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Sustainable Tourism in Antarctica: a Case Study of Tourism’S Impact on the Ecosystem of Antarctica

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Sustainable Tourism in Antarctica: a Case Study of Tourism’S Impact on the Ecosystem of Antarctica Sustainable Tourism in Antarctica: A Case Study of Tourism’s Impact on the Ecosystem of Antarctica Yueqi He ID: 18035171 A dissertation submitted to Auckland University of Technology in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of International Tourism Management Supervisor: Dr Claire Liu Faculty of Culture and Society 2020 ABSTRACT With the development of technology and infrastructure and increasing interest in the polar areas, Antarctic tourism has grown fast in recent years. Antarctica is inevitably facing more difficult and complicated challenges; therefore, some scholars and researchers have a pessimistic view on such rapid growth of tourism. The aim of this study is to explore the environmental impacts brought by Antarctic tourism and sustainable tourism in the Antarctic. Using secondary sources of information, this qualitative study collected data from the social media platforms of Zhihu and Mafengwo. The tourists’ comments on Antarctic experiences were analysed using thematic analysis. The results showed the real situation of Antarctic tourism and the development of sustainable tourism in the Antarctic. Combining secondary information and the stories shared by the tourists online, the study contributes to knowledge and understandings of Antarctica tourism and the impacts of developing sustainable tourism in Antarctic. Keywords: Antarctica, Antarctic tourism, environmental protection, impacts, Antarctic tourists, experiences, tourism development, sustainable tourism. 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT .................................................................................................................................................................. 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS ............................................................................................................................................ 3 LIST OF TABLES ........................................................................................................................................................ 5 ATTESTATION OF AUTHORSHIP ........................................................................................................................ 6 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................................................................................................................................ 7 Chapter 1. Introduction .................................................................................................................................... 8 1.1 Background ............................................................................................................................................ 8 1.2 The Antarctic Treaty, ATS, and IAATO ....................................................................................... 8 1.3 The Development of Tourism in Antarctica .......................................................................... 10 1.4 The Significance of the Study ...................................................................................................... 12 1.5 Structure of the Dissertation ........................................................................................................ 13 Chapter 2. Literature Review ......................................................................................................................... 14 2.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................................... 14 2.2 Tourism in Antarctica ...................................................................................................................... 14 2.2.1 The Current Situation of Antarctic Tourism ............................................................ 14 2.2.2 Examples of Antarctic Tourism ..................................................................................... 15 2.2.3 The Antarctic Cruise Industry ........................................................................................ 16 2.2.4 The Development of Antarctica Tourism ................................................................. 17 2.2.5 The Types of Antarctica Tourism Activities ............................................................. 18 2.2.6 The CO2 Emissions of Antarctic Tourism ................................................................... 19 2.3 The Managerial System of Antarctic Tourism ...................................................................... 19 2.3.1 International Laws of Antarctic Tourism .................................................................. 19 2.3.2 International Regulations of Antarctic Tourism .................................................... 20 2.3.3 The Precautionary Principles of Antarctica Tourism ........................................... 21 2.3.4 The Assessment Indicators (EIA, ATEF, ATECC) ..................................................... 22 2.4. Stakeholders of Antarctic Tourism ........................................................................................... 22 2.4.1 The Perspectives of Stakeholders of Antarctic Tourism .................................... 22 2.4.2 Antarctic Tourists’ Behaviour ......................................................................................... 23 2.5 Sustainable Tourism in Antarctica ............................................................................................. 24 2.5.1 The Antarctic Treaty Consultative Parties (ATCPs) and IAATO ....................... 25 2.5.2 Recommendations for Sustainable Tourism in Antarctica ............................... 25 2.5.3 New trends of Antarctica tourism and sustainable management strategies (the New Zealand and Australia research example) ....................................................... 26 2.6 Summary ............................................................................................................................................... 27 Chapter 3. Methodology ................................................................................................................................ 28 3.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................................... 28 3.2 Research Paradigm ........................................................................................................................... 28 3.3 Research Design ................................................................................................................................ 28 3.4 Interpretive Description ................................................................................................................. 29 3.5 Data Collection ................................................................................................................................... 30 3.5.1 Sampling ................................................................................................................................. 31 3.5.2 Data Collection Procedures ............................................................................................ 32 3 3.6 Data Analysis ....................................................................................................................................... 33 3.7 The Reliability and Validity of the Study ................................................................................ 37 3.8 Limitations and Implications of the Methodology............................................................. 38 3.9 Summary ............................................................................................................................................... 39 Chapter 4. Results ............................................................................................................................................. 40 4.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................................... 40 4.2 Antarctic Tourists’ Experience ..................................................................................................... 40 4.3 The Environmental Protection of Antarctic Tourism ......................................................... 44 4.4 The Antarctic Tourism Products ................................................................................................. 47 4.5 The Negative Aspects of Antarctic Tourism .......................................................................... 48 4.6 Summary ............................................................................................................................................... 49 Chapter 5. Discussion ...................................................................................................................................... 50 5.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................................... 50 5.2 Antarctic Tourists’ Experience ..................................................................................................... 50 5.3 The Environmental Protection of Antarctic Tourism ......................................................... 54 5.4 Antarctic Tourism Products .......................................................................................................... 56 5.5 The Negative Aspects of Antarctic Tourism .......................................................................... 57 5.6 Summary ..............................................................................................................................................
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