Mid Sweden University

The environmental connectedness perspective posits that direct encounter with generalized, or non-specific "nature," leads to environmental connectedness and subsequent pro-environmental behavior. This article examines this perspective and proposes a place-based application of the nature encounter-environmental behavior relation. An empirical study using data from a national survey on outdoor recreation and nature-based tourism is presented. Results show a minimal relationship between measures of environmental connectedness and self-reports of environmental behavior. The following examination of the environmental connectedness perspective reveals that environmental connectedness is rooted in a material/objective perspective, neglecting the human domain of perceptions, values, and representations. The environment as "nature" is portrayed as a geographically undefined agent with the inherent power to change human attitudes and behavior. Based on this, the article concludes with a proposed replacement of the elusive concept of nature for the relational concept of place. © 2014 Elsevier Ltd.

This study analyzes the latent demand to outdoor recreation participation and identifies what factors are constraining people from realizing thisdemand. In Sweden, recreation in the outdoors is seen as a public right as articulated in public policy and much of the outdoor recreation centre around forested landscapes-over 60 percent of the land area is classified as forest. Using data from a nationwide survey of 43 recreation activities, the study takes a time-contextual approach to reveal variations in recreation constraints across weekdays, weekends and holidays. Results show that almost half the population has a latent demand to increase their participation in outdoor recreation. Three categories of time contextualconstraints are identified and several of the constraints studied show variations across outdoor activities and socio-economic factors. Practical implications for the promotion of outdoor recreation participation by public agencies, recreation managers and tourism businesses are discussed based on the study findings. 

This chapter discusses approaches to do foresights in outdoor recreation and tourism in nature, based on research from the Nordic countries. This region has a long-standing reputation for promoting outdoor recreation, with associated policies aiming to support this tradition for the benefit of future generations and environmental engagement. To do so successfully, one key input is improving the knowledge of outdoor recreational participation, associated trends, and future development. In this chapter, we therefore review different monitoring approaches to trend analyses as a means of forecasting participation and discuss supplementary approaches to foresight in outdoor recreation. We operationalize the Nordic context through studies undertaken in Finland, Sweden, Denmark, and Norway. Our examination shows that the tradition of national surveys and on-site visitor monitoring has proven effective. However, contemporary changes in society call for additional approaches to better understand future outdoor recreation. We therefore share experiences from several different approaches to foresight in outdoor recreation. This will inform future research as well as managers, entrepreneurs, planners and policymakers in their decision-making.

Rapporten "Dagens miljömål och framtidens fjällupplevelser – Iakttagelser av aktivitetsmönster, landskapsrelationer och kommunikationsformer" ger inledningsvis en bakgrund till fjällupplevelser och en genomgång av de metoder som använts i projektet. Därefter följer en beskrivning av de förändringar forskarna anser kunna se i de olika datamaterial som samlats in, följt av en diskussion av dagens miljökvalitetsmål i förhållande till framtidens fjällupplevelser.

Following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, most European countries imposed lockdowns, whereas Sweden introduced soft restrictions. Sports and physical activity could continue if conducted 'safely' and outdoor activities were even promoted if restrictions on the number of participants were not violated. The aim of this article is to demonstrate how the pandemic led to transitions and transformations of typical indoor sports activities to the outdoors and to outdoor recreation, or what we call an outdoorification process of sports and recreation, and how the changes were perceived by the population. Sweden is used as a case study. The inquiry is based on three studies involving more than 100 semi-structured interviews, two national questionnaire surveys and a regional-based PPGIS study. Based on the results, we argue that the outdoorification process is likely to influence how sport and recreation is understood and practiced also in the years after the pandemic.

This paper reports results from three studies concerning outdoor recreation participation and trends during the Covid-19 pandemic in Sweden. The studies, undertaken at national, regional and local levels, used surveys, interviews and PPGIS approaches, to build a solid knowledge base. Results are analyzed with particular attention given to management and policy implications based on the following observations: increased outdoor recreation participation, changes in lifestyle and routines, new visitor profiles and activity trends, spatial changes, visitor displacement, spatial redistribution, and indications of post-pandemic outdoor recreation behavior. The Swedish case is of special interest because of high accessibility to nature areas and few restrictions to recreate in nature due to the pandemic. Hence, this study could serve as a reference for other countries with more Covid-19 related restrictions and less accessible nature for recreation. 

This thesis examines the relationship between outdoor recreation and environmental concern as part of the wider issue of environmental sustainability in late-modern societies. It includes studies of environmentalists’ (that is environmentally committed individuals’) preferences and motivations with regard to outdoor recreation, and covers the inquiries of whether and how outdoor recreation can influence levels of environmental concern.

The questions addressed are how environmentalists engage in outdoor recreation, with what motives, and whether participation in outdoor recreation can influence levels of environmental concern. Empirically, the thesis is based on a mixed methods approach, including analyses of data from a national survey on outdoor recreation and a qualitative case study of the organization Nature and Youth Sweden (Fältbiologerna). Theoretically, it is based on the concepts of place, habitus and field.

Study results show that environmentally committed individuals favor participation in appreciative activities in areas perceived as pristine, preferably away from urban environments. Motivations refer to these preferences, but also to aspects of discursive context, social identity and social position. These aspects are also found to be crucial regarding the influence of outdoor recreation on environmental concern. Thus, study results also show a lack of support for environmental concern as an automatic outcome of outdoor recreation. It is rather a combination of interconnected conditions referred to as: favorable place relations, adequate outdoor experience and appropriate social context.

The thesis contributes to new knowledge on the relationships and connections between outdoor recreation and environmental sustainability. While the results are of importance with regard to planning for outdoor recreation and development of nature-based tourism, they are of particular interest for environmental organizations, schools and other institutions working for a more sustainable society.

Climate change is widely regarded as the major environmental problem facing the world today. Due to this, transportation, including traveling for recreational purposes, is now being thoroughly examined. Still, and despite a growing awareness of the impact of traveling, the demand for nature based tourism holds its position in general and, paradoxically, also among environmentalists. To understand this paradox, a qualitative study was conducted of Nature and Youth Sweden, to explore an organization that combines a profound commitment to the environment with a great outdoor interest. Data were gathered through focus groups with district boards and by a content analysis of the organization 's magazine. Results show that recreational traveling of environmentalists may be explained by the practice of placing nature in remote and "pristine" areas. Preferences for places characterized by biodiversity, natural quiet, an absence of other people as well as human impact reflect a desire among environmentalists to distance themselves from contemporary urban society. This desire outweighs one of their most important environmental concerns: global warming. Even though the members of Nature and Youth Sweden reject traveling by air on environmental grounds, it is concluded that environmentalism appears to be a reason for traveling, rather than a barrier.

This article explores the linkages between nature-based recreation and preferences of individuals classified as “environmentalists”. Following an overview of the literature, this paper reports on an empirical investigation of the nature-based recreation vs. environmentalism nexus using data from a national Swedish survey. Study findings show that environmentalists (environmentally-oriented individuals) behave differently in terms of their recreation-related preferences when compared to non-environmentalists. Environmentalists prefer outdoor activities with little or no impact on the environment as demonstrated, for example, by their avoidance of extractive (e.g. hunting) and motorized activities (e.g. snowmobiling). Despite these differences, the findings were inconsistent in that while environmentalists avoid some extractive and motorized activities, other similar activities were not avoided. Thus, the results question the use of simplistic recreational classification systems for the understanding of activity preferences and the authors call for more in-depth, qualitative research to further understand the nature-based recreation choices of environmentalists. Study findings also show that environmentally-oriented individuals do not hesitate to travel away from residential areas for participation in nature-based recreation. Therefore, this paper helps us to understand which nature-based activities environmentalists demand and can provide a more informed basis for tourism planning and management.