Planet under Pressure

Another full-page article in the technology
and motoring section of Germany’s
Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ) informed
readers on May 14, 2019, about
“explorer ships,” the new “pinnacle of
yacht-building excellence.” This particular
class of yacht is designed for active,
adventurous, and very wealthy individuals
who love exploring uncharted territory,
such as the Arctic. The ships have
a lot to offer: “The SeaXplorer 75 will
provide suites for up to 12 passengers.
The first specimen, measuring exactly
76.9 meters long and 14 meters wide, is
under construction. The buyers – keen
skiers, surfers, and divers – will find an
arsenal of sporting and leisure equipment
on board: surf equipment, diving
chamber, dive support boat, ski room
with avalanche safety equipment, two
snowmobiles, four personal watercraft,
a submersible, a rescue boat, a luxury
tender, and two inflatable outboard boats.
A roughly 11-meter lift raises the two
Airbus ACH 125 helicopters, with a maximum
takeoff weight of 4,000 kilograms,
from the double below-deck hangar to
the certified helideck.”
Both stories report on different iterations
of the enlargement of global reach
today, depending on income bracket. The
sociologist Hartmut Rosa uses the term
“global reach” to describe a marker of the
modern age: As prosperity grows, and
with each new technology, the ability
of an individual to avail oneself of the
world increases. A hundred years ago,
it was not unusual for a person to have
never left their village, or at least to have
never been farther than the next largest
city – a situation that today would be
strange and require some explanation.
Well into the second half of the 20th
century, long-distance or foreign travel
was mainly an experience had by soldiers
on military campaigns. Except for
a few very wealthy individuals, everyone
else stayed home their entire lives.
Mass tourism did not start in Germany
until after World War II, initially with
Italy as the dream vacation destination,
followed later by Spain, Tunisia,
and Turkey, depending on the price
class. During the Nazi era, the trips offered
by the leisure organization “Kraft
durch Freude,” or Strength Through Joy,
provided a preview of the mass tourism
yet to come. Things really took off
during the postwar “Wirtschaftswunder,”
or economic miracle, and have yet to
quiet down. The example presented
by the Bild reporter impressively illustrates
that even round-the-world trips
are no longer the exclusive domain of
the upper classes. That, in turn, is bad
news for the super-wealthy. After all,
increasing global reach is a part of their
status-confirming consumption patterns.
If everyone can do it, then the edge
that sets them apart starts to dwindle.
An upgrade is the logical consequence,
and explorer ships deliver just that. But
mass consumption is also playing catchup.
Thanks to Hurtigruten, people can
venture into purportedly untouched
regions by cruise ship, following in Roald
Amundsen’s footsteps.
72 Global Goals Yearbook 2020