Polar Policy in Practice: Tour Guiding in Antarctica

Abstract

This paper examines the role of the Antarctic tour guide as the front-line actor in interpreting and enforcing polar policy on the continent. Drawing on interviews with expedition team members, it asks where guides turn for up to date information about sites; where guides see themselves positioned within the structures of Antarctic governance; and how they experience their role as mediators between visitors and the Antarctic environment. Foregrounding the experiences of those who call Antarctica a workplace, the paper also highlights the perceived role of IAATO in the tourism ecosystem, and provides recommendations for how industry, policy-makers and guides can work together to create a more explicit connection between policy and practice in the future.