Preservolution: a new concept from the Faroe Islands

North Atlantic. Somewhere between Norway, Iceland and Scotland. 18 rugged islands and their 50.000 people make up the Faroe Islands. A recently discovered gem for tourists and a place of unique beauty and wilderness. “Unspoiled, unexplored, unbelievable” is their motto as a tourist destination. People from all over the world started visiting the islands a few years ago when they were brought to the spotlight.

This tiny nation and country (although still part of the Kingdom of Denmark) has its own culture and language. The locals and their government (taking care of everything, like a sovereign state, apart from foreign affairs and defence) want to preserve their beautiful country for the future generations. How Nordic that sounds! So, before things get nasty, they decided to make a bold move!

There are more sheep than people on the Faroe Islands. Nevertheless, they decided to protect both. They came up with a new strategy that will guide the country until 2025. WOW! Very ambitious. They also found a very catchy name for it: preservolution. You won’t find it in the dictionary. It is a combination of preservation, revolution and solution, as they claim.

Before nature and the local communities get irreparably affected by the surge of tourism, they decided to help preserve the environment and the locals, in a revolutionary way, that is the best solution to the problem of mass tourism.

They decided to limit the size and number of cruise ships that bring tourists into the country. Initiatives are also going to be taken to attract conscious tourists mainly, who are interested in nature and culture, rather than mass tourism. And all parts of the country must benefit from tourism. So, they will promote attractions all over the country to ease the pressure on nature and locals, at the most popular touristic spots.

Training and education for the tour operators are also on the menu, they need to know how to be competitive but above all good hosts. And a new special environmental fee for tourists will be introduced, that will fund environmental and nature projects on the islands.

They are a small country but the Faroese people never run out of ideas, huh? Just like the Google Sheep View or the Faroe Islands Google Translate, that were so brilliant that received several awards and countless headlines worldwide.

Photo credits: Visit Faroe Islands