Duncan Light

Dr Duncan Light

  • Principal Academic In Tourism
  • Dorset House D173, Talbot Campus, Fern Barrow, Poole, BH12 5BB
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Biography

I joined Bournemouth University in 2014 and am a Principal Academic in tourism management at Bournemouth University Business School. By background I am a human geographer and all my teaching and research draws out the relationships between tourism, places and spaces. Much of my research focuses on Romania, a country I have visited regularly since 1995.

Research

There are 4 strands to my current research:

First, I am interested in the cultural politics of tourism. My recent research has focused on 'Dracula tourism' in Romania. Dracula presents Romania with a unique dilemma: on one hand it can generate much needed foreign currency through tourism, but on the other hand it fundamentally collides with Romania's sense of its own political and cultural identity. My book 'The Dracula Dilemma: Tourism, Identity and the State in Romania' (Routledge, 2016) explores how Romania has negotiated this dilemma over the past 40 years (in both communist and post-communist contexts. I am currently a part of the AHRC-funded ‘Dracula returns to Derby’ project (led by Professor Matthew Cheeseman of the University of Derby).

Second I am researching the role of tourism within transitional justice in post-communist Romania. Working with Prof Remus Cretan from Universitatea de Vest din Timisoara, I have focused on the experiences of visitors in memorial museums dedicated to communist repression. In particular we have explored how visitors interact with, and negotiate, the messages they encounter.

Third, I have long-standing research expertise in heritage tourism and am currently researching the tangible and intangible heritage of the British seaside holiday. In particular, I am examining how this represents a form of unofficial or ‘unrecognised’ heritage that has long been denied recognition but which is increasingly being valued and valorized with coastal resort regeneration...

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Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals

In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person's work contributes towards the following SDGs:

Reduced inequalities

"Reduce inequality within and among countries"

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Responsible consumption and production

"Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns"

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Peace, justice and strong institutions

"Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels"

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Journal Articles

Books

  • Light, D., 2012. The Dracula Dilemma: Tourism, Identity and the State in Romania. Farnham: Ashgate Publishing, Ltd.

Chapters

  • Crisan, M.-M. and Light, D., 2023. Transylvanian Society of Dracula as a "Cultural Broker" in Romania. In: Bacon, S., ed. The Palgrave Handbook of the Vampire. Cham: Palgrave Macmillan, 1411-1426.
  • Light, D., 2022. Communism (Tourism in Communist States). Encyclopedia of Tourism Management and Marketing (ed. D. Buhalis). Edward Elgar.
  • Speed, E. and Light, D., 2019. (Dis)ordering the city: buildings, bodies and urban space. In: Speight, E., ed. Practising Place: Creative and Critical Reflections on Place. Sunderland: Art Editions North, 118-131.
  • Light, D., 2017. Travel and tourism in Bram Stoker's Dracula. Dracula: An International Perspective. Basingstoke: Palgrave, 139-156.
  • Young, C. and Light, D., 2017. The corpse, heritage, and tourism: The multiple ontologies of the body of king richard III of England. Heritage of Death: Landscapes of Emotion, Memory and Practice. 92-104.
  • Ciobanu, C. and Light, D., 2017. A new geography of protest in Bucharest. In: Adi, A. and Lilleker, D., eds. #Rezist: Romania’s 2017 anti-corruption protests: Causes, Development and Implications. Berlin: Quadriga University of Applied Sciences, Berlin, 63-67.
  • Light, D. and Young, C., 2017. The politics of toponymic continuity: The limits of change and the ongoing lives of street names. The Political Life of Urban Streetscapes: Naming, Politics, and Place. 185-201.
  • Light, D. and Young, C., 2017. Memory, commemorative landscapes and transitional justice. In: Stan, L. and Turcescu, L., eds. Justice, Memory and Redress in Romania New Insights. Newcastle: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 145-165.
  • Chapman, A. and Light, D., 2017. Last Night of the Fair: Heritage, Resort Identity and the Closure of Southport’s Pleasureland. In: Wood, J., ed. The Amusement Park History Culture and the Heritage of Pleasure. Abingdon: Routledge, 179-202.
  • Light, D. and Watson, S., 2017. The Castle Imagined: Emotion and Affect in the Experience of Ruins. In: Tolia-Kelly, D., Waterton, E. and Watson, S., eds. Heritage, Affect and Emotion. Routledge, 154-178.
  • Light, D., 2017. The undead and dark tourism: Dracula tourism in Romania. In: Hooper, G. and Lennon, J., eds. Dark Tourism: Practice and Interpretation. Abingdon: Routledge, 121-133.
  • Light, D. and Young, C., 2017. Spatiul public si mosteniril materiale ale comunismului in Bucuresti. In: Stan, L. and Vancea, D., eds. Romania postcomunista: Trecut, prezent si viitor. Iasi: Polirom, 63-81.
  • Young, C., Light, D. and Dumbrăveanu, D., 2017. Public space, memory and protest during post-socialist transformation: The emergence of Piaţa Universităţii (University Square), Bucharest, as a space of protest. Public Space: Between Reimagination and Occupation. 75-88.
  • Light, D., 2017. Characteristics of the audience for 'events' at a heritage site. The Heritage Tourist Experience: Critical Essays, Volume Two. 211-218.
  • Light, D., 2017. Tourism and Travel in Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Palgrave Gothic. 139-156.
  • Young, C. and Light, D., 2016. Multiple and contested geographies of memory: Remembering the 1989 Romanian ‘revolution’. Memory, Place and Identity: Commemoration and remembrance of war and conflict. 56-73.
  • Chapman, A. and Light, D., 2016. Last Night of the Fair: Heritage, Resort Identity and the Closure of Southport’s Pleasureland. The Amusement Park: History, Culture and the Heritage of Pleasure. Routledge (forthcoming).
  • Light, D. and Young, C., 2015. Public memory, commemoration and transitional justice: Reconfiguring the past in public space. In: Stan, L. and Nedelsky, N., eds. Post-Communist Transitional Justice: Lessons from Twenty-Five Years of Experience. New York: Cambridge University Press, 233-251.
  • Light, D., 2015. Heritage and Tourism. In: Waterton, E. and Watson, S., eds. The Palgrave Companion to Contemporary Heritage Research. Palgrave, 144-158.
  • Light, D. and Young, C., 2015. Local and Counter-Memories of Socialism in Post-Socialist Romania. In: Beyen, M. and Deseure, B., eds. Local Memories in a Nationalizing and Globalizing World. Basingstoke: Palgrave, 221-243.
  • Light, D. and Young, C., 2015. Public space and the material legacies of communism in Bucharest. In: Stan, L., ed. Post-Communist Romania at 25: Linking Past, Present and Future. Lanham, Maryland: Lexington Books, 41-62.
  • Light, D., 2012. Taking Dracula on Holiday: The presence of home in the tourism encounter. In: Smith, L., Waterton, E. and Watson, S., eds. The Cultural Moment in Tourism. Routledge, 59-78.
  • Light, D., Young, C. and Czepczyński, M., 2009. Heritage Tourism in Central and Eastern Europe. In: Timothy, D. and Nyaupane, G.P., eds. Cultural Heritage and Tourism in the Developing World. London: Routledge, 224-245.
  • Light, D., 2009. Halloween in Transylvania. In: Foley, M. and O'Donnell, H., eds. Trick or Treat? Halloween in a Globalising World. Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 186-200.
  • Light, D., 2006. Romania: national identity, tourism promotion and European integration. In: Hall, D., Smith, M. and Marciszweska, B., eds. Tourism in the New Europe: The Challenges and Opportunities of EU Enlargement. Wallingford: CABI, 256-269.

Conferences

  • Light, D., 2024. The enduring influence of Dracula on the image of Romania (Keynote). In: Children of the Night International Dracula Congress 25-26 October 2024 Online.
  • Light, D., 2023. Dark tourism and thanatourism: Are they useful concepts for studying tragic heritage? In: The Heritage of Tragic Memory in Contemporary Society: Approaches and Challenges 28 September 2023 Porto, Portugal.
  • Light, D., 2023. Stereotypes of Eastern Europe in Have His Carcase. In: 46th Annual Convention of the Dorothy L Sayers Society 5-8 August 2022 Bristol.
  • Light, D., 2021. Domestic tourism and transitional justice: Exploring the relationship in Romania’. In: Interdisciplinary Perspectives in Transitional Justice 6-7 July 2021 Loughborough.
  • Light, D., 2019. Why is the heritage of the seaside so unappreciated? In: Sea Change: Coastal Heritage and Climate Change 4-6 September 2019 Blackpool.
  • Beer, S. and Light, D., 2019. Don’t be afraid of the dark: dark night skies and being. In: Ellis-Hill, C., ed. Humanising Care, Health and Well-being Conference 13-14 June 2019 Bournemouth. Humanising Care, Health and Well-being Conference: Abstract book Bournemouth University: Centre for Qualitative Research Bournemouth University.
  • Light, D., 2019. ‘Muzee si justitia transitionala: intalnirile tinerilor cu trecutul communist la Muzeul Memorial Sighet’ (Museums and transitional justice: Young peoples’ encounters with the communist past at Sighet Memorial Museum). In: Research Seminar Series, Centre for Regional Development, Cross-frontier Studies and Territorial Planning, Universitate de Vest din Timisoara, Romania 29 May 2019 Timisoara, Romania.
  • Axon, S., Light, D. and Chapman, A., 2019. Energy at the Edge: Conflicting narratives of renewable energy developments in coastal communities. In: The 15th annual International Association for the Study of Environment Space and Place conference 24-26 April 2019 Liverpool, UK.
  • Beer, S. and Light, D., 2019. Dark tourism without death: the joy of dark night skies. In: Travel and Tourism Research Association 2019 annual research conference. Tourism in the era of connectivity 8-10 April 2019 Bournemouth.
  • Light, D. and Chapman, A., 2019. The strangely neglected heritage of the British seaside. In: Travel and Tourism Research Association (Europe Chapter) Annual Conference 8-10 April 2019 Bournemouth, UK.
  • Chapman, A., Light, D. and Axon, S., 2017. Reconciling tourism and blue energy at the coast. In: The Visitor Economy: Strategies and Innovations 4-6 September 2017 Bournemouth.
  • Light, D., Chapman, A. and Axon, S., 2017. Blue energy: Marginality, identity and engagement at the coast. In: Royal Geographical Society Annual Conference 29 August-1 September 2017 London.
  • Light, D., 2017. Global changes in the nature of tourism: Implications for the cities of Central and Eastern Europe. In: Building Urban Tourism through Place Making and Urban Regeneration in Central and Eastern Europe countries 19-20 May 2017 Timisoara, Romania.
  • Axon, S., Chapman, A. and Light, D., 2017. Coastal sustainability transitions: Marginality, engagement and communities. In: Sustainability Transitions in the Coastal Zone 30 March-2 April 2017 Southern Connecticut State University.
  • Chapman, A. and Light, D., 2017. Last night of the fair: Heritage, resort identity and the closure of southport’s pleasureland. , 179-202.
  • Gale, T., Light, D. and Long, P., 2016. Student assessment as a means of programme evaluation. In: Association for Teaching in Higher Education Annual Conference 9 December 2016 Cardiff Metropolitan University.
  • Light, D., 2016. Travel and Tourism in Bram Stoker's Dracula. In: 4th World Dracula Congress 20-22 October 2016 Trinity College, Dublin.
  • Chapman, A. and Light, D., 2016. Pier-ing into the future: Seaside pier sustainability in the 21st century. In: 2016 ATLAS Annual Conference: Tourism, Lifestyles and Locations 14-16 September 2016 Canterbury, UK.
  • Light, D., 2016. Space, place and tourism: New conceptualisations. In: Spatii altfel (Alternative Spaces) 10-11 December 2015 Bucharest, Romania. International Review of Social Research.
  • Light, D., 2015. Myth, Media and Place: Dracula and Transylvania in the British popular imagination. In: Beliefs and Cultures in Education and Culture 25-27 June 2015 Timisoara, Romania.
  • Chapman, A. and Light, D., 2014. Working with the carnivalesque in seaside resorts: An employee perspective. In: Seascapes: The Cultural Life of Seaside Towns’. COaST 2014 Conference 28 May 2014 Margate, UK.
  • Light, D. and Watson, S., 2013. The castle imagined: Emotion and affect in the experience of heritage. In: Royal Geographical Society-Institute of British Geographers annual conference 28-30 August 2013 London.
  • Chapman, A., Light, D. and Young, C., 2013. Employment, professionalism and opportunity: women's experience of tourism employment in Communist Romania. In: RGS-IBG Annual International Conference 28-30 August 2013 London.
  • Young, C. and Light, D., 2012. Place (re)naming, power, resistance and indifference in post-socialist Bucharest. In: Trends in Toponymy 5 8-11 July 2012 Bern.
  • Light, D. and Young, C., 2011. The persistence of socialist-era street names in everyday life and practice in the post-socialist city. In: Cities after Transition, 4th Workshop: Space, Culture and Transition 13-17 September 2011 Bucharest.

Reports

Others

  • Chapman, A. and Light, D., 2022. Why we do like to be beside the seaside – now more than ever. Archant. Published.
  • Light, D., 2021. Book review. Under the sign of the cross: the People's Salvation Cathedral and the church-building industry in postsocialist Romania. by Giuseppe Tateo (Berghahn Books, 2020).. Taylor & Francis. In preparation.
  • Light, D., 2021. Book review: 'Museums of Communism', edited by Stephen M. Norris (Indiana University Press, 2020).. Taylor & Francis. Published online.
  • Light, D., 2021. Review of Socialist heritage: the politics of past and place in Romania by Emmanuela Grama (Indiana University Press, 2019).. Taylor and Francis. Published online.
  • Light, D., 2017. Romania's problem with Dracula. History Today. Published.
  • Light, D., 2017. Book Review: Wall Heritage and Tourism: The Heritage Industry of Berlin’s Checkpoint Charlie by S.Frank (Routledge 2016). Routledge. Published.
  • Light, D., 2016. Review of 'Tourism, Performance and Place: A Geographic Perspective' by J.M. Rickley-Boyd, D.C. Kundsen, L.C. Braverman and M.M. Metro-Roland (Ashgate, 2014). Social and Cultural Geography, 17(3), 464-465. Routledge. Published.
  • Light, D., 2016. Review of 'Thanatourism: Case Studies in Travel to the Dark Side', edited by T. Johnston and P.Mandelartz (Goodfellow, 2016). Tourism Management, 55, 287-288. Elsevier. Published.
  • Light, D., 2016. Review of 'Cultural heritage of the Great War in Britain' by Ross Wilson (Ashgate 2013). International Journal of Heritage Studies, 22(6), 495-496. Routledge. Published.
  • Light, D., 2015. Review of 'Heritage that Hurts' by J.Sather-Wagstaff (Left Coast Press,2011). International Journal of Heritage Studies 21(3), 2015, 303-305. Routledge. Published.
  • Light, D., 2015. Review of 'Re-Imagining Heritage Interpretation: Enchanting the Past-Future' by R. Staiff (Ashgate, 2014). International Journal of Heritage Studies 21(2), 2015, pp 191-193. Routledge. Published.
  • Light, D., 2014. Review of 'The Tourist Potential of Coasts and Deltas: A Look at the Romanian Coastal Areas' by Gheorghe Romanescu (Parthenon Verlag, Kaisterslautern und Mehlingen, 2012),. Routledge. Published.
  • Light, D., 2014. Review of 'Heritage and Tourism: Place, Encounter, Engagement' edited by R.Staiff, R.Bushell and S.Watson (Routledge, 2013). Routledge. Published.
  • Light, D., 2014. Review of 'Heritage Tourism' by H.y. Park (Routledge, 2014). Routledge. Published.

Profile of Teaching PG

  • I teach on 'Managing Visitor Attractions' and 'Tourism Development and Planning' (MSc Tourism Management). I also contribute sessions to various other Masters units and supervise Masters dissertations in Tourism Management

Profile of Teaching UG

  • I teach on Understanding the Tourist (Level 4), Tourist Behaviour and Experience (Level 5) Tourist Issues and Futures (Level 6) and Visitor Attraction Management (Level 6). I also supervise undergraduate dissertations in Tourism Management

Invited Lectures

  • 14 Oct 2017 more

Grants

  • Dracula returns to Derby (Arts and Humanities Research Council, 01 Apr 2024). Awarded
  • Development of an Art Deco trail for Bournemouth (Research England, Regional Innovation Fund, 15 Feb 2024). Awarded

External Responsibilities

  • University of the Highlands and Islands, External Examiner for MSc Interpretation (2023-2027)
  • University of Bedfordshire, External Examiner (2016-2019)
  • London School of Commerce, External Examiner (2014-2016)
  • Cardiff Metropolitan University, External Examiner (2011-2016)

Public Engagement & Outreach Activities

  • Organiser of 'Dracula Lunchtime Bites', a series of public-facing monthly online talks by specialists in Dracula/the Gothic (part of the Dracula Returns to Derby project at the University of Derby) (30 Oct 2024-30 Apr 2025)
  • Halloween in Transylvania: Excitement and Disappointment. One of a series of 'Dracula Lunchtime Bites', a series of public-facing lectures by specialists in Dracula and the Gothic (30 Oct 2024)
  • Launch of an Art Deco trail for Bournemouth, open to members of the public (29 Jun 2024)
  • Public lecture: "Beside the Seaside: The Past, Present and Future of the Great British Seaside"(Bournemouth University online public lecture series) (24 Mar 2022)
  • Founder member of Seaside Heritage Network (2022-present) (22 Mar 2022)
  • “Setting the scene: Cemeteries as Contemporary Visitor Attractions” (presented at Belief, Burial, Tombs and Tourists: The Past and Future of Greyfriars Kirkyard, organiser Edinburgh World Heritage) (26 Jun 2021)
  • “Dracula, Transylvania, and Vampires: Myths and Realities”, online talk to Sheffield U3A group (26 Feb 2021)
  • Invited guest lecture – “Dracula and tourism in communist Romania” – to the Dracula Society, London (07 Oct 2017)
  • In Other Places - collaboration and exchange between artists and academics, organised by University of Central Lancashire. I worked with Liverpool-based artist Emily Speed. Public event in LIverpool, (05 Oct 2016)
  • ‘Who’s telling the stories?’. Workshop on the interpretation of cemeteries for cemetery managers and Friends Groups, University of York. (15 May 2016)
  • Is there such a thing as dark tourism? Guest lecture to staff and students at Universitatea de Vest din Timisoara, Romania (18 Apr 2016)
  • "Romania's dilemma with Dracula". Guest lecture to staff and students at Universitatea de Vest din Timisoara, Romania (14 Apr 2016)
  • Introductory presentation (with Craig Young) at 'Encountering Corpses' (public event at Manchester Museum of Natural History) (26 Mar 2016)
  • "Dracula, Transylvania and Vampires: Myths and Realities", interactive lecture presented at Bournemouth University Festival of Learning (11 Jul 2015)
  • Romania's dilemma with Dracula, Presentation within the "Europe's Backyard" session (which I also chaired) at the Ankur Arts Festival (Centre for Contemporary Arts, Glasgow) (08 Dec 2013)
  • Halloween in Transylvania: Excitement and Disappointment. One of 'Dracula Lunchtime Bites, a series of monthly online talks by specialists in Dracula and the Gothic intended for a general audience

Qualifications

  • PhD in Heritage Interpretation (Swansea University, 1991)
  • BSc (Hons) in Geographical Sciences (Plymouth Polytechnic (CNAA), 1986)

Memberships

  • Higher Education Academy, Senior Fellow (2020-),
  • Higher Education Academy, Fellow (2015-),
  • Association for Heritage Interpretation, Member (1986-),
  • Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers), Fellow (1986-),