The Wilderness Concept and Its Relevance to the Polar Regions

Antje Neumann

Abstracts of the Chapters

Chapter 1 provides an introduction to this book. It first establishes the main research question, several sub-questions, as well as the objective of this research. It further defines the scope, including definitions of the Antarctic and the Arctic region on which the study is based. In this context, it also points to limitations that had been necessary in order to make the research feasible. The chapter also explains the specific methodology used in this study. In this respect, its central components are the construction of a working approach towards defining the term ‘wilderness’ based on four major qualities, the creation of a working approach towards defining the term ‘tourism’ built on four criteria that can be identified as the most pressing issues in relation to the impact of tourism and non-governmental activities on the wilderness of Antarctica, and the selection of the three case studies from the Arctic region based on comparability and certain quality criteria. The chapter concludes with an outline of the main structure.

Chapter 2 deals in a general way with the wilderness concept. In this respect, it elaborates on central aspects of the concept, how it has evolved and developed over time, its constraints and critical implications. It also points out the relevance of the wilderness concept to the Polar Regions. Specifically, the chapter addresses the evolvement of early wilderness movements and first wilderness designations, both by outlining national as well as international processes and by providing specific examples from the Polar Regions. It also describes the development of wilderness protection law and policy at the national and the international levels. In terms of critical positions towards the wilderness concept, the chapter focuses on the criticism of the “exclusiveness”, mainly in form of the exclusion of indigenous and other local people from the land targeted for area protection and from traditional land use practices.

Chapter 3 elaborates on the protection of wilderness in the Antarctic. It first addresses main features of Antarctica’s wilderness, including related ideas and perceptions. It analyses the wilderness character of Antarctica and presents an overview of the development of tourism in the region. In a main part, the chapter describes how the relevant legal provisions have evolved under the Antarctic Treaty System, draws an outline of the present regulatory system – with a focus on the role of wilderness protection in the objective and general principles as well as in the context of area protection and Environmental Impact Assessment – and looks at the main challenges of wilderness protection in terms of Antarctic tourism. In respect of the latter, a specification is made towards the increasing number of tourists, the increasing number of touristic sites and frequency of visitation, the diversification of tourism activities, and the establishment of infrastructure for tourism purposes.

Chapters 4, 5 and 6 provide the Arctic case studies for this research, composed of the Hammastunturi Wilderness Reserve (Finland), the Svalbard archipelago (Norway) and the Denali National Park and Preserve (Alaska). Based on a comparable structure, they give an outline of the general characteristics relevant for wilderness, the history of human settlement in the area and the use of its natural resources, and the respective general legal framework. Similar to the Antarctic Chapter, the chapters also address ideas and perceptions of wilderness and analyse the wilderness qualities in relation to each of the area. Following this, the development of tourism is described in respect of each case study area while specific attention is drawn on regional and local particularities. The fourth section of the chapters is divided into two main parts: the first part deals with the protection of wilderness in the case study area under the relevant national and regional policies and the respective individual legal framework, and the second elaborates on the specific regulatory measures towards tourism activities. Here again, a focus is set on the increasing number of tourists, the increasing number of touristic sites and frequency of visitation, the diversification of tourism activities, and the establishment of infrastructure for tourism purposes.

Chapter 7, the final chapter of this book, intends to answer the overall research question “To what extent can the concept of protecting Antarctic wilderness constitute a basis for regulating tourism and other non-governmental activities in Antarctica, taking particular notice of experiences and ‘lessons learnt’ in other wilderness areas in the Arctic?”. It also provides a specific answer to question “What could the atcm learn from Arctic experiences?”. In doing so, it presents, among others, a catalogue of general and specific measures, gained from the Artic case study areas, that could be discussed in relation to Antarctica in order to further regulate tourism and other non-governmental activities. Moreover, it stresses the prerequisite most important for Antarctic decision-making towards explicit wilderness protection, namely the achievement of a commonly agreed approach towards the characteristics or qualities of wilderness. The chapter concludes with a set of questions and issues that require further research or that could be addressed in future.

African Studies	Education	Media Studies
American Studies	History	Middle East and Islamic Studies
Ancient Near East and Egypt	Human Rights and Humanitarian Law	Musicology
Art History	International Law	Philosophy
Asian Studies	International Relations	Religious Studies
Biblical Studies	Jewish Studies	Slavic and Eurasian Studies
Biology	Languages and Linguistics	Social Sciences
Book History and Cartography	Life Sciences	Theology and World Christianity
Classical Studies	Literature and Cultural Studies

	全部期间	过去一年	过去30天
摘要浏览次数	5143	720	40
全文浏览次数	105	3	0
PDF下载次数	130	1	1

Chapter 2 The Wilderness Concept and Its Relevance to the Polar Regions

Abstracts of the Chapters

引用信息

Share Link

Wilderness Protection in Polar Regions

Arctic Lessons Learnt for the Regulation and Management of Tourism in the Antarctic

统计数据

Subjects

AppBar-Authors 2025

AppBar-Open Access 2025

AppBar-Product Information 2025

AppBar-Company 2025

AppBar-Contact 2025

Chapter 2 The Wilderness Concept and Its Relevance to the Polar Regions

Abstracts of the Chapters

引用信息

Share Link

Wilderness Protection in Polar Regions

Arctic Lessons Learnt for the Regulation and Management of Tourism in the Antarctic

目录

统计数据

统计数据