ECU Tourism Expert Contributes to Spanish Book on Climate Change

East Carolina University

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. February 25, 2010

GREENVILLE, NC (February 23, 2010) — Recent massive hurricanes, tsunamis, and cyclones are harbingers of global climates in flux. A small window of opportunity remains for tourism administrators and policymakers to address climate change effectively enough to protect the world's largest industry and safeguard the planet, but the industry as a whole does not fully comprehend tourism's relationship to climate change.

That's the message presented by David L. Edgell, Sr., professor of tourism at East Carolina University and former U.S. Undersecretary of Commerce for Travel and Tourism, and co-author Ginger Smith, professor of tourism studies at New York University, in their chapter of the book, Cambio Climático y Turismo : Realidad y Ficcion (Climate Change and Tourism: Reality or Fiction) published by the University of Valencia, Spain, in December under the auspices of the United Nations World Tourism Organization. The book, while written in Spanish, is being distributed globally. It is likely that an English translation of the book will be forthcoming in the near future.

Edgell and Smith's chapter, “Cambio Climático y Turismo: El Momento de Reaccionar” (“Climate Change and Tourism: It Is Time to React), emphasizes that “…the tourism industry is irrevocably linked to climate changes…” It cites the impact that storms like Hurricane Katrina, the tsunami in the Asia Pacific region, Myanmar cyclone, and other such violent changes in climate have had recently, causing irreversible damage and resulting in huge losses and downturns in tourism.

Projections by the Pew Research Center indicate that if global warming is a cause of climate change, there will be major shifts in tourism with locations that have higher altitudes and latitudes becoming the “winners” while warmer countries experience up to 20 percent declines. Warm locations can expect declines in what is now called the prime tourist season due to higher temperatures; however, current shoulder seasons could become the new high season, having other kinds of impacts and repercussions.

Responsible tourism planning and policy development exists; for example, a large number of U.S. ski resorts now endorse the National Ski Areas Association's Sustainable Slopes Initiative; Taiwan and Mexico are issuing “catastrophe bonds” to quickly secure capital in the aftermath of natural disasters; Switzerland is building a dam to protect an alpine tourist center from potential mudslides; and Virgin Atlantic Airways is leading an industry forum to reduce greenhouse gases.

Dr. Edgell and Dr. Smith are continuing to work on a policy agenda for climate change, both globally and with respect to the United States. They jointly emphasize that “the changing global climate will pose profound policy decisions and strategic challenges to world leaders in coming decades. Climate change has multiple dimensions and impacts depending on the severity of the changes and the vulnerability of the area in question. Few industries are more dependent on the outcome of such changes than the tourism industry. For the future growth and sustainability of tourism in the United States, policy responses to climate change are critical.”

Dr. Edgell has authored eight books on tourism as well as over one hundred monographs, articles, and research studies. His recent book Tourism Policy and Planning (2008) is used in graduate and undergraduate courses and by the business community throughout the world. Edgell and Smith's chapter, “Cambio Climático y Turismo: El Momento de Reaccionar,” addresses a global audience in the discussion of how tourism affects climate and is affects by it.

“Dr. David Edgell was selected to become a collaborating author of the book due to his prestige as a top academician in tourism and related studies,” said Alba Fernandez Alonso, coordinator of the Education and Science Council for the United Nations World Tourism Organization.

The East Carolina University Department of Hospitality Management offers the largest hospitality management program in North Carolina. Talented students can complete a combined BS in hospitality management and MBA with the hospitality management option in only five years, an opportunity unique in the state and the Southeast. For more information on the department, visit www.ecu.edu/che/hmgt.

The Department of Hospitality Management is within the College of Human Ecology. The college educates professionals who enhance the well-being of people and communities. For more information on the College of Human Ecology at East Carolina University, visit www.ecu.edu/che.

David L. Edgell, Sr., PhD
Department of Hospitality Management
College of Human Ecology
East Carolina University
Greenville, North Carolina 27858-4353
Ph. 252-328-4962
[email protected]

Media Contact:
Peggy Novotny
Director of Marketing and Communication
College of Human Ecology
East Carolina University
Greenville, North Carolina 27858-4353
Ph. 252-328-2882
[email protected]