Activist Surfing-based Groups in the Tourism Transition

Localism and Universalism in the French Basque Country

Datos Bibliográficos

ID6190386
AutoresLudovic Falaix (Institut National de Recherche pour l'Agriculture, l'Alimentation et l'Environnement), Joseph Lemarié (0000-0002-3012-7366, Université de Reims Champagne-Ardenne), Jérémy Lemarié, Jérôme Lafargue (Maison des Sciences de l'Homme)
Año2021
Volumen95
Número2
Fecha de publicación2021-12-31
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessNo
TipoARTICLE
RevistaGéocarrefour (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 1627-4873 • E-ISSN: 1960-601X
EditorialOpenEdition (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.4000/geocarrefour.18491
OpenAlexW4285313940
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas1
Referencias citadas37

The concept of tourism transition was developed in the 1990s and 2000s by researchers working on winter sports in Alpine resorts. It refers to the economic and social changes taking place in relatively small resort towns as the result of tourism development. While mountain tourism causes conflicts between stakeholder groups, this paper demonstrates that tourism in seaside resort towns can also be a source of controversy. In coastal cities of the French Basque Country, tourism development is primarily managed by local government representatives, yet contested by pressure groups. This paper analyzes the two activist groups Save Marbella (SMG) and Paddle-out For Your Planet (POFYP), founded by surfers in Biarritz, France. It is based on observation of and interviews with SMG and POFYP members. Whilst acknowledging the difference between these two groups, this work indicates that surfers’ environmental activism often comes from their subjective and intimate relationship with the ocean. This paper argues that participants’ emotional bond with nature fosters environmental awareness and that their intimate relationship with the ocean is the primary cause of political activism. As surfers report facing fear, disgust and anxiety when they encounter ocean pollution and environmental degradation resulting from mass tourism, research has also shown that they feel compelled to protest and demand that policymakers include their considerations in democratic decision-making processes

Environmental degradation · Localism · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Public relations · Sociology · Stakeholder · Tourism · Tourism geography · Adventure Sports and Sensation Seeking · Law · Recreation, Leisure, Wilderness Management · Sport and Mega-Event Impacts