Mining and tourism: Conflicts in the marketing of Milos Island as a tourism destination

Abstract

Milos Island, Greece, has been a mining place since antiquity and at the same time is located in an area, the Cyclades Islands, which for decades has been associated with tourism. Various stakeholders are making efforts to develop the tourism sector on the island and are involved in initiatives for its promotion. The present paper reveals dimensions of the contested interests inherent in this process, as different stakeholder groups are interpreting differently the ‘realities’ of the place, and the main antagonisms emerging from the relationship between the mining and the tourism sectors. The fieldwork revealed unresolved tensions between various communities and in reporting these we rely heavily on a narrative.

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the Greek State Scholarship Foundation (IKY) for providing financial support, without which this research would not have been possible. We would also like to thank Professor William Richter for his comments on an earlier version of the paper.

Notes

1 Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Inhabitants.

2 Silver and Baryte Ores Mining Co.

3 Silver and Baryte Ores Mining Co. website

4 ISO 14001, published in 1996, specifies the requirements for an environmental management system.

5 Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Inhabitants.

6 Silver and Baryte Ores Mining Co SA Annual Report 1999.

7 Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Inhabitants.