Risk and crisis management

"Buhalis, Dimitrios and Michopoulou, Eleni (2011) 'Information-enabled tourism destination marketing: addressing the accessibility market', Current Issues in Tourism,, 14(2) pp145-168. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13683501003653361

Information-enabled tourism destination marketing:
addressing the accessibility market

Dimitrios Buhalis (a∗) and Eleni Michopoulou (b)
a)International Centre for Tourism and Hospitality Research (ICTHR), Bournemouth University,
Bournemouth, UK; b) School of Management, University of Surrey, Guildford, UK

(Received 3 July 2009; final version received 25 January 2010)

This paper demonstrates that the accessibility market is not homogenous, but it entails different sub-segments with distinct needs and requirements. Ultimately each person is unique in his/her abilities and preferences and this is more evident in this market. Secondary research revealed the size of the accessibility market in Europe to be 127 million people. Extensive qualitative research through 16 focus groups has demonstrated that the main requirements of these segments focus on three interlinked elements, namely accessible built environment, information regarding accessibility and accessible information online. Traditional segmentation contradicts the central concept of participation, as directed by the social model of disability, and it entails assumptions regarding the requirements of the market segments. Information communication technologies (ICTs) can assist destinations to effectively address the particular requirements of these market segments through the use of profiling and personalisation
features, which will allow users themselves to specify their requirements. Through the use of ICTs, users are enabled to declare their needs and requirements. Destinations can then offer suitable products and services according to the particular needs of each traveller, encourage participation, congruent with the social model of disability.


Keywords: destination marketing; market requirements; market segmentation;
accessible tourism; disability; information communication technology"

In the early morning hours of November 8, 2010, fire broke out in the aft engine room of Carnival Splendor, a 113,300 ton passenger cruise ship carrying over 3,000 guests. Although the fire was quickly suppressed, Cruise Director John Heald and the ship's crew found themselves stranded in the Pacific Ocean, 200 miles south of San Diego. With no electricity, poor sanitation, and spoiling food supplies, Carnival Cruise Lines must determine how best to manage this unforeseen event and ensure the safety of those onboard. This crisis management case exposes the reader to the decisionmaking and communication challenges faced by senior leaders in the tumultuous environment following such a crisis.

This book offers a new and original perspective on crisis communication based on the theory of the Rhetorical Arena and the so-called multivocal approach. According to this approach, we gain a more dynamic and complex understanding of organizational crises if we focus not only on the crisis communication produced by the organization in crisis but also take into account the many other voices who start communicating when a crisis breaks out (e.g., the news media, customers, employees, trade associations, politicians, activist groups, and PR experts).

Aimed at an audience of students in corporate communication, public relations, and management and organization studies, the book provides:
• An in-depth overview of the five key dimensions of organizational crises, crisis management and crisis communication.
• A comprehensive introduction to the theory of the Rhetorical Arena and the multivocal approach to crisis communication, including some of the most important voices inside the arena.
• A series of important (inter)national case studies and case examples in each chapter.
• A companion website with learning resources for both teachers and students.

Critical decisions for crisis management: An introduction By Mario COCCIA a † Abstract. In the presence of crisis, such as global COVID-19 pandemic crisis, governments have more and more take critical decisions to cope with consequential environmental threats in the presence of highly restricted time. This chapter provides a simple description of techniques of decision making in different environments/conditionsof crisis management and how that process is influenced by manifold social, economic and/or technical factors; ultimately it is presented how the approach of improvisation can support the process of decision-makingto cope with unforeseen and new events, rapid changes, turbulent environment and/or specific situations of emergency.

The Ever Given Grounding in the Suez Canal has consequences that are yet to be felt, even after the vessel was freed and the canal reopened.  This event is a classic example of a cascade effect of a risk realized.  The cascade from Ever Given has impact the logistics industry in many ways from ports to containers to shipping costs.

Resumen: El turismo, alcanza su nivel de masividad a partir de la II posguerra jugando un rol clave en el comercio internacional por los movimientos de capitales que representaba. Este fenómeno, fue analizado por las más altas instituciones internacionales de asistencia técnico-financiera (ONU, OCDE, FMI entre otras). Dichas instituciones, intervinieron directamente en la concepción y determinación de los movimientos turísticos, trazando estrategias de promoción y planificación como así también una “doctrina” o matriz de ...

This article provides an early account to document Swedens strategy to the COVID-19 pandemic and critically examines the countrys crisis response during the first six months of 2020. Sweden stood out internationally with a hands-off approach that gained much attention. Schools remained open, no lock-downs were underaken, no face masks reccommended, even in care homes, and testing-tracing-isolation was very limited. Although Swedens death rate per million was among the seven highest in the world during the period, there was no change in strategy. The article employs concepts to analyse and understand this peculiar approach and the secutity culture and political culture underpinning it. It uncovers deeper systemic defects and a breakdown in the state functions accom-panyied by secrecy and cover-ups, as well as a totalitarian element in the political culture.

Estimating the economic impact of special events to tourism destinations constitutes one of the major fields in tourism research. Extensive literature provides both practitioners and scientists with appropriate tools to measure tourism expenditure, multipliers and externalities generated by an event. However, a majority of the research is conducted during big, special events which usually have a great impact on the whole country, while the impact of small events seems to be neglected. It is worth noting that organization of small niche tourism events also requires public subsidies, the efficiency of which needs to be evaluated. This article is an attempt to address this gap.

In the emergency of a fire or in the aftermath of a disaster, the struck area is rather difficult to access and may have become hazardous, hostile or toxic. Establishing whether the ground can be entered safely by human beings is time consuming. A major challenge is to quickly acquire and gather in situ data and forward information about the actual situation throughout the entire system. The View-Finder research project develops robots and an advanced base station for inspection of a crisis ground as well as the necessary interfaces to manage the robots from the base station and tools to facilitate the crisis management to the people involved in the crisis as well as their interaction.

"Earlier provisional title was "Archaeology, Tourism, Museum...."

"This chapter is divided into two distinct sections that are positioned in a point-counterpoint structure of dialogue. These two position statements invoke the etymological meanings of the word essay, to attempt, put to the test, trial, to act out, to explore, travel, and travail. The first is an historical analysis written in the third person by an anthropologist whose expertise includes the ethnography of archaeology and the anthropology of tourism. The second is a counterpoint commentary written in the first person by an anthropologist whose specializations include Pre-Columbian and historical archaeology. Both of us have significant research experience in same area of the Maya world in Yucatán, México. From these two differing vantage points, we chart our perspectives on the relationship between archaeology and tourism in terms of the problems of exploration, protection, and exploitation.
In the first section, Castañeda takes an historical approach to the emergence of archaeology in the institutional context of the modern museum. He essays an analytical and theoretical manifesto about the deep, intimate interconnections between tourism and archaeology as revealed through an understanding of the museum. In his historical analysis of the role of archaeological representation in the museum, he identifies the sociological creation of universal heritage. He theorizes a notion of the universal citizen-heir as the implied benefactor of this universal heritage. In the second section, Mathews elaborates a commentary on this historical analysis of archaeology, tourism, heritage and the museum. Specifically, she counter-argues and assesses Castañeda theoretical and analytical claims through the use of archaeology and tourism at sites that are not postcard worthy. Together these two “attempts” grapple with the historical and contemporary interconnections between archaeology and tourism. Together we put to the test our typical assumptions about the ethics of archaeologists, tourists, and tourism promoters in the contemporary contexts in which we are now beginning to ask how and why archaeology and tourism are interwoven phenomena in today’s world.""

— It is no surprise that the notion of situation is key to situation awareness. The development of the discipline can thus benefit from careful analysis of the notion. In this paper, we approach this by proposing an ontology of situations and scenes. The main contribution of this ontology is that it accounts for how situations progress in time changing qualitatively, constituting what we call scenes. The ontology is built by reusing basic elements from the Unified Foundational Ontology (UFO). It addresses objects, occurrences, and their formal relations to situations and scenes. We use the theory of embodiment proposed by the philosopher Kit Fine to explicate how scenes and situations form wholes constituted of parts.

L’exercice de l’art infirmier répond à des règles réglementaires qui sont d’ordre public. Ceci implique qu’elles sont directement opposables à l’infirmier et ne souffrent pas d’exception. Néanmoins, en situation d’exception, ces règles répondent clairement à la problématique de l’infirmier placé en situation de catastrophe, attentat ou face à de nombreuses victimes.

L'objectif de notre contribution est d'identifier plus précisément la place de la résilience dans la dynamique évolutive normal d'une organisation. Notre approche est essentiellement épistémologique. Nous pensons qu'avant de donner a priori à la résilience une signification pratique et méthodologique, il est nécessaire de partir de l'observation des systèmes complexes telles que les organisations humaines. L’ingénierie de la résilience commence donc par l'observation des systèmes et construit un modèle réflexif visant à comprendre son propre rôle au cours du processus d'observation. La modélisation n’est pas seulement une condition préalable pour expliquer ce qui est ou non d’ordre de la résilience. Bien plus, la modélisation de l'observation des systèmes complexes en évolution est une partie importante de l’ingénierie de la résilience elle-même. Dans cet article nous allons d'abord expliciter notre objectif et identifier les questions trouvées dans la littérature spécialisée que notre démarche pourrait aider à résoudre. Deuxièmement, nous allons construire notre modèle étape par étape, en introduisant et en expliquant les concepts appropriés. Certaines illustrations seront ensuite proposées afin de donner du sens à ces éléments. Enfin, la place de la résilience dans ce modèle et les conséquences pour l'ingénierie de la résilience seront discutés.

Özet
Krizler, örgütlerin önleme ve uyum mekanizmalarını yetersiz hale getirerek mevcut değerlerini, amaçlarını ve varsayımlarını tehdit eden ve bu tehditlere karşı acele cevap verilmesini zorunlu kılan, gerginlik verici durumlardır. Krizler ve önemli olaylar çoğu kez beklenmedik olaylar olarak tabir edilir ve güvenlik güçlerinin rutin görevleri dışında nadiren karşılaştıkları olaylardır. Gerek beklenme-dik oluşları gerekse önceden gerekli hazırlıkların yapılmamış olması gibi nedenlerle toplum içerisinde olumsuz etkileri olabilir ve iyi yönetilmediği takdirde toplum düzenini bozabileceğinden tamiri oldukça zordur ve uzun yıllar sürebilir. Toplumun huzur ve güvenliğini sağlamak için gece gündüz çalışan güvenlik güçlerinin, krizlerin hayatın bir gerçeği olduğunu ve herhangi bir zamanda herhangi bir yerde karşısına çıkabileceğini, bu sebeple günlük rutin görevlerle mücadele ederken beklenmedik olaylara da hazırlıklı olmaları gerektiğini akıllarından çıkarmamaları gerekmektedir. Bu çalışmada, kriz ve önemli olayların polis için ne demek olduğu, bir süreç olarak krizlerin nasıl yönetilmesi gerektiği, geleneksel krizlerin dışında modern ve gelecekteki krizlerin yönetiminin nasıl bir bakış açısıyla ele alınması gerektiği hususları irdelenecektir. Krizlerin olumsuz etkilerinin azaltılması konusunda farklı görüşler değerlendirilecek ve etkili bir liderlik yöne-timi ile krize girmiş veya kriz riski taşıyan örgütlerin en az hasarla krizden nasıl çıkabileceği hususu tartışılacaktır. Güvenlik hizmetlerinde, özellikle poliste, kriz yönetimi süreci değerlendirilecektir. Diğer taraftan, genellikle olumsuz bir kav-ram olarak görülse de iyi yönetildiğinde krizlerin örgütler için korkulacak bir durum olmaktan çıkabileceği, gerek toplum gerekse de kurum ve çalışanlar için bir fırsat olabileceği hususu tartışılacaktır.



ALINTILAMA ÖNERİSİ
Pamuk, Z. (2014), Kriz Yönetimi Stratejileri, Harmancı, F. M; Gözübenli, M. ve Zengin, C. (Ed.), "Güvenlik Sektöründe Temel Stratejiler" içinde (s.305-330). Nobel Yayınevi, ISBN:978-605-133-960-3

ALINTILAMA ÖNERİSİ
Pamuk, Z. (2014), Kriz Yönetimi Stratejileri, Harmancı, F. M; Gözübenli, M. ve Zengin, C. (Ed.), "Güvenlik Sektöründe Temel Stratejiler" içinde (s.305-330). Nobel Yayınevi, ISBN:978-605-133-960-3

We built a multiagent simulation of urban traffic to model both ordinary traffic and emergency or crisis mode traffic.
This simulation first builds a modeled road network based on detailed geographical information. On this network, the simulation creates two populations of agents: the Transporters and the Mobiles. Transporters embody the roads themselves; they are utilitarian and meant to handle the low level realism of the simulation. Mobile agents embody the vehicles that circulate on the network. They have one or several destinations they try to reach using initially their beliefs of the structure of the network (length of the edges, speed limits, number of lanes etc.). Nonetheless, when confronted to a dynamic, emergent prone environment (other vehicles, unexpectedly closed ways or lanes, traffic jams etc.), the rather reactive agent will activate more cognitive modules to adapt its beliefs, desires and intentions. It may change its destination(s), change the tactics used to reach the destination (favoring less used roads, following other agents, using general headings), etc.
We describe our current validation of our model and the next planned improvements, both in validation and in functionalities.

Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans in August 2005, driving hundreds of thousands of residents out of the city and causing upwards of $55 billion in damage. Between August 2005 and New Year's Day 2006, New Orleans lost over half its population because Katrina forced people out of their homes and businesses were relocated temporarily, if not permanently. This natural event played a crucial role in the development of the insurance industry with regards to how it reacted to these "black swan" events. Journalists and reporters were quick to criticize the response time of government organizations such as FEMA, but insurance companies were also to blame for the disastrous aftermath. The mathematical models used at the time failed to properly prepare companies for the payouts needed after the storm subsided, meaning hundreds of thousands of New Orleans residents were left unsubsidized for the damage done and were forced to move out of the city altogether. This paper analyzes how models were used by the insurance industry prior to Hurricane Katrina, followed by an analysis on how those models changed to accommodate for future events that may cause similar damage. I also discuss the role of government in natural catastrophes and the regulation of insurance before vs. after Hurricane Katrina.

Tourism in Ireland is facing challenging times and thus new ways of attracting tourists into Ireland are required. Recent reports on the current state of Irish tourism highlighted the need to identify and invest in key market segments, such as leisure tourism, where Ireland can gain a competitive advantage. Cycle tourism is an established industry internationally, especially in Mainland Europe – and should thus be a priority market for Irish tourism. This paper demonstrates the potential for the development of a cycle tourism industry in Ireland that can have additional benefits for commuter and leisure cyclists. The value of cycle tourism in Europe in 2009 was approximately €54bn, with cycle tourists spending an average of €353 each per trip. Current cycle tourism in Ireland is underperforming in comparison with the rest of Europe. In 2009, only 2% of visitors cycled while on holiday in Ireland, spending €97m. Not all of these would be classified as cycle tourists in many European ...

"This chapter aims to explain how and why the the 9/11 Commission succeeded whereas so many others did not. To shed light on the 9/11 Commission’s origins, goals, limitations, failings, accomplishments and consequences, we apply three distinct analytical prisms: (1) the learning imperative, (2) the logic of realpolitik and (3) the symbolic perspective. We set out by addressing the 9/11 Commission’s impact. In the following three sections, we delve deeper into postcrisis inquiries in general and the 9/11 Commission in particular through the prisms of our three perspectives – learning, realpolitik and symbolic meaning making.
The chapter’s concluding section contains final reflections and considers whether any general insights into the nature of postcrisis politics and reform efforts can be drawn from our analysis."

Meta-governance recently emerged in the field of governance as a new approach which claims that its use enables modern states to overcome problems associated with network governance.
This thesis shares the view that networks are an important feature of contemporary politics
which must be taken seriously, but it also maintains that networks pose substantial analytical and political challenges. It proceeds to investigate the potential possibilities and problems associated with meta-governance on both theoretical and empirical levels.
The theoretical discussion examines meta-governance in relation to governmentality, and it puts forward the claim that meta-governance may be understood as a specific type of neo-liberal governmentality. The meta-governance perspective regards networks as a complementary structure to traditional administration that can be utilized in the implementation and realization of public policy, but which also preserves the self-regulating and flexible character of networks. This generates a contradiction between the goals of public management and the character of networks that requires further investigation.
The combination of the specific dynamics of the political field of security, the diminishing role of sovereign powers, the emergence of security networks, and the meta-governance stance adopted by the Swedish state constitutes a situation that should have been favorable for the successful employment of meta-governance. The empirical investigation of meta-governance is divided into two parts. The first part reviews the historical process involved and shows how the
Swedish government and public authorities have adopted a meta-governance stance. The second analyzes the specific instruments and strategies that have been deployed in the governance of security communications and in the management of Sweden’s new security communications
system which is an important aspect of security networks. The historical study together with the analysis of the meta-governance tools deployed reveals that the meta-governors neither reached the goals specified, nor fulfilled the overall purpose of successful security communications.
I argue on the basis of the theoretical and empirical findings obtained in the present study that it is very difficult to successfully employ meta-governance in respect to security and crisis management, and that we have sound reasons to suspect that meta-governance will run into similar difficulties in other political fields as well. I conclude that meta-governance is a far more difficult practice than has been anticipated by existing theories and policy recommendations. Turning to meta-governance as a way to govern and control organizations may in fact lead to further fragmentation and distortion of public politics.
Keywords: meta-governance, meta-governance stance, governance, governmentality,
sovereign power, political power, networks, security, communications systems, processtracing,
interpretive policy analysis, Sweden, KBM, MSB, RAKEL

Il 16 febbraio 2016, a Roma, il Governo italiano e l'Organizzazione delle Nazioni Unite per l'educazione, la scienza e la cultura (UNESCO), rappresentati rispettivamente dal Ministro degli Affari esteri e della cooperazione internazionale, Paolo Gentiloni, e dal Direttore generale, Irina Bokova, hanno siglato un Memorandum of Understanding per la creazione della Italian National Task Force in the framework of UNESCO's Global Coalition under Unite4Heritage. L'accordo rappresenta un passaggio importante del percorso iniziato nel giugno del 2015 a Bonn, in Germania, durante la sessione annuale del World Heritage Committee, con l'adozione della Bonn Declaration on World Heritage, e dell'iniziativa Unite4Heritage. Con la Dichiarazione, il Comitato della Convenzione per la protezione del patrimonio culturale e naturale mondiale del 1972 ha condannato i barbarici attacchi commessi dal c.d. Stato islamico dell'Iraq e del Levante (ISIL o Daesh) e l'uso massiccio e indiscriminato di armi e di esplosivi nelle zone di guerra. Tra le zone distrutte, o in pericolo, si fa riferimento ai beni culturali di Hatra, Bamiyan, Timbuktu, Aleppo, Crac de Chevaliers, Bosra, Palmyra, Marib, the Old City of Sana'a e Aden. La Dichiarazione chiede alle parti in conflitto di evitare attacchi indiscriminati e di rispettare i beni culturali e naturali, in linea con gli obblighi che discendono dal diritto internazionale umanitario, dalla Convenzione dell'Aia del 1954 sulla protezione dei beni culturali durante i conflitti armati e dal suo Protocollo del 1999. La Dichiarazione raccomanda, inoltre, al Consiglio di sicurezza dell'ONU di verificare «the possibility of introducing a specific dimension of heritage protection in the mandates of peacekeeping missions where appropriate; delivering for instance complementary training modules focusing on the protection of cultural property both tangible and intangible, during and in the aftermath of armed conflicts».

Dear Colleague,

It is my great pleasure to invite you to participate in the 6th ICT Forum that will be held in October 14-16, 2014 in Nis, Serbia.
Additional information on the 6th ICT Forum is enclosed and can be found at the following website www.ictforum.rpkni.rs.

Marko Stosic

The purpose of this study is to examine the emerging flashpacker sub-culture in relation to the backpacker culture. Cultural Consensus Analysis is employed to examine the potential cultural divergence between flashpackers and non-flashpackers. A mixed-mode dual-frame sampling procedure was employed for data collection, as surveys were administered through Facebook backpacker-groups and in hostels in Cairns, Australia. The results indicate that flashpacker and non-flashpacker groups have a shared cultural understanding of backpacking. In addition to the conceptual clarity of the emerging flashpacker, this study also provides some interesting insights into contemporary backpacker culture and the continuing convergence of physical travel with information and communication technologies.

Упадъкът на Запада не е случайност Pan.bg 14 авг 2019 | 07:14 (300) (0) "Ситуацията е сериозна: постепенно изчезва не просто един политически, икономически и обществен модел, но и всичко това, което в продължение на хилядолетия беше "Западът". Това не е някакво незначително произшествие, което може да отбележим мимоходом и след това да продължим по-нататък. Масовият упадък на Европа като цивилизация е истинска историческа трагедия, която засяга всички нас, не само като общество, но и като индивиди. Лично аз страдам неимоверно от бъдещия край на западната цивилизация, която обичам от цялото си сърце. Знам, че в тази си тревога далеч не съм сам, макар, че все още много съвременници не осъзнават напълно сериозността на тези промени или не се решават да си направят съответните изводи от тях. Именно за тях написах тази книга, в която искам да споделя своите мисли за това как ние, обичащите Запада, неговата история, наследство и традиции, можем да останем верни на убежденията си и да ги предадем на потомците си в пост-европейския свят". Това казва в интервю за "Фигаро" историкът Давид Енгелс, преподавател в Института "Заходни" в Полша и в Свободния университет в Брюксел.

This study examined the determinants of food price inflation and its impact on the economy of PNG from 2001 to 2011 (10 years) using time series data. Secondary data obtained from credible sources such as BPNG, ADB, WB, and IMF were analysed using various econometric test such as the Johansen Test for Cointergration, Augmented Dickey Fuller Test and the Vector Error Correction Model. The econometric tests revealed that there is a long run relationship (causality) between the variables real exchange rate and wheat price which significantly influenced food price inflation in PNG. There is a negative correlation between money supply and interest rate which negatively impacted food price inflation in the country. In the short run, real exchange rate, money supply, real interest rate and wheat price do not significantly affect food inflation as their corresponding p-values are greater than five percent (5%) critical value. Alternatively, there is a long run relationship or causality betw...

Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection, in Washington, DC, is an institute of Harvard University dedicated to supporting scholarship internationally in Byzantine, Pre-Columbian, and Garden and Landscape Studies through fellowships, meetings, exhibitions, and publications. Located in Georgetown and bequeathed by Robert Woods Bliss and Mildred Barnes Bliss, Dumbarton Oaks welcomes scholars to consult its books, images, and objects, and the public to visit its garden, museum, and historic house for lectures and concerts.

This article tries to analyse the pitfalls when it comes to supporting locally driven or community based tourism development. It relates this (idealistic) development objective promoted by NGO's and donor communities to the larger context of recent global trends in the trade of services and the principles of community based development. Though recent industry development in tourism is paying more attention to local actors and impacts at the destination level, it is argued that structural causes of uneven and unequal development will dampen any potential positive impacts related to poverty alleviation in developing countries. After reviewing the external and internal conditions that are required for assuring a real locally driven development, we have come to the conclusion that these will not be present in developing countries. Thus, the promise of poverty reduction through community based tourism will rarely be met. Moreover, taking into account the negative environmental and social impacts related to tourism development, one should ask oneself if it should be promoted at all. However, we have addressed some conditions that contribute to achieving successful CBTD in developing countries.

This article builds upon earlier risk narrative research, focusing upon their historical development primarily in the US and UK and drawing upon a wide range of key historical and contemporary moments and examples. It proceeds from an understanding risk not as a thing, but a tool that brings together an understanding of threats, what is threatened and how that might be remedied in the future, increasingly based upon past experience. Risk narratives emerge historically with the growth of concern for the public impact of environmental events, through individuals prepared to articulate this and then challenge the denial of institutional responsibility. The explicit language of environmental risk only emerges in postwar America through challenges to fluoridation, pesticides and consumer safety, however, amidst concern with the greater impact of man-made risk and situated within a radical discourse of systemic blame. The introduction indicates the power and 'independence' of narratives with the important example of 'nuclear catastrophism', and then sets out definitions and location, including the related fields of framing and stigmatization. The article then begins with the absence of narrative in ancient Roman accounts of environmental events and proceeds chronologically through 18 th century beginnings, the development of more critical responses in the 19 th and early 20 th Century and the full emergence of 'risk society' type narratives, to today. After summarising, it finally suggests that if narrative is to be used in risk communication it will require more sophisticated forms that go beyond only exposing risk and insisting upon blame, based upon cultural assumptions of necessary harm from association with the corporate, 'unnatural' and stigmatized.

This paper explores the relationship between tourism and the challenges of governance in the Arctic region. Recently, both political and academic interest in the Arctic has been on the rise as a result of the increasing geopolitical importance of the region. Changes of the climatic conditions and melting of the Arctic ice caps have resulted in increased access to the “world´s last wilderness”. The increased access and interest are contributing to a growing number of tourists visiting the North. As yearly arrivals continue to rise, a number of problematic issues need to be addressed. This paper reviews the main instruments relevant to the discussion of tourism currently employed in the governance of the Arctic, and critically evaluates the insufficiencies of the current legal framework for Arctic governance and regulation of tourism in the Arctic. It concludes that although tourism in the Arctic has a number of advantages, particularly for the indigenous populations, the current legal and regulatory framework in the region lacks the scope and authority to minimize the potential (and increasing) environmental, economic, and social risks associated with increased tourism and other human activity in the region.

Τα τελευταία χρόνια ένα ευρύ φάσμα φυσικών καταστροφών έχει γίνει μια καλά τεκμηριωμένη και απτή πραγματικότητα με τραγικές επιπτώσεις. Και ενώ υπάρχει μια πλούσια βιβλιογραφία σε σχέση με την ετοιμότητα έκτακτης ανάγκης, η αντίστοιχη σε σχέση με τα άτομα με αναπηρίες, είναι εξαιρετικά περιορισμένη. Η εργασία αυτή διερευνά τις προκλήσεις που αντιμετωπίζουν τα άτομα με αναπηρίες κατά τη διάρκεια μιας καταστροφής και εξετάζονται στρατηγικές που δύναται να αποδειχθούν αποτελεσματικές για μια κοινωνία χωρίς αποκλεισμούς.

Λέξεις-Κλειδιά: Φυσικές Καταστροφές, Άτομα με Αναπηρίες, Πολιτική Προστασία, Σχεδιασμός Έκτακτης Ανάγκης

Sentiment analysis techniques are increasingly used to grasp reactions from social media users to unexpected and potentially stressful social events. This paper argues that, alongside assessments of the affective valence of social media content as negative or positive, there is a need for a deeper understanding of the context in which reactions are expressed and the specific functions that users' emotional states may reflect. To demonstrate this, we present a qualitative analysis of affective expressions on Twitter collected in Germany during the 2011 EHEC food contamination incident based on a coding scheme developed from Skinner et al.'s (2003) coping classification framework. Affective expressions of coping were found to be diverse not only in terms of valence but also in the adaptive functions they served: beyond the positive or negative tone, some people perceived the outbreak as a threat while others as a challenge to cope with. We discuss how this qualitative sentiment analysis can allow a better understanding of the way the overall situation is perceived – threat or challenge – and the resources that individuals experience having to cope with emerging demands.