From Indicators to Impact: Assessment of Biodiversity Stewardship in Arctic Tourism

We investigate the effectiveness of biodiversity indicators in increasing the nature positivity of the Finnish tourism industry. Lapland, north of the Arctic Circle, plays a key role in Finnish tourism attracting an increasing number of international tourists to enjoy nature-based northern activities. Visit Finland’s goal is no less than make Finland the world’s leading sustainable travel destination. A nationwide Sustainable Travel Finland program, including biodiversity conservation and restoration measures, has been launched to achieve this goal. As the precise company level measurement of tourism’s biodiversity footprints and handprints on the is still in its infancy, the STF-program uses qualitative indicators to verify companies’ impacts and contributions. Hence, the program’s 15 biodiversity indicators balance between being relevant and effective for conservation and simultaneously, inspiring and easy to adopt for companies.

Our research is based on evaluating the STF-program’s indicator system and analyzing company-level indicator data from 2022 to 2024 (N=279-494 companies/year). This quantitative data is supplemented by 33 qualitative interviews with forerunner businesses scrutinizing their voluntary biodiversity actions. On the systemic level, STF’s biodiversity indicators include five strategic commitments, three concrete species level conservation indicators and seven wider ecosystems measures. Already during the first years of operation (program launch 2020), the program has fostered awareness and engagement; over 1200 tourism companies have engaged in the program with over 500 of them being already certified and 41% fulfilling at least two biodiversity indicators.

However, the effectiveness of well-intentioned actions is reduced by the indicators’ random and detached nature, small scale and narrow scope. Therefore, the indicators do not yet effectively support biodiversity conservation in the North and systemic transformation of tourism. For increased impact, we recommend raising the indicators’ rigor and level of ambition, developing quantitative measurements, increased ecological specificity as well as integration of private company actions with public conservation efforts. Otherwise, there is a risk of not proceeding from initial small-scale and loose steps to systematic and mainstreamed action. In that case, the indicators significance for biodiversity conservation would remain insignificant, maintaining and even greenwashing business-as-usual instead of promoting nature positive transformation and biodiversity stewardship.