The growing fashion for Arctic cruises means that it is not just Bjørnøya that is now getting cruise ship calls. Many 2005 cruises also take in Spitsbergen, and, as we reported in hidden europe 1 in March 2005, even the remote Arctic archipelago of Franz Josef Land (Zemlya Frantsa Iosifa) is visited by some cruises using polar icebreakers. This cruise tourism brings new human pressures on ecologically fragile environments.
The centenary of European national parks
The great majority of Europe's citizens will probably not visit a national park in 2009. But for all of us, their very existence is a reassuring reminder that even in a crowded continent there is space to experience wilderness and peace. As Europe ...