Discourses on Tourism Mobility and Climate Change

Research impact assessment has gained more importance over time. Most research impact studies, however, focus on evaluating the effects of sustainable tourism research on the industry whilst neglecting how research is influencing policy- and decision- making. This thesis focuses on the influence of sustainable tourism research on the discourse on tourism mobility, aviation and climate change among Dutch NGO’s and action groups. In this case study design semi-structured interviews were conducted with people from different NGO’s and action groups in the Netherlands, as well as with a scientist. Furthermore, data was obtained through relevant reports and newspaper articles. The data from these interviews, reports and newspaper articles was then used to identify how, when and why the discourse of the respondents evolved over the past years. Even though sustainable tourism research does not play a significant role in how the discourse of NGO’s and action groups changed, it formed important starting points for the discussion on the future of aviation in the Netherlands. STR has been used by NGO’s and action groups to strengthen their arguments and has opened up the possibility to share their representation with the public and to critically question the position of the government and other actors in the aviation sector.