Let the visitors speak! The Use of Smart Technologies and Citizen Science in Visitor Monitoring

The aim of this chapter is to explore and discuss opportunities in combining the use of smart technologies and citizen science principles in visitor monitoring, supported with a couple of case study examples from coastal-marine areas. Visitor monitoring in this chapter is understood in its broadest sense: a fundamental visitor management activity which purpose is to collect relevant data on and information about visitors1 and their activities and experiences in nature areas (Kajala et al. 2007; Andrew et al. 2021). The collected data and information from monitoring work form a knowledge base about visitors and, thus, serves to guide visitor management actions and decisions. Typical visitor monitoring activities include everything from studying visitor numbers, movements, activities and behaviour to visitor expectations, satisfaction and opinions as well as the more elusive visitor experience (Kajala et al. 2007; Andrew et al. 2021; Hansen 2016a). With rising numbers, new trends, and growing consumer demands and expectations within the tourism and recreation industry, relevant knowledge has become increasingly important for managers and researchers alike. Ultimately, the goal is to be better equipped to understand the visitor, not only in order to meet their wants and needs, but also as a way to document visitation and to improve the general standard of visitor planning and management activities (Kajala et al. 2007; Manning 2011; Ankre, Fredman, and Lindhagen 2016). This brings about the importance of citizen science and the use of smart technologies in visitor monitoring in coastal-marine areas today. The introduction of new and smart technologies is interesting as new technologies both support existing visitor monitoring methods and traditions, and introduce new and often novel ways to engage with and learn from the visitor (e.g. Heikinheimo et al. 2020). For instance, social media platforms have become channels for sharing opinions and experiences, which can be important study targets from a visitor monitoring point of view. Furthermore, the development of visitor themed applications (apps), such as various hiking or similar outdoor themed apps, can be used to provide information about visitor movements, interests and priorities. More customised smart technologies, such as Public Participation Geographic Information Systems (PPGIS), have also received a lot of attention in recent years with an aim to learn from the visitors about the visitors through a combination of interactive mapping exercises and questionnaire methodology (Kaae, Olafsson, and Draux 2018; Munoz et al. 2019; Hansen, Glette, and Arce 2021). From a visitor monitoring perspective, the development of these and many more trends is exciting and makes exploration of the connection between citizen science and smart technologies in visitor monitoring not only timely, but also important as the use of smart technologies is rapidly becoming accepted tools in visitor monitoring and management (Heikinheimo et al. 2020; Pickering et al. 2020). This is particularly the case also for studies of recreation in coastal-marine areas, where traditional monitoring methods (see more below) are challenged by the often open and fragmented landscape type (Smallwood et al. 2011; Hansen 2016b; Andrew et al. 2021). In this case, use of new technologies, including citizen science approaches, offer new opportunities to support existing monitoring methods (Kaae, Olafsson, and Draux 2018; Hansen et al. 2021)