Sustainable Tourism: Society & Environmental Aspects (Wageningen University and Research)

Tourism’s profound impact on the world Tourism continues to experience incredible growth. Of all the industries of major importance worldwide, Travel and Tourism directly contribute $1.4 trillion to the global economy and provide one out of ten jobs and that number is growing.

But tourism is more than just a powerful economic force. Tourist activities come with a host of social and environmental issues at tourism destinations. And return, the tourism business itself is highly sensitive to global transformations such as changing consumer behaviour, economic developments, natural disasters, epidemics, or acts of terrorism. Tourism is in fact a complex phenomenon.

Introduction to tourism; an all-round perspective Instead of taking on tourism education’s customary approach – that of growth-driven, applied and hospitality management – join us to explore the tourism industry and build your own reflections. You’ll be exposed to a variety of insights throughout the course. These include tourism’s historical background and a variety of social science approaches will be looked at, with a special focus on the human geography of tourism. You will be exposed to the negative impacts on natural resources, the cultural heritage of host communities and climate change-related issues, such as carbon emissions. Which role can sustainable tourism development play in addressing both the tourism-associated economic benefits as well as the collateral costs for key stakeholders?

Based on weekly reflection exercises, you’ll be challenged to form your own argument for a tourism development of your choice. You’ll also help others by providing and receiving meaningful feedback on their critical reflections on tourism phenomena.

The effects of Coronavirus on the tourism industry There is no doubt that tourism has been greatly affected by the COVID-19 virus outbreak. With the upcoming attempt to rebound post-Corona, all players in the industry face a choice: Will it be business as usual or do we re-invent toward more sustainable practices? But also, how has coronavirus affected tourists and their behaviour? We will discuss these and other highly relevant questions throughout our tourism courses.

Whether you are a business owner, work in tourism or a fervent traveller, join us for this MOOC for a science-based understanding of what tourism does to our living environment, our behaviour and our cultural inheritance. Help drive sustainability in tourism. Subscribe now!

Professional Certificate Programme

This online course, ranked among the 10 best online courses in the world by Class Central, is part of the Professional Certificate Programme Tourism in Transition: Exploring a Sustainable Future, along with the MOOC Sustainable Tourism: Rethinking the Future, which was nominated for the annual edX® award in 2019 and the MOOC Tourism and Climate Change.