News
Vivian Sakko winner 2024 Utrecht University Dr. Albert van der Zeijden thesis prize
MSc Tourism, Society and Environment (MTO) alumna Vivian Sakko won the 2024 Utrecht University Dr. Albert van der Zeijden master's thesis prize for her thesis entitled "Vibrant tales that connect us all through folklore tourism: A case study into the folklore-centric gaze using animism". The thesis prize is awarded annually to recognise exceptional work in the field of intangible heritage. Vivian's thesis was supervised by GEO's Meghann Ormond. A hearty congratulations to Vivian! May she continue to shine in this field and share her passion for storytelling with many others!
Thesis abstract
Folklore tourism has risen significantly in popularity over the last years, enticing people from all over the world to explore landscapes infused with supernatural folklore. However, the relationship between tourism, the landscape and folklore is rather complicated and includes certain (frequently conflicting) tensions, into which more insight is needed, especially considering tourism destinations becoming increasingly interested in incorporating folklore into their development strategies.
Inspired by Ironside and Massie (2020), this thesis explores a sustainable strategy to folklore tourism practices that is considerate of landscape, people living in a place, and heritage value. Considering that modern travellers require narratives like supernatural folktales to enliven landscapes for them, allowing them to experience these landscapes in new ways, liminal spaces (i.e. a space between reality and the ‘extraordinary’) are created during which people may be receptive to new and fresh perspectives on, for example, environmental matters.
Consequently, folktales – which convey ananimistic worldview - can thus offer transformative experiences which have the capacity to impact and mould tourist behaviour. Considering furthermore that humanity is at a turning point where we need to critically reflect on the relationship we have with the natural world, this thesis considers an approach to folklore tourism that proposes an animist ‘folklore-centric gaze’. It uses the Isle of Skye in Scotland as a case study and explores how(the animist characteristics of) supernatural folktales circulated on Skye might influence residents’ and tourists'/visitors’ perceptions and behaviours in relation to Skye’s landscapes.
More about the thesis prize:https://www.immaterieelerfgoed.nl/en/scriptieprijs