Cultural Geography: Sustainable Tourism & Society

Consider studying this programme because:

• Enjoy direct access to academic and professional staff, ensuring a personalized experience
  
  
• Gain the tools to tackle public and private sector projects focused on tourism and sustainability
  
  
• Build a competitive profile in a field central to national and international agendas
  
  
• Experience a culturally sensitive, inclusive, and place-based curriculum within cultural geography
  
  
• Engage with regional and international stakeholders advancing sustainable tourism practices

Cultural Geography equips you with the necessary theoretical and practical tools to contribute to place-related liveability in society, improve local livelihoods, invest in community futures, and work towards tourism that improves tourists' and residents' health and well-being. Guest lectures, field trips, community lectures, and empirical research in the community prepare you to develop a working knowledge of the field and also network with local stakeholders and employers.

• Tourism Alliance of Friesland (TAF) supports the region's development as a tourist destination
• Waddenacademie, an academic institution focusing on the socio-economic development of the Wadden Sea Region (a UNESCO World Heritage site)
• Policymakers in the province and in several municipalities in the north of the Netherlands
• Key players in the field of tourism, such as TUI and World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO)

Graduates of the Sustainable Tourism & Society track can apply their theoretical and practical research and problem-solving skills and knowledge internationally and locally as:

• Policy Analyst in Sustainable Tourism
  Conducting research and analysis to inform policy decisions that promote sustainable tourism at local, national, and international levels.
  
  
• Tourism Officer
  Developing and managing tourism initiatives that balance economic growth with environmental sustainability and community well-being.
  
  
• Destination Planner
  Designing and implementing strategies for sustainable tourism development in specific regions or destinations, ensuring minimal environmental impact.
  
  
• Tourism Entrepreneur
  Creating and managing tourism ventures with a focus on sustainability, innovation, and community involvement.
  
  
• Officer at UNWTO (United Nations World Tourism Organization)
  Working on international tourism policies and programmes that foster sustainable development and global cooperation in tourism.
  
  
• Tourism Researcher
  Conducting academic or industry-based research to explore sustainable tourism practices, trends, and their impacts on society and the environment.

During the programme, we offer support for your career preparation with workshops, networking events, and career advice.

The research at the Department of Cultural Geography is strongly embedded in the research programmes of Campus Fryslân.

Topics of recent research projects are:

- Rural citizenship and youth;
- Hidden urban spaces;
- Gender & tourism livelihoods (post-)COVID-19;
- Community participation;
- Ageing and well-being;
- Innovation and rural transformation;
- Socio-spatial consequences of population decline;
- Heritage; evolution of the historical landscape;
- Nature and health;
- Social impact assessment;
- Social aspects of natural resource management;
- Tourism and (cross-border) regional development

The research projects deal with the relations between people and place. Knowing your own 'place' is of fundamental importance for the formation of human identity and well-being. Cultural expressions such as art, architecture, rituals and language, and our knowledge and appreciation of nature and landscape interact with the physical environment to shape our life stories and the liveability of places. Therefore, the ways in which we construct space and place are physical manifestations of both our imaginations and our self-awareness. This perspective allows you to understand and explain the differences between places, communities, and the spatial behaviours of humans.

Our research is strongly empirical. Students will become familiar with qualitative and quantitative research methods during the Master's. Innovative research methods such as visual methodologies and location-based applications (social or soft GIS) can be used for the Master’s Thesis.