Nord+ 2018 Intensive course: Rural development in the era of green and silver economy

The District Municipality Rural tourism and its benefits for the aging population

Authors: Deimante Dragūnaitė Halla Kristjánsdóttir Patrick Joan Thomson Laurent Bollia

Supervisors: Donatas Burneika Thorbjörg K. Kjartansdóttir Zaiga Krisjane Ilkka Pyy Garri Raagmaa

Vilnius, 2018

Abstract

The aim of our study is focus on the nowadays problematics of aging population in rural and peripheric areas. Indeed, the globalization has created new trends in term of migration local development which brought the peripheric regions to stay on the border of the global market. There is a need to understand and highlight the issues faced in the Ignalina region by both the tourism sector and the elderly population. This paper will analyse the relation between elderly population and the tourism activities. Furthermore, it will describe the role of both local governments and local businesses towards the regional development. It supposes that the elderly population should be involved in the touristic activities, as the Ignalina region has great possibilities to develop tourism for the inactive tourist such as activities that offer relaxation.

Table of Contents 1 Introduction ...... 1 1.1 Case Study Area ...... 1 1.2 Research questions and hypothesis ...... 3 2 Theoretical background ...... 4 2.1 Rural tourism ...... 4 2.2 Rural tourism in ...... 5 2.3 Tourism for the elderly ...... 6 4 Data Analysis & discussion ...... 9 4.1 How is the changing population structure affecting everyday life in the region? ...... 9 4.2 What kind of tourism activities can be offered to the elderly and what is currently available in the Ignalina municipality? ...... 11 4.3 What are the main concerns about local tourism sector in the area? ...... 12 5 Conclusion ...... 14 References ...... 15

1 Introduction 1.1 Case Study Area

Since ancient times, the Ignalina District municipality which situates in the eastern part of Lithuania has been famous for its picturesque localities (fig. 1). One of the highest peaks in Lithuania is located here – the Būdakalnis and Nevaišiai hill. The land of Ignalina is adorned by over 200 lakes, several tens of rivers and ponds. One third of the area is covered by forests. The largest park of Aukštaitija National park, fourteen regional parks and various reserves are found in the territory of the district. Ignalina is well known as the winter sports’ capital of Lithuania since various winter sports’ competitions are organized in the municipality. In the town and its suburbs various bicycle sport competitions take place. The future of the Ignalina District municipality is associated with the tourism development. With every year, tourism and sports related activities continue to grow in the district and attractive projects are established which improve the living environment of the local people which make the land of Ignalina even more attractive for tourists (Ignalina District Municipality, 2017a).

Figure 1 Location of the Ignalina municipality (author: Patrick Joan Thomson, 2018) The Ignalina region was populated during the Stone Age, with remnants from early camps discovered throughout the countryside. When Lithuania was under Russian rule in the 19th century, the Russian emperor ordered a railway line built from St. Petersburg to Warsaw via . Ignalina became an important railway station in the 1860's, which triggered a dynamic development of the region. During World War I, Germany required that another railway line be built from Ignalina towards the front line. The greater part of the territory belonged to Poland after the war, with a small section given to Belarus. In 1939 the Vilnius region was captured by

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Soviet troops. Following World War II, Ignalina saw a rapid growth, especially after 1950 when the town became the district centre (Ignalina District Municipality, 2017b). Ignalina and the District encompass over 200 lakes, such as Gavys, Gavaitis, Delinis, Gulbinis, Agarinis, Siekstys (with the Lithuanian Winter Sports Center beside it), Darzinele, Viksvojas, Paviksvojas, Krakinis, Ziezulinis, Ilgys, Meksrinis, Peledinis, Paplovinis, Palaukinis (nearby is an ancient Jewish cemetery). The majority of these lakes are linked with rivers. Small roads and trails connect the lakes and nearby forests. Several different environmental regions make Ignalina very interesting to people wanting to observe various fauna and flora. Aukstaitija National Park, established in 1974 as the first in Lithuania, comprises 21,100 ha. with primarily forests and 102 lakes. The Park provides activities all year round in its nature and recreational center with headquarters located just 3 km from Ignalina (Ignalina District Municipality, 2017b). The Ignalina municipality is rich with picturesque landscapes which the local government assures is actively kept in proper condition. The government is also seeking a resort status for the city which is why they have invested in different sport grounds, hiking trails around the lakes, which are mainly focused on tourists, lots of beaches and places to swim. To reduce seasonality of tourism they built winter sports complex where lots of people come to train (Ignalina District Municipality, 2017c). Age group of 20-60 makes up almost half of the population and age group 60 and older is the second largest in the region. Social assistance in Ignalina is organized by the Support Department of the Ignalina District Municipality. One of the main focuses revolves around taking good care of low-income families. Social workers and care council of the district help the social department in the area as well. There is a strong cooperation with the public organizations of the district. Friendship relations and exchange of experience is implemented in various small-scale projects (Ignalina District Municipality, 2017d). Figure 2 shows average wages in Lithuania range from 560.7 euros per month to 726.5 euros in the capital.

Figure 2 Average wages in Lithuania in 2016 (euros) There are about 260 working enterprises in the Ignalina municipality. 68% of which are small enterprises, 22% of which are medium-sized and 10% of which are large enterprises. A variety of EU structural funds are used to boost the economy. Ignalina uses gas to power the town, because of its relatively inexpensive and secure methods. It’s also supported by the businesses in the region. The region has rich pure clay deposits, which can be used in various ways. There is a branch of a international company in Ignalina as well, where furniture is being 2 manufactured. JSC “Romnesa” has purchased the necessary equipment for business development in tourism field: some kayaks, canoes, diving equipment, bicycles, a movable sauna, some bathing vats. This enterprise hires the stock, related with tourism and intermediates providing the tourism services, using the mark of “Ignaturas”. The most effectively working building and construction companies are: JSC “Ignalinos statyba” and JSC “Meleksas”. A company that works in wood manufacturing field is JSC “Ignolitos mediena”, in stew fishery field – JSC “Birvetos tvenkiniai” (Ignalina District Municipality, 2017d).

1.2 Research questions and hypothesis The Ignalina region is a rural area where the natural elements such as lakes and forests occupy the biggest part of the territory. The region and rural localities knew how to benefit from those characteristics, indeed touristic activities have rapidly grown around lakes, beaches and forests. However, Ignalina is affected by a wider European problematic: the aging population. In fact, elderly people represent a big part of the population, but even more, this trend is increasing, the share of people above 65 is growing and the emigration of young people to Vilnius and abroad makes it worse. The main objective of our study is to analyse those problematics through the scope of regional development. If we take in consideration that the main features of the region are an old population, great natural resources and a growing rural tourism sector, our study is guided by the question:

How can the growing ecotourism sector benefit elderly people around the Ignalina area?

To narrow our research, we divided the research question into three sub-questions. The first one focuses on the relation between population and its general impacts on the region: “How is the changing population structure affecting everyday life in the region?” The second one is an incentive to understand the possible relations between elderly activities and tourism activities: “What kind of tourism activities could be done by the elderly and are done at the moment in the Ignalina municipality?” Finally, we narrow again our research in order to find out the possibilities for development concerning local tourism and elderly people by asking: “What are the main concerns about local tourism sector in the area?”. Elderly people have competences, knowledge and wisdom. Our hypothesis for this study is that somehow those characteristics could be used in the regional development of its rural tourism. To do so, we suppose that elderly could play a role in the business of tourism by sharing their knowledge about traditions first with entrepreneurs in tourism sector and secondly directly with tourists by selling crafted traditional objects and foods. Our main hypothesis also concerned the fact that elderly people in nursing homes could participate in economic activities or have contacts with tourists.

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2 Theoretical background

2.1 Rural tourism The rural countryside faces increased challenges in the light of globalization, population aging as well as migration from rural areas to densely populated areas and diminishing dependence on long-established sources of income (Garrod, Wornell & Youell, 2006). Among the challenges presented include a higher need for specialized workers (Barkauskas, Barkauskienė & Jasinskas, 2015) often resulting in unemployment which can increase dependence on governmental subsidies. Tourism development is often proposed as a solution to improving the economic status of a rural area and local government often take initiative of developing tourism as a result of decline from other more traditional sources of economic prosperity for rural areas such as agriculture. Rural tourism development therefor depends on local motivations and is often used as a solution to macroeconomic problems. Rural tourism is a fast growing economic sector which deals with challenges and opportunities provided by the global competitive market. Rural tourism and its benefits be seen through an interrelation of multidimensional social, cultural and economic factors. The features of a fully developed tourism in an area as a market driven business activity which ultimately presents changes in the socio-cultural economy (Bilan & Streimikiene, 2015). These changes are based on local resources and can be negative as well as positive. Negative changes might include pollution or overuse of resources while positive changes can appear as economic growth or increased availability of activities for tourists as well as locals. Garrod et al. (2006) re-brands rural resources as ‘countryside capital’ which can be invested in. The result is a business and market driven process which should lead to an economic growth in the area if feasible. The main drivers of rural tourism development depend on which theoretical approach is taken into consideration while demand and supply commonly appear to play a crucial role in every viewpoint (Bilan & Streimikiene, 2015) as well as situational conditions such as natural resources and local initiatives and actors. Competition in the tourism market between rural regions is also considered to play an important role as a driving force for the development of rural tourism as well as enabling it to flourish (Komppula, 2014). As with any competitive market, the demand and supply are shaped by the area’s resources and are the main motives of the customer which makes tourism destination competitiveness both relative and multidimensional. Tourists motivations act as a demand for market driven tourism and therefor shape local tourism development. According to Bilan and Streimikiene (2015) the key motivations that attract tourists are fundamentally dependent on people’s desires. Their desires describe a longing to escape from routine and a search for adventure. Wilson, Fesenmaier, Fesenmaier and Van Es (2001) have examined factors that contribute to a successful development of rural tourism. These factors include good community leadership, support and participation from local government as well as strategic planning with an emphasis on a communal approach. Local resources, local government and local individuals along with visitors desires and demands shape the development of rural tourism. Both private and public-sector agencies take part in shaping the characteristics of the local tourism industry. The importance of local actors in the development of rural tourism is recognized such as non-profit organizations as well as government firms (Saxena & Ilbery, 2008). These actors exert control and influence development. ‘Local embeddedness’ describes rural tourism as a network of actors that are embedded in particular localities and emphasizes the linkage between place and culture which creates an attraction for tourists and therefor demand for rural tourism related activities.

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In recent research on the topic the importance of entrepreneurship has been brought to the limelight. Entrepreneurs have been noted as great contributors to the development of rural tourism (Komppula, 2014). They contribute to the destination competitiveness by creating new grounds for specialization, innovation, investment and more. Entrepreneurs are more inclined to take greater risks in decision making processes which could lead to more growth in the area. Some argue that they go great lengths in ensuring profit for investors (Ritchie & Crouch, 2003 in Komppula, 2014). Moreover, entrepreneurships are usually characterized by small or medium scaled, personalized enterprises which have direct local ties. Municipalities have a crucial role as facilitators of the entrepreneurial environment. With or without government involvement, rural tourism has become an important source of income for many rural communities (Hall, 2004). It has served as a salient instrument to express identity and generate local wealth. It creates a diversification in the local economy by creating various business opportunities with the help of entrepreneurs that do not necessarily require specialization, ranging from small scale beekeeping to guided hiking tours etc. The rural countryside is therefore perceived as a product of leisure and tourism that can be marketed and consumed (Eusébio, Carneiro, Kastenholz, Figueiredo, da Silva, 2017). Rural tourism provides an effective way of protecting nature and landscapes as well as preserving cultural heritage and history (Snieška, Barkauskienė & Barkauskas, 2014) while explicitly describing the connection between problem-solving solutions and local resources and actors.

2.2 Rural tourism in Lithuania In the era of post-communist Europe rural tourism has begun to flourish. Lithuania is amongst the former Soviet Union nations whose rural communities have become less dependent on conventional sources of income and in return found newer ways of adapting to today’s changes in the global economy. In addition, Lithuania’s rural tourism was also negatively impacted by the 2008 financial crisis (Baležentis, Kriščiukaitienė, Baležentis, Garland, 2012). Unstable global economy followed by depopulation and effects of globalization are amongst the outside forces that have driven many rural areas into finding new measures to assure constant economic growth. Many rural communities have turned to tourism development as a result. Rural tourism has become an important industry both for local businesses as well as for the Lithuanian people which of 25-30% are potential consumers of rural tourism (Ramanauskas & Gargasas, 2006). Lithuanian people also make up 90% of visitors to rural Lithuanian farmsteads (Snieška, Barkauskienė & Barkauskas, 2014). While the majority of the country’s rural tourism consumers appear to be Lithuanian, international visitors are also enjoying the Lithuanian countryside. Geographic position and distinguishing characteristics puts each Lithuanian region into advantage over the other which rural tourism is based upon. Lithuania’s rural tourism has certainly benefited from those advantages. While Lithuania is accessible by boat and airplanes, tourists from nearby countries visit with ease. This opens the country up to several potential tourist markets such as Latvia, Estonia, , , Germany, Poland, Belarus and the Ukraine (Ramanauskas & Gargasas, 2006). Diverse factors shape the development of rural tourism in Lithuania such as government revenue and expenditures, foreign investments and tangible investments per capita (Snieška, Barkauskienė & Barkauskas, 2014). The determinants of Lithuanian rural tourism consumers‘ satisfaction include environmental preservation and destination aesthetics (Grigaliūnaitė & Pilelienė, 2014). Rural tourists in Lithuania value the efforts of expanding variety of activities for different demographic groups. Research on how to improve marketing strategies in rural tourism development in Lithuania shows that activities that provide relaxation such as spas are vital for attracting tourists (fig. 6) (Ramanauskas & Gargasas, 2006). Activities such as berry and mushroom picking are also popular activities among rural tourists in Lithuania.

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Figure 3 Demand level of rural tourism services in Lithuania (Ramanauskas & Gargasas, 2006)

The benefits of rural tourism development in Lithuania can be seen through a variety of positive effects such as; promotion of rural development, additional source of income for farmers, creation of wider markets for local products, increased employment opportunities for local communities, improved quality of life for local inhabitant and promotion of growth in other local economic sectors such as arts and music (Barkauskas, Barkauskienė & Jasinskas, 2015). It creates not only economic growth but social-cultural growth as well while attracting foreign investments and encouraging preservation of cultural heritage in the area.

2.3 Tourism for the elderly Demographic changes are altering the rural development in Lithuania towards a more sustainable source of economic growth. The aging Lithuanian population is an untapped resource which tourism development could focus on while defining marketing strategies in the tourism sector (Barkauskas, Barkauskienė & Jasinskas, 2015). Research shows that activities which promote and provide relaxation are of much importance to the economy of rural regions (Ramanauskas & Gargasas, 2006). This corresponds to the need of the aging population which creates a greater demand for passive activities in the rural countryside (Barkauskas, Barkauskienė & Jasinskas, 2015). Increased concern for health and the desire to experience the natural and cultural environment in Lithuania makes the elderly population an ideal focal point. Ramanauskas and Gargasas (2006) stress the importance of diverse services and activities for the elderly in rural tourism development. Young people make up most of the Lithuanian rural tourism consumers which makes elderly people potential customers. This creates opportunities for market expansion. Opportunities for diversification of activities in Lithuanian rural tourism development could create greater economic growth for each region which implements market-based strategies. It has also been acknowledged that further development is needed towards creating marketing strategies aimed at middle or low-income consumers (Baležentis et al., 2012). Eusébio et al. (2017) identify the visitors of the countryside idyll. The consumers of rural tourism can be categorized into clusters based on the tourists’ desires and motivations. The cluster analysis was based on the activities which tourists carry out in rural areas. The ‘inactive cluster’ includes tourists of older age and describes the passive behavior of rural tourists. The activities which the tourists from the inactive cluster participate in include mainly resting and visiting relatives. As a result, the cluster is defined by a high percentage of visitors who seek rural areas because of heritage or family connections. Family links and nostalgia seem to draw older visitors to rural areas. At the same time, activities which promote health and 6 relaxation such as spas are popular among elderly . Creations of ‘wellness clusters’ have gained notice in rural tourism development in Lithuania (Hopeniene & Bagdoniene, 2010) which makes the elderly population an ideal market. It also focuses on resorts in the rural Lithuania where the selection of location would be determent on natural resources for example aesthetically pleasing landscapes such as lakes or forests. Strategies to develop methods to activate the inactive cluster of rural tourists is necessary for further inclusivity in applied marketing techniques.

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3 Methods

For this case study of the Ignalina municipality qualitative methods were used in order to answer the research questions. This was done in a deductive approach with a hypothesis presented. The nature of the research questions call for interviewing techniques. Interviews were conducted in a semi-constructed way, with a list of open-ended questions for guidance while preforming the interviews. Interviewees were gathered from a help of local government worker who acted as a key informant and gained the authors access to the actors and residents of the local community. Interviewees were 10 persons total and included two local government workers, tourist information center worker, four local business owners who provide services and/or accommodation to visitors of the municipality, local activist involved in group activities, local priest and nursing home worker. After data was collected through interviews data reduction was applied with open coding methods to identify certain topics and/or themes. The interviewees’ narratives were carefully analysed to identify any related concepts that might answer the research questions proposed. Conclusions were drawn from the validation of the results with a reflection of literature overview. The research is holistic in character as authors attempt to reflect multiple dimensions and layers of perspectives, identifying factors which might be useful to the research. The research reflects the main philosophy of qualitative methods as the researchers/authors are essentially the main devices who interview and interpret the results. The nature of the research seeks to be representational as results from interviews are interpreted via understanding of literature overview of the subjects reflected in the research questions.

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4 Data Analysis & discussion

Talking about the main tourists, as a local tourism center worker said, they usually come from: Lithuania, Poland, German, Czechia, Belgium, Netherlands, Denmark. Majority of the tourists in the area are Latvians. A local businessman said, that they don’t even recon latvians as foreigners, because they come here pretty often. Some tourists from Belarus come here as well. There is also a student exchange program in Ignalina. People, who take part at that program enjoy local tourism activities as well. In addition, there are many lithuanians, who emigrate abroad and occasionally come back to visit Ignalina’s municipality as tourists. According to local tourism center worker, one of the problems which occur, is that, for example, German tourists come to this municipality mostly to camp here. So, they only need a supermarket and don’t need local accommodation. Usually Lithuania is just a part of a bigger round trip (which goes through Poland, Baltic countries and Scandinavian countries) for them and these tourists mostly focus on the historical monuments.

4.1 How is the changing population structure affecting everyday life in the region? In the past 10 years population in Ignalina municipality has been steadily dropping. The area has lost about 20% of its residents due to population aging and migration. Population has been declining about 440 persons per year and is expected to drop below 10.000 residents in about 12 years. The age distribution shows that the smallest age group is from 30-39 years. Local resident mentioned that the actual number might be a lot less than the average statistics the reason being people who go to work in the bigger cities like Vilnius, , Klaipeda don’t formally change their addresses in the national statistical database.

Figure 4 Number of citizens in the Ignalina municipality

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Figure 5 Population age distribution in the Ignalina municipality

They also mentioned that parents encourage their youth to move to Vilnius where the wages are higher, and more jobs are available. Currently, job opportunities in the Inglalina municipality are plentiful and of a great variety but most of its residents lack qualifications. According to a local government worker, depopulation is a big problem for the municipality. Solutions to hinder migration from the area to the capital could be tricky since the wages in Vilnius are generally considered low compared to countries where high wages attracts residents from rural Lithuania. These countries include Germany, England or the Nordic countries. The government worker also mentioned that most of the people who move to the Ignalina region have already established financial stability and can even work from home. These people move to the area to enjoy a peaceful and safe environment for bringing up children. Population aging and migration has induced a shortage of workers in the service sector. The result is increased dependency on monetary aid from the local government, according to the same local government worker. They also explained that residents in their 40s have made a habit of living off of social benefits from the local government. Their children receive meals during the day at schools and their grandparents assist in taking care of the children as well as supporting them financially with their pension. According to the same government worker, locals earning money in the black or gray market, often in illegal ways. The municipality receives minimum or no taxes off of this work which in return halters the economic growth of the area. One of the largest employers in the last decade in the area was the Ignalina powerplant which resided in . Most of the workers there were in their 20s and 30s, which could explain the population age distribution. People between the ages of 20 to 60 make up half of the population and the unemployment rate in the region for working age people is 7.1 (statistics department) and its one of the biggest in Lithuania. After closing the powerplant the most successful project in the area was funded by the Lithuanian government and it focused on attracting new investors to the area and starting businesses.

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Figure 6 Age groups in the Ignalina municipality

With population aging the need for more nursing homes in the area has increased. As of now, there are two nursing homes in the region. There are queues for both and demand increases during the summers when the elderly have a harder time taking care of themselves. There is a clear need for more spaces in the nursing homes. A nursing home worker suggested further investment in the existing nursing homes rather than building new ones. The management of a nursing home in Mielagenai is joint between the church and the local government. The church’s priest said that it’s the government’s duty to manage a nursing home, not the church’s. In addition, the national government of Lithuania does not have a general legislation on subsidies and pension payments to elderly who wish to live in nursing homes. Payments can range from 200€ in one part of Lithuania and 400€ in another. Nursing homes face another problem than the lack of staff, investment and government care. Indeed, the idea of living in a nursing home is often rejected by elderly people. A local businessman who has lived in the region for the past 30 years attested that generally people in nursing homes feel abandoned by their family. A worker in a nursing home in the Ignalina municipality confirmed this trend. They said that even though elderly people seem to enjoy their stay at the nursing home, underlying causes such as bad family relationships often act as an incentive for their stay. However, as discovered during interviews in the nursing home, the elderly seemed satisfied enough with their stay at the nursing home. Activities for the elderly are available in the nursing home but those activities have none or minimum impact on the local village. Indeed, even if the local workers would like them to get involved in the activities of the village, elderly people often refuse to participate, mainly because they have disabilities as well as health issues.

4.2 What kind of tourism activities can be offered to the elderly and what is currently available in the Ignalina municipality? Senior tourism is predicted to be a major force in the 21st century as populations age. While seniors are as diverse as any other demographic sector, and many seniors do not have the resources to travel, the following generalizations can be made about senior travelers: they are more likely to be experienced travelers, they have more time and money to spend on leisure, they generally have more saving and assets and less commitments, they have more time and may travel during off-seasons, health issues might limit travel choices. Keeping that in mind,

11 elderly tourists might prefer tourism destination which offers health and relaxion related activities, pristine nature, good infrastructure and comfort. A local farm owner said that the elderly enjoy walking around the nature and visit farms, because most of them have lived in a rural area in their lifetime and would like to see it again and family connection and heritage draws them to the area. Older travelers often travel to experience life to the fullest. They enjoy interacting with others, forming friendships, enjoying scenery, good food, relaxed walks, laughter and other simple pleasures. Ignalina region offers a lot of beautiful nature and hiking trails, which are in good shape but need to be marked more clearly, since there have been many tourists who get lost in the hiking trails or wandering around the National park in the area. Along with a wide selection of outdoor activities, smaller businesses such as cafés and restaurants are increasing in number in the area. A local activist said that elderly have taken a liking to Nordic walking sticks which local elderly can be seen using on the streets and hiking trails of the Ignalina region. The elderly people know a lot about the region they live in, because most of them have lived there for the majority of their lives which makes them the perfect guides of the area. This sort of service would mostly be available for Lithuanians or Russians because of language barriers and the elderly’s limited ability of speaking other languages such as English. Tourists from the west or from non-Russian speaking countries could have a hard time communicating with the elderly guides. A local tourism worker pointed out that the younger generation speaks English and could be employed as translators, since the youth knows more languages but lack the knowledge of the elderly. By cooperating they could develop quality service. Traditionally locals have produced various goods from milk, eggs to candles made of beeswax but they cannot make a profit by selling them, because getting a permit is difficult. A local businessman said that you need to go to three different governmental organizations simply to get the permit necessary to sell any excess fish or any other goods they have produced and are not using themselves. That often leads to people selling goods on the side, which in some cases might be illegal. This makes locals afraid of starting their own business. Locals also complain about high taxes for entrepreneurs and start-ups as well as small businesses. The lack of knowledge of the permits necessary and the process which has to be carried out according to EU laws might prevent persons from starting their own business. A local tourism businessman pointed out that the testing period for start-ups and new businesses according to EU law should be five years which could scare elderly away from starting a business because of old age. Despite that a local tourism worker said that many locals have started family businesses, where they offer accommodation and catering. Bigger businesses in the area are also trying to use only local raw materials and organically grown produce. They buy food from locals who produce a variety of vegetables and goods in their everyday lives, but don’t pay taxes for selling their product. A local tourism farm owner also employs local elderly who care for animals and help with beekeeping. The owner said that they have good relations with the locals and they work together most of the time. Tourism can also serve as service offering recreation instead of employment. Tourism providers must find ways to address potential or existing health problems in senior groups. This will include obtaining information about participants’ health prior to the trip, advising of potential health risks that may be associated with any planned activity such as a fairly long steep walk, and identifying health care services along the planned program. While one does not want to interfere with participants’ right to enjoy activities, it is advisable to watch out for indicators that an individual is under stress, even if he or she claims to feel fit.

4.3 What are the main concerns about local tourism sector in the area? A local activist said that the elderly feel a need of better infrastructure in the area. One lake around area is private and another one is the one where the locals made into a beach (with

12 support from EU funds). People also struggle to leave their everyday activities at their homes because they have animals to take care of. Local elderly are way more active than the people living in the nursing home. After buying Scandinavian walking sticks locals tried them by walking around the town, but it seemed to be very dangerous because of no proper pedestrian walks around the area. In contrast to that, local tourism center worker said, that in the municipality infrastructure around the beaches is in good condition and inviting for the elderly people. The same tourism worker also mentioned that biking trails have been improved and now are suitable for making race competitions, which attract many participants and tourists. This shows the conflict among local people opinion and the governmental workers. Another big issue for tourism is seasonality. A local government worker said, that winter sports center was created to reduce the seasonality in the whole municipality and turned out to be a successful project. Also, a local spa in Ignalina was opened for the same purpose. Now, people who come to visit municipality in the winter, usually go to the winter sports center and use spa in Ignalina. The spa is affordable for the elderly people but during wintertime there are more middle-aged and younger people in area. Because of this, elderly do not feel particularly comfortable to use the spa. A local tourism center worker said, that there is a need of some closed tourism attraction where tourist can spend time even in rain or bad weather. The same worker believes that the Ignalina municipality needs two main attractions: one in the municipality center (Ingalina) and another tourist attraction should be created near the city next to the main tourism routes, where there some museums could be opened. The tourism worker points out that the region requires a very unique tourism attraction of which to base its business from. Baking bread and making candles are popular activities which rural tourism in other areas is based upon but Ignalina should focus on other types of activities. In addition, worker mentioned, that there is a need of bigger investor as well, because at the moment their tourism sector isn’t generating enough money. There is also a need of improvement in laws related to new business development. A local tourism center worker said, that tourism as an official way to earn money is not popular, because people would have to pay taxes and it wouldn’t be profitable. The national laws are holding back the development of local tourism. A local businessman also added that probably local government needs to be changed. He also gave the idea, that there should be a central attraction in the region and there should be two separate entities about tourism and conserving the nature (because at the moment the same institution takes care about both). Another idea he gave is that it should be created a centralized neutral Facebook page, where everyone could have group discussions and take a look at information board about how to create new businesses the requirements for such and etc. People in the area usually start and develop business by only using their own private investments. A local business person said that there were no EU funds or projects involved in developing their business. Local government haven’t helped much as well. Even the signs at the road (leading the way to their business) had to be bought by the businessowners.

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5 Conclusion

Our study is an incentive to provide new visions and answers to the issue of aging population in the region of Ignalina. The aging population in the region had several impacts on the development. In fact, migration is the biggest issue as it drains most of the qualified youth out of the region. This creates a weakening of an important sphere for the regional development which is the service sector, in fact, it is a core sector in order to foster innovations and competitivity. The strict and difficult bureaucratic system pushes the people not to declare their activities, and so local government cannot obtain good revenues from taxes. Furthermore, this lack of regional development and dynamism has a direct impact on the elderly people’s everyday life. In nursing homes elderly usually feel abandoned. However, as we supposed in our hypothesis, elderly people have a key role to play in the regional development and the tourism sector. Indeed, several examples of our data analysis are supporting the idea that elderly people are active in the tourism sector, directly or indirectly. In several small businesses of the ecotourism sector, crafted items from regional localities and elderly are part of the “identity” of the places, they contribute to shape those places as traditional places of the ecotourism sector. Some other business was also directly employing people from localities, it built a network of both elderly people crafting for them meanwhile they produce some regional products and offer touristic activities for local and foreign tourists. Here a part of the hypothesis is validated, but not totally in the sense we thought. Indeed, most of the time productions of elderly people and local people are not that much profitable. But furthermore, we thought that nursing home could be introduced in this network, but in fact, our data analysis showed that people from nursing homes have no wishes and no possibilities for further activities. But not only in nursing homes, our study suggests that also other elderly people from local areas have issues to develop activities because of an influence from the soviet time, in which the development of activities was not promoted at all. The tourism sector in the region has good potential to improve and include elderly both in the activities and as part of the economic network. Indeed, our interviews suggests that groups of elderly local activists are a great way to dynamize localities for the development of tourism activities; also, that local businesses could answer to problematics like seasonality or facilitate the access to activities for local and foreign elderly tourists. So, on the basis of the data analysis, if we think about what could be done to improve the relation between elderly people and rural tourism, several proposals can be drawn. The need of infrastructure, laws and policies to improve development and investment, conduct us to think that in general, a new approach of the local government could foster the development. Indeed, the local governments are still influenced by the system of the soviet era, and changes here would be welcome from the local populations. Secondly, the implementation of policies to foster local productions would definitely help local elderly people to start small local businesses and be part of the network. Local governments should also be more involved in social care system. In general, too strict laws block the capacities for locals to have profitable businesses. Furthermore, improvement in local tourism sector and regional development would free elderly people of the fact that often their children are dependent of them because of unemployment.

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