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Collections in the spotlight: eBooks on tourism
In the series Collection in the Spotlight, we’re taking a closer look at exciting databases and hidden gems in our collections. This month, we’re discussing the Elgar Tourism eBook collection, a big favourite of Martin Slabbertje, a collection specialist of WUR Library.
What inspired you to choose this particular collection?
I’ve always been interested in tourism, both personally and intellectually. When I was small, I used to help my parents with organising our holidays. Later, I studied applied Tourism Management at BUAS and Social Geography at Utrecht University. As I've been a librarian for over 25 years, I didn't make tourism my profession, but still, publications on tourism get my special attention.
What makes these books a valuable addition to the Library's collection?
Edgar offers a wide range of books on tourism, often with a multidisciplinary focus and insights from the fields of sociology, social geography, and environmental studies. The eBooks cover WUR research themes, such as tourism's impact on the environment, local communities, climate and planetary boundaries. In addition to the Elgar tourism eBooks, other good information resources are the books on tourism at Taylor & Francis and at the CABI Digital Library
How can students and staff use this collection during their studies or research?
The tourism books are interesting for students in the Bachelor of Science Tourism, in the Master's programme Tourism, Society and Environment and for students at the Breda University of Applied Sciences (BUAS). In addition to the required literature that teachers provide, students can delve further into their field with the Elgar collection. The Elgar collection is particularly useful for thesis research.
What are the features of Elgar online?
I like the way eBooks are presented on the Elgar platform:
- You can browse through the collections by using different filters (i.e. subjects and content types).
- Reading and navigating through the eBooks is intuitive and easy.
- The eBooks are DRM-free, meaning you can download, print and save a reasonable number of chapters from the eBooks for scholarly research, and educational and personal use. You may not copy and store entire eBooks.
- The platform offers simultaneous online access for multiple users.
- You can easily export references in different formats for various bibliographic managers.
How can I access the Elagaronline ebooks?
The Elgar ebooks are indexed in WUR Library search and other discovery systems (Scopus, Google Scholar). You get access by IP recognition. The best way to get access is to log in to the Library website and then search for the title you’re looking for. Alternatively, you can install the Library Access plugin and go directly to Elgaronline to browse through the different categories.
What kind of publisher is Elgar?
Edward Elgar Publishing is a publisher that focuses on social and political sciences, business and management, economics, and law. They publish 18 journal titles and approximately 200 -300 book titles annually. On the ElgarOnline platform, you’ll find research monographs, research handbooks, companions, dictionaries, encyclopaedias and journals. Please note that WUR Library does not have access to all content on ElgarOnline. A green dot marks the titles that WUR has access to. An orange icon indicates Open Access content.
What do you hope readers will take away from this collection?
I hope that staff and students get interested in the key academic issues of tourism. Reading some of the books may hopefully contribute to our awareness of the social and environmental impact of our travel adventures.
