Student Stijn - MSc Tourism, Society and Environment

Can you describe briefly who you are, where you are from and when you started with the programme?

"I’m Stijn, 24 years old and I’m from the Netherlands. I started the MSc ‘Tourism, Society & Environment’ in September 2019 after I finished the BSc ‘Forest & Nature Conservation’ with a Major in ‘Policy and Society’ at the Wageningen University. While I already knew I wanted to follow this MSc, I also wanted to see more of the world before continuing my education. In between my BSc and MSc I therefore took a gap year to go backpacking in New Zealand and Australia, a decision I definitely recommend to others as well."

Could you tell us something about your study programme? How have you arranged it to fit your interests?

"During the BSc Forest & Nature Conservation my interests in the social aspect of nature conservation grew significantly. I found the human-nature relationship particularly engaging and wanted to continue my education by focussing on this interlinkage more. By participating in the Minor of ‘Conservation Tourism: Policies and Practices’ during the third year of my BSc I found out that the combination of nature conservation with tourism intrigued me very much, whereafter I decided to continue my education by engaging in the MSc ‘Tourism, Society & Environment’.

Due to the variety of trajectory possibilities in this MSC, there was room for applying my interests in the tourism-nature interlinkages by following the trajectory of ‘Tourism & Natural Resources’. Here, I was able to investigate the role of tourism in an everchanging world while interlinking tourism with its impact on and possibilities for nature conservation. Following this trajectory gave me new insights into how tourism can be stimulated as well as governed responsibly in light of the problems we as a world are facing these days and in the future."

Which part of your study did you find the most interesting? Which courses did you like best?

"What really stands out for me in this MSc is the increase in my understanding of different perspectives on tourism. As the tourism industry is way more complex than I thought beforehand, it was nice to critically investigate the different viewpoints and socio-ecological impacts tourism has on this world.

Regarding the courses I took during my first year, I especially liked the course of ‘Governance of Tourism and Natural Resources’ as it included different perspectives and theories on how to govern the complexity of tourism and its use of natural resources. Besides, I really enjoyed the ‘Academic Consultancy Training’, as I was given the possibility here to actually apply my scientific knowledge and skills to come up with an advice for a third party, rather than only engaging in the learning part."

What thesis are you currently working on? How did your study programme (trajectory/courses) contribute to this theses?

"Last April I finished my thesis ‘Understanding Safari Jogging in the Veluwe, the Netherlands: a social practice perspective’. Here, Safari Jogging (a nature based recreational activity) was investigated as a social practice; a routinised type of behaviour that is formed through the interlinkages of elements. A newly constructed theoretical framework was proposed in this research through which the elemental interlinkages of the materials, meanings, competences and affects of Safari Jogging were investigated. The thesis showed that applying a social practice perspective could be useful for understanding recreational behaviour more comprehensively in the context of the activity instead of focussing on the individual alone. Policy strategies on behaviour can also benefit from this social practice perspective through new opportunities for intervention and practice-oriented policies.

During the trajectory of ‘Tourism & Natural Resources’ I became more interested in the behaviour of tourists and how tourists could be steered better as a policy maker. As I did not know the social practice theory before I started the MSc, the courses that I followed during this trajectory increased my interest in both understanding tourist behaviour better as well as how the application of such a new theory can broaden our understanding of tourist behaviour and its implications on governing tourism more responsibly."

What are your plans for the future?

"Right now I’m looking for an internship abroad to start with in the upcoming fall. Due to the Covid-19 restrictions that are in place in the Netherlands and other countries as well, travelling abroad has not been possible lately. But as things are finally clearing up, I’m hopeful that I will soon be able to do my internship abroad. After that, I have finished my MSc and working life will start. I’m not quite sure what kind of work I would like to be doing in the future, but due to the scientific knowledge and skills that I have gained over the last years in my BSc and MSc, as well as my increased interests in applying this knowledge and skills to improve the tourism situation in the future, I’m sure things will work out just fine."

What do you do besides studying? Do you have a special interest or talent?

"The last couple of weeks I’ve been busy as a student assistant at the WUR by helping with the preparation and execution of a summerschool on tourism after Covid-19 for Erasmus students. Regarding sports I engage in fitness and football, and in my free time you can often find me at the river the Rijn, enjoying the sun and cool water with friends (if the Dutch weather allows it). When the Covid-19 restrictions are lifted, I also aim to do some (sustainable) travelling again and explore new, exciting parts of this world. Because in the end; I’m also just a tourist of course."

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