Solène PRINCE, European Tourism Research Institute, Mid-Sweden University, Sweden
Tatiana CHEKALINA, European Tourism Research Institute, Mid-Sweden University, Sweden
In light of the Anthropocene, rural spaces around the world are facing new realities, which poses a challenge to current perceptions of rural tourism experiences and development strategies. On one hand, rural landscapes are central to the rural tourism experience as they display the idyllic charm of the countryside and its traditions, with their nature relatively unspoiled by the rapid developments of modernity (Daugstad, 2008). On the other hand, rural landscapes are central to the fulfilment of national goals of sustainability by offering a stage for the mass production of renewable energy, such as wind power. The development of renewable energy generates economic growth, but its infrastructure impacts local cultural ecosystem services (Picchi et al., 2019). In Sweden, as in many other countries, the development of wind power plants in rural areas is causing tensions amongst different interest groups, including tourism stakeholders (Mordue et al., 2020; Ólafsdóttir & Saeþórsdóttir, 2019). As humanity deals psychologically and proactively with the effects of tourism mobilities and climate change in the Anthropocene, a host of new practices, relations and emotions unfold and give places new and complex meanings (Gren & Huijbens, 2015). In this presentation, I explore the subjective meaning that tourists attribute to the development of wind power in rural areas of Sweden, a country known both for its wilderness and modern technology. Results are based on qualitative interviews, seeking to capture the social discourses imbedded in perceptions of wind turbines in rural landscapes. The narratives are used to reflect upon urgent questions: How are human interventions in the Anthropocene reconfiguring rural landscapes and the activities they once afforded their local populations? How will rural tourism evolve in the Anthropocene as landscapes undergo physical change? How can tourism remain a sustainable alternative for rural development in this context of rapid change?
Mots clés : rural tourism|Anthropocene|landscape|qualitative research|renewable energy
A103763SP