BREAKING OUT OF BORING CLUSTER PATH DEPENDENCY BREAKING OUT OF BORING CLUSTER PATH DEPENDENCY? The Case of Tourism Development in North Jutland, Denmark Introduction: Path dependency in tourism Finding a new path? From creation towards plasticity Tourism in North Jutland: Path dependency and path plasticity Researching tourism cluster path plasticities Henrik Halkier & Anette Therkelsen Aalborg University, Denmark halkier@cgs.aau.dk – at@cgs.aau.dk

PATH DEPENDENCY IN TOURISM Limited innovation despite policy Limited innovation an oft-repeated claim in tourism research Small actors with limited resources Many public policies addressing this, Competitive pressure on European destinations growing Cheap flights, also to far-away destinations Internet creates new transperancy for experienced travellers Need to stimulate change through public policy obvious … but prospects of extensive change seems limited Henrik Halkier & Anette Therkelsen

FINDING A NEW PATH From path creation towards path plasticity Concept of path dependency well-established System of institutions maintaining direction Firms, regulation, actor behaviour, discourse Increasing unease: multiscalarity, co-existence Traditional way out: Path creation Sudden change, from outside existing system Focus on big transformations Alternative: Path plasticity (Simone Strambach) Incremental change in institutions/system Enabled by interpretable ill-enforced institutions Actors within, sometimes external inspiration Henrik Halkier & Anette Therkelsen

A path-dependency perspective on North Jutland TIES THAT BIND Families with kids, nature-based summer, automobile, neighbouring markets, self-catering, week-based Tourists Providers Regulators Civil-society ownership/co-use, life-style entrepreneurs, semi-monopolitistic rental bureaus National ownership, seaside planning restrictions, marketing Henrik Halkier & Anette Therkelsen

A path-plasticity perspective on North Jutland LOOSENING UP? No-kid guest, +culture-driven, also more distant markets, flying in, shorter breaks Tourists Providers Regulators More flexible planning, ownership flexibility?, innovation focus in policy, new marketing, coordination of small providers More innovative SMEs, professionalisation, service innovation, new transport links Henrik Halkier & Anette Therkelsen

RESEARCHING tourism cluster path plasticities Key challenges Identifying central systemic institutions (clustering) Exploring the scope for variation within system Including role of policy intervention Longitudinal studies to follow incremental change Need for comprehensive approach to destination analysis Interdisciplinary, process-oriented Quantative, qualitative Article in German Journal of Economic Geography 2013 More news later … Meanwhile: halkier@cgs.aau.dk, at@cgs.aau.dk Henrik Halkier & Anette Therkelsen