourism activities in the northern Romanian Carpathians: Vatra Dornei resort case study

“…Due to the latest scientific and politic reactions and to late evolving trends regarding tourism climate change relation more and more studies are approaching now the stakeholder attitudes and reactions on the issue. They are considered a key element for adaptation of recreational industry to the now uncontested climate change problem (Bicknell & McManus 2006;Nicholls & Holecek, 2008;Turton, Dickson, Hadwen, Jorgensen, Pham, Simmons, Tremblay & Wilson, 2010;Charara, Cashman, Bonnell & Gehr, 2011in Becken, 2013Trawoger, 2014, in press) as "the key players' awareness of climate change may determine whether effective action is taken" (Belle & Bramwell, 2005;Klint, Jiang, Law, De Lacy, Filep, Calgaro, Dominey-Howes & Harrison, 2012in Trawoger, 2014). …”

Tourism megatrends

“…Examples are reported from: ski tourism (Dawson, Scott, & McBoyle, 2009;Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, 2010;Pickering, 2011;Steiger, 2011); dive tourism (Klint et al, 2012;Klinthong & Yeemin, 2012;Sarnsamak, 2011); regional tourism within Europe (Lagadec, 2004;Létard, Flandre, & Lepeltier, 2004;Scott & Lemieux, 2010); and the timing of visitors to US National Parks (Buckley & Foushee, 2012).…”

Evaluation of policy environment for climate change adaptation in tourism

“…As one interviewee claimed he was 'not aware of any policies, as they are completely inactive' (interview, . There is a dominance of foreign (expatriate) tourism business owners, who show little concern for the potential impact of climate change (Klint et al, 2012a). .…”