Per our objectives, we at TourNord aim to generate new knowledge on key themes within Nordic Tourism and Education. We do so by writing handbooks, articles, blogposts and more to help further our understanding of education and Nordic Tourism. Below you can find a selected list of projects and outputs that we at TourNord have been working on.
Nordic Coastal Tourism – Sustainability, Trends, Practices, and Opportunities
The coastline along the Nordic countries are as impressive as they are different. From towering fjords in Norway, to vast untouched white beaches in Denmark, to the rugged and almost otherworldly volcanic landscapes of Iceland. It is no wonder they are the most visited areas in the Nordics, with coastal and nature-based tourism accounting for 72% of the market share (Nordic Council of Ministers, 2019). There has been rapid growth in tourism in the Nordic countries in the past decade, which has brought both opportunities and headaches for tourists, tourism actors, governments, investors and residents.
This book, the first of its kind, will delve into the many facets surrounding Nordic Coastal Tourism. Topics such as (but not limited to): sustainability, lifelong education in the sector, destination stewardship, cruise tourism, overtourism, climate change, post COVID-19 business models, food and gastronomy, health tourism, resilient coastal communities, destination development with coopetition and design thinking, and hostmanship. Book will be from a truly Nordic perspective with cases from Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Iceland, Greenland, as well as integrated Baltic cases from Poland and Lithuania.
Project Website
Cooking up prosperity: Pop-Up restaurants, innovation, and lifestyle entrepreneurship
Entrepreneurship is central to diversifying and enhancing the competitiveness of tourism offerings. The current literature underscores a critical oversight in nurturing entrepreneurship for tourism innovation and urges further exploration of entrepreneurial motivations in tourism start-ups. This is particularly relevant because the tourism sector heavily relies on new ventures to drive innovation, as established firms often struggle to meet the growing demand for distinctive and unique travel experiences. This study examines the entrepreneurial journey and innovation process within the tourism scene. Through comprehensive desk research and an in-depth entrepreneur interview, we aim to deepen our insights into the motivations driving entrepreneurs and the innovation processes behind their tourism products and services. Specifically, our research focuses on pop-up restaurants, illuminating their embodiment of innovation and life-style entrepreneurship. The findings reveal that a sense of freedom, creativity, and the pursuit of uniqueness stand out as key motivational factors of establishing pop-up restaurants. These motivations extend into a continuous business innovation cycle, as the drive to enhance and offer novel experiences remains paramount. This study elucidates the uncharted territory of tourism entrepreneurship and offers valuable insights into the driving forces and innovative dynamics within this evolving market.
Project Website
Blogpost: New research from TourNord members about Pop-up restaurants, innovation and lifestyle entrepreneurship!
Research Paper: Cooking Up Prosperity: Pop-Up Restaurants, Innovation, and Lifestyle Entrepreneurship
Newspaper article: Meget at lære af ‘vanvittigt’ norsk restaurant-koncept
Employability: Bridging the gap between education and employment
This project’s goal is to investigate employability by means of two key areas, (1) Work-Based learning (WBL) and (2) Reflective Practice-Based Learning (RPL).
Work-Based Learning
Based on cases from Finland and Denmark, we study teacher and learner strategies in collaborative problem solving (CPS).
The WBL study aims to answer the following (Research Questions):
- How do teachers script engaging learning processes that support development of learner autonomy and agency?
- What constitutes an industry-relevant learning process?
- Can student work readiness be improved by supporting learner autonomy and agency?
Reflective Practice-Based Learning
In this study, we explore a didactic intervention aimed at development of agency, co-participation, and engagement in learning affordances at the workplace.
The RPL study seeks to deepen understanding of the role of students’ participation in improving learning transfer from education to the workplace.
- Research question: How to increase employability of students by promoting self-agency in learning, by applying reflective practice based learning involving industry at an early stage of the development of career readiness?
- Proposition: RPL is a way to successfully ensure individual learning in a heterogenous, creative group of students, and facilitating a setting where this kind of reflective practice is possible will aid the students in developing agency to design their own learning goals and careers.
Project Website
Blogpost: TourNord at the NordYrk Conference
Blogpost: Work-Based Learning in Finland and Denmark
Article: Impact of reflective practice on student engagement and confidence in a top-up bachelor programme
Article: Collaborative Problem Solving: A pedagogy for workplace relevance
Event Innovation in Times of Uncertainty
To support recovery from COVID-19 and to answer OECD’s call for crucial policy objectives for “supporting tourism businesses to adapt and survive” and “building more resilient, sustainable tourism” (OECD, 2020, p.5), this project aims to highlight certain areas of key importance needed to build event resilience and to provide best-practice industry examples that foster innovative, adaptable and transformative event environments.
The project is co-financed by the Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange within the Urgency Grants programme
Project Website
Blogpost: TourNord to investigate event and festival resilience and innovation
Article: Effects of COVID-19 Infection Control Measures on the Festival and Event Sector in Poland and Norway
Article: Event Innovation in Times of Uncertainty
Article: Building a Resilient Event Sector in Times of Uncertainty
Book chapter: Innovation in sport events during COVID-19
Newspaper article: Event- og festival-innovation: Hvad har vi lært af pandemien?
Locals & Hostmanship – a tourist’s quest for meaningful experiences
A project made by TourNord partners to investigate the problems modern tourism face where travellers find it harder to find authentic and meaningful experiences, as destinations no longer reflect local values or traditions. That is, how to foster a better symbiotic relationship between locals and tourists.