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The aim of this paper is to portray the risks of climate change for low mountain range tourism and to develop sustainable business models as adaption strategy. A mixed-method-approach is applied combining secondary analysis, a quantitative survey, and qualitative in-depth-interviews in a transdisciplinary setting. Results show, that until now, climate change impacts on the snow situation in the Black Forest – at least above 1,000 m – have been mild and compensated by artificial snowmaking, and up to now have not had measurable effects on tourism demand. In general, the Black Forest appears to be an attractive destination for more reasons than just snow. The climate issue seems to be regarded as a rather incidental occurrence with little importance to current business decisions. However, the authors present adaption strategies as alternatives for snow tourism, e. g. the implementation of hiking hostels, since climate change will make winter tourism in the Black Forest impossible in the long run.
Purpose
In order to combat climate change and safeguard a liveable future we need fundamental and rapid social change. Climate communication can play an important role to nurture the public engagement needed for this change, and higher education for sustainability can learn from climate communication.
Approach
The scientific evidence base on climate communication for effective public engagement is summarised into ten key principles, including ‘basing communication on people’s values’, ‘conscious use of framing’, and ‘turning concern into action’. Based on the author’s perspective and experience in the university context, implications are explored for sustainability in higher education.
Findings
The article provides suggestions for teaching (e.g. complement information with consistent behaviour by the lecturer, integrate local stories, and provide students with basic skills to communicate climate effectively), for research (e.g. make teaching for effective engagement the subject of applied research), for universities’ third mission to contribute to sustainable development
in the society (e.g. provide climate communication trainings to empower local stakeholders), andgreening the campus (develop a proper engagement infrastructure, e.g. by a university storytelling exchange on climate action).
Originality
The article provides an up-to-date overview of climate communication research, which is in itself original. This evidence base holds interesting learnings for institutions of higher education, and the link between climate communication and universities has so far not been explored comprehensively.
The aim of this paper is to find out in how accommodation providers in the Seychelles perceive climate change and what mitigation and adaptation measures they can provide. In order to answer these questions, a qualitative mixed-method-approach, comprised of twenty semi-structured interviews, an online-survey and participant observation was used. Results show that accommodation providers especially perceive the effects of climate change that directly affect their business and that they have already partly implemented some mitigation and adaptation measures. However, strategies and regulations are needed at the Seychelles’ government level and on a global level to actually achieve CO2 neutral travel.