"No one wants to give up traveling": UIB experts analyze the contradictions of mass tourism

PalmThe University of the Balearic Islands collaborates with the IEC-ARA cycle 'Qüestions IEC: we question, we understand, we converse' in Palma, a proposal that invites the analysis of some of the main questions of the present from a plural and expert perspective. The first session, titled From paid holidays to tourismphobia took place on May 14, at the Sa Riera space (Palma) and focused on the debate about the current tourism model and its tensions. Participants included Dr. Joana Maria Seguí, Professor in the Department of Geography at the UIB, member of the Philosophy and Social Sciences Section of the IEC and member of the Societat Catalana de Geografia, specializing in transport, and Dr. Macià Blàzquez, Professor in the Department of Geography at the UIB and also a member of the Societat Catalana de Geografia, specializing in tourism. The session was moderated by Jaume Perelló, director of ARA Balears. 

The conversation has brought to the fore an increasingly evident paradox: rejection of mass tourism is growing in cities like Palma or Barcelona, yet no one is willing to give up a vacation abroad. The speakers have analyzed how the global tourism industry can be regulated to reduce its environmental and social impact without foregoing economic benefits. 

This activity is organized by the Institut d’Estudis Catalans (IEC) and the newspaper Ara Balears, with the collaboration of the Universitat de les Illes Balears.