Question 4. The island of St Kilda is the remotest part of the UK some 40 miles west of the Outer Hebrides. The island is one of only 31 UNESCO World Heritage sites that have joint natural and cultural heritage status. Explore the competing interests of culture, heritage, and sustainability in the management of St Kilda as a tourism destination
Introduction
The idea of tourism in one of the most isolated and remotest parts of the world could have been considered particularly ambitious in an un-globalized world of the 20th century. But in this century the idea has many takers and the proof is in the fact that a remote island such as St. Kilda in the UK has recorded a monumental growth in the tourism circuit lately (Allan et al., 2017).
In this essay, we will be considering the roots from which the distinctive honor of being the only UNESCO heritage site that shares a joint natural and cultural status, found existence in the present. Brown said that the fact that tourism industry which was almost non-existent in St. Kilda witnessed a change at the turn of this century (Brown, 2016). Due to its remote geographical location, the overall growth in the various sectors that support tourism marketing and the footfalls to any location of tourist interest has been a slow process.
Overview:
The World Heritage Site engraving of St Kilda for its social legacy qualities was incorporated into the first Nomination Document, submitted in 1985. In any case, Boyle, Wilson & Dimmock said that the World Heritage Committee in December 1986 endorsed just the regular legacy qualities for engraving, and conceded the case for engraving for social legacy qualities. It was to be an additional six years before the Committee received the ‘social scene’ criteria (Boyle, Wilson & Dimmock, 2015).
Most vital of these qualities are the culmination of fossilized nineteenth-century settlement and rural remains and the awesome scene setting adjusted by individuals as the millennia progressed. Clark stated that the apparent remoteness of the islands and the striking story of human attempt – proof of centuries of maintainable utilize, to a great extent given the utilization of fowl assets, trailed by declining suitability, basically because of outer impacts – on little islands in an extraordinary atmosphere (Clark, 2015). The abundance of narrative proof from the sixteenth century to the season of surrender, which gives the way to acknowledge and comprehend the other fundamental qualities are a portion of the attractions of the island that gives a character to the district. To have maybe a couple of these qualities is extraordinary, yet to have all is one of a kind, bringing about the notable status of St Kilda in worldwide awareness (Clark, 2015). The practically unmistakable soul of the place originates from the engraving left after the possible death to a great extent the consequence of outside impacts, of along these lines of life following a few thousand years. According to Frawley, the twin parts of individuals’ versatility in an unfriendly environment, and the differentiating dubious conventional lifestyles even with relentless social and monetary improvement give the place its emotive power (Frawley, 2015). St Kilda is one of a kind, not just in that such an extensive amount the physical proof of its past culture has survived, grasped by the terrific regular scene, yet this is supplemented by point-by-point narrative records extending back four hundred years and that’s just the beginning.
To have maybe a couple of these qualities is exceptional, yet to have all is genuinely interesting, bringing about the notable status of St Kilda in the universal cognizance. St Kilda is on the double stunningly sensational and intensely separated. As per Feyerherm, its remoteness is complemented because it is and dependably has been hard to get to. There is a sentimental impression of its position as an “island at the edge of the world” where the general population lives in amicability with nature (Feyerherm, 2016).
The precarious precipices and beating oceans around the archipelago give a feeling of the mind-boggling force of nature, against which the exceptionally unmistakable stays of human movement fill guests with awe and regard for past occupants. As per Feyerherm, there are not very many places on the planet where there are a thickness and time-profundity of stays of what was a straightforward country agricultural framework, and St Kilda is remarkable in displaying this level of survival, in the mix with an astounding abundance of writing about the lives of the occupants, their stories and their fables (Feyerherm, 2016).
The heart of the social scene of St Kilda sits inside the dazzling regular amphitheater of Village Bay, Hirta. This relict social scene of 1830s blockhouses and their field frameworks, and 1860s enhanced the white house’s denoting and representing the last fundamental period of human settlement at that location. Predominated inside the wrapping bow of close vertical slopes, the series of houses along the road and the divided field divisions are a particularly in place and promptly clear case of a mid-nineteenth-century arranged crofting settlement (May 2015). According to Min & He, the town is an extraordinary case of a kind of building troupe or scene that represents a huge stage in mankind’s history of Scotland: the foundation of crofting townships and land apportioning, and the re-organizing of groups by remote higher specialists (Min & He, 2014). This drove much of the time specifically and in a roundabout way to the mass displacement of Scots and the production of the Highland Diaspora that remaining parts so solid all through the world.
History: Cultural and natural heritage of the place
For anyone from the UK or the adjoining places of the European continents, the geography of the Outer Hebrides has been one of the fascinating spots for travel buffs. Not long ago one of the primary attractions of these geographic locations, the islands of St. Kilda shot to fame when it assumed the status of the only spot in the entire world that has been recognized by UNESCO for being a cultural as well as natural heritage site (Rowe, 2015). This very achievement, in addition to a few others, transformed the island into a viable hub for tourism and related industries.
According to Sanders et al, this endowment would not only render the economy of the island manifold but also provide an alternative source of income for the islanders. Needless to mention, the growth and prosperity that arise from the same would ultimately diffuse to other aspects of the lives of the islanders like education, wealth, and standard of living (Sanders et al., 2014). The fact that the aboriginal population of the island remains hugely dependent on agricultural and allied activities as a source of income, this change could bring a positive transformation to their lives and hence help them bring their future generation closer to the mainstream civilization on the mainland.
St Kilda as a tourism destination and challenges
The whole of Outer Hebrides including the St Kilda islands has been the part of part of the mainstream plan of tourism to the UK only recently. The fact from Stalker & Burnett state that most of these places have not reached their true potential to be quality tourist destinations despite being a preferable site for those who have been to similar places and prefer the touch of nature as well as heritage. St Kilda is one of the remotest places in the entire Outer Hebrides and forms a major part of the Outer Hebrides Tourism Partnership plan that was framed for 2009 to 2015 (Stalker & Burnett, 2016).
This plan for the partnership to promote tourism in the Outer Hebrides including St Kilda intends to promote the various other industries that would be of direct help for facilitating and improving the tourism sector. Some of those industries include the basic ones like a competitive state-sponsored transportation system around the island, and ample scope for availing basic services such as accommodation, lodging, etc.
The challenges that lay ahead of bringing about this kind of change to the overall tourism infrastructure include economic fiscal, social, and environmental. To have a better understanding of these challenges, an elaboration on each of them has been enunciated below:
- Economic challenges: Being geographically remotely located has its own set of disadvantages especially when it comes to appropriation of funds for any particular cause. As per White, to improve and sustain the tourism on St Kilda, a lot of funds would need to be earmarked for the same by the government and the lack of a veritable authority to the same makes it more difficult (White, 2014). All the more the proper and optimal usage of the appropriated funds that have been poured in via public and private channels needs to be looked after by a competitive authority. As far as the public-private partnership is concerned, the plan can only be effective if the collaboration is supported by the local population. Even though the sentiment behind supporting the tourism industry on this island has been supportive so far, there is always a risk of change in the public sentiment.
- Social challenges: To understand the various social challenges faced in promoting and improving the tourism industry on this island, one needs to understand the exact societal makeup of St Kilda. The population of St Kilda numbers between 180-200 almost at all points of time during the year. Hence it can be said that the social challenges should be the least of all concerns. The population living on this remote island is majorly rural and depends on the available natural resources to make a living. The rural agriculture system that has been part and parcel of the life on the island adds to the cultural fabric and the natural landscape seems draped with the fact that the whole of the Hebrides archipelago has been sparsely populated throughout history.
The real social challenge that would be faced in this direction is the lack of human resources to implement the various changes. Even in the case, of public-private partnership projects the chances of getting adequate human resource support on this isolated island can be an uphill task. The authorities might have to put in additional effort in allocating ample human resources in the field to take care of all the projects that would be needed in place.
- Environmental: As in the case of almost all historical and natural heritage sites, the threat of hampering the environment, the very factor that serves as the USP for the proposals in the first place is undeniable. Due to the nature of the location and lack of infrastructural backdrop to the existing state of affairs, the authorities must time the projects for the promotion of tourism in such a manner that the environment is not adversely affected. Also, the fact that the diversity of the life forms that are found terrestrially, marine, and aerially is nothing but profound. Such an intricate ecosystem that is virtually cut off from the rest of the world brings to the fore, the greatest of challenges.
As far as the tourism industry is concerned, even though it remains hugely seasonal for this island due to the harsh weather conditions, the environmental effect on the ecosystem that exists here cannot be neglected.
Sustainable tourism and management of the tourism industry in remote locations
As per Zhu & Meharg, any sustainable tourism management system in a given geopolitical area is exposed to several factors that could be instrumental in its success in the same. In the case of St Kilda, the sustainability of the transformations in the tourism industry that is being planned is a lot dependent on the general awareness of the tourists to the place and the degree of implementation of various project plans to encourage the same (Zhu & Meharg, 2015).
Zervaki said that to ensure the sustainability of the tourism industry alongside the preservation and conservation of the environmental, historical, and archeological aspects involved, a proper plan enumerating the same must be brought forth by the authorities (Zervaki, 2016). The same can be further refurbished through inputs from citizens and the local populace of the place since they have the ground knowledge about how things work on the island that an outsider might not know of.
Figure 1: Project Implementation Matrix and the Rate of Return
Source: (Sanders et al., 2014)
Figure 1 given above, illustrates a project implementation matrix and the rate of return on the investments that go into funding the same. Min & He said that this matrix effectively discusses all the prospective elements that would go into the entire project and how each of those reflects on the outcome of the tourism industry in terms of revenue generation and value creation (Min & He, 2014). Here are some of the plans and strategies that have been put forward to make the tourism industry prosper:
- Setting up of accommodation range and quality: the existing infrastructure to support the scaled-up demand for accommodation due to the promotion of St Kilda through Tourism marketing.
- Wildlife tourism: This has been one of the high-scoring elements on the project priority matrix. Due to the very fact that the natural heritage of the place revolves around the marine and terrestrial life forms of the island, a planned and well-thought wildlife tourism program can act tremendously well to attract tourists from other parts of the world. The breeding seasons in which the migratory birds come to the island can be used as a further push to the same.
- Festivals and events: This is one of the few ideas and approaches that crack the top ten to give a quick-win situation on the project priority matrix. By organizing such festivals that showcase the life and history of the island and the exquisite lifestyle of the islanders that have been built around it, a considerable number of footfalls can be expected on an annual basis.
- Innovative partnership: This includes initiatives such as planning tourist packages that cover the wildlife or adventure circuits of the nearby places.
As per Feyerherm, a few other long-term investments that can go into establishing firm footage on the island when it comes to the tourism industry is the setting up of the St Kilda Centre (Feyerherm, 2016). Such centers can serve as a museum and organizational support to all the activities related to tourism and travel that are undertaken on the island.
Strategy for preservation and improvement of culture, heritage, and tourism management sustainability
As per Min & He, there are a few strategies that have been used for the preservation of the natural and cultural heritage of the place and at the same time make a sustainable tourism industry and its management possible in St Kilda. Both of these tasks are possible to be carried out in harmony with each other if not independently (Min & He, 2014). Making a healthy trade-off between these two aspects is the key to attaining sustainable economic development and a plan for this island’s tourism hub.
In the research article by Fraser MacDonald named St Kilda and the Sublime, he describes the concept that has kept the island so remote from the mainstream mainland civilization and yet has succeeded in building, what was described as an “island republic” at one point in time. According to Sanders et al., the national influence of certain Scottish influences on the cultural backdrop of the island is fairly delectable (Sanders et al., 2014). In this research paper, he describes how the island formed the central idea of the geography of Scotland itself, as much of the political and social life was built around the church which also had a presence on the island, and served as an emblem of Presbyterian Polity.
So, the preservation and sustainability of the various tourism-related initiatives and their speculated effect on the cultural and environmental heritage of the island would be best done if teamed with the indigenous practices followed by the locals as well as by the specialized approach laid down by the experts in this regard (White, 2014).
Conclusion
From the analysis done above about the sustainability issues, which the place has been suffering from ever since the beginning of the tourism industry there has been long past a veritable concern for the authorities. Having been one of the rare sites that has a historical as well as natural ambiance that would support prospective tourism-related activities; St Kilda comes under the ambit of a large-scale infrastructural renaissance.
The economic and social benefit of the approaches that are being or will in adopted in this regard would be immense not only ensuring that the entire heritage and the setup are sustainable for the next generation but also paying for itself for the upkeep and developmental activities. One of the most widely accepted concerns for any of the tourist sites that rely on its geographical appeal and its status as one of the heritage sites is the large number of footfalls it gets annually. For the first couple of years, this can pose a problem to the immediate environment.
The solution to this potential problem could be framed through the state mechanisms in collaboration with the local bodies which ensure that the number of visitors to the isolated island is within functional limits at all times. Due to the secluded nature of the island, there are various other problems with the upkeep of the place. For instance, waste generation and disposal as a direct result of promoting and furbishing the tourism industry on the island could pose a challenge for the authorities.
To address such concerns, ample initiatives must be taken in terms of getting approvals for the private players to set up such facilities that intend to cut costs and effectively dispose of waste. Some other concerns that can be immediate are the management of the historical and natural heritage sites. Since they would be more open to the public as compared to the way they are now, a sufficient amount of monetary and human resources is required to keep them in a presentable form.
The partial fulfillment of the entire plan to have a solid stance in promoting tourism could result in the arousal of awareness among the closed tourists and traveling circuits. Tourism circuits have always been a huge crowd puller and St. Kilda, being a UNESCO heritage site can play this on a level field with other similar sites in the vicinity. It can be said that a properly strategized approach to pump in funds to the plans alongside getting adequate help from experts to balance out any effects that the same might have on the indigenous scene could be an immense opportunity for the tourism industry in the whole of the UK.
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