Worth a thousand words: Connecting tourism operators with climate change through visualisation techniques

Abstract

The old saying “a picture paints a thousand words” has never been more appropriate when discussing the issue of communicating climate scenarios. Our research demonstrates the benefits of using imagery creatively to effectively communicate large amounts of scientific information in a powerful, easy to understand format for tourism operators in Queensland's Sunshine Coast. Globally, tourism has been identified as an industry in the 'climate danger zone', where risks are significant but many operators remain unprepared. Tourism is Australia's second-largest export earner, yet the industry is comprised primarily of small businesses managed by individuals with limited business experience and training. The combination of a lack of awareness, capability and preparation for potential climate risks coupled with poor engagement with adaptation options, places one of Australia's most valuable assets in a vulnerable situation. Using a multi-disciplinary approach, the research combined projections from climate scientists with tourism operator perceptions of climate change and adaptation, gathered through an engagement process consisting of interviews and workshops conducted over eight months. The process involved five stages of engagement and consultation with industry prior to the release of a final product. The result is a visual and interactive PDF used to communicate the scenarios across the industry in the designated region, wherein users can self-navigate at their own pace. The tool itself has initially been well received when it was road tested with tourism operators with only minor suggestions for improvements. As a result of the positive response it appears there are multiple additional applications either used across different industry sectors or across various climatic regions. For example, it has been suggested that such a process could be used to develop a tool for different regions of Australia that various industry and small business operators working in that area could use to help inform them about likely climate impacts and therefore plan accordingly. In addition, the process of developing the tool has encouraged climate scientists to become more aware of end-user needs and how to adapt their science to improve its relevance across society. The tool itself provides a mechanism that is a low cost way of encouraging ongoing climate action.