The natural world in Norway is beautifully spectacular as well as the amount of people that experience and interact with that nature. This creates a contradiction between promoting and encouraging visitors to national parks in Norway to experience its natural beauty and the need to protect and conserve the natural environment.
Walk this way
Great scenery attracts great crowds which affects the scenery greatly; that is the challenge in a nutshell. The Environmental Directorate and Innovation Norway have designated 15 locations where this challenge needs to be addressed, and DRMA was chosen to propose a masterplan for preservation, safety and education for visitors, as well as the locals – at Svartisen glacier.
- Year
- 2021–ongoing
- Client
- Futurebuilt, Meløy Municipality
- Type
- Competition, selected
- Coordinates
- 66.70272°N, 13.72985°E
- Collaboration
- Coast Studios, Christian Mong, 1:1 Landskab
00.0000°N, 00.0000°E
One down, 14 to go
Within Saltfjellet National Park in Nordland lies Svartisen. It is one of the biggest glaciers in Norway, and as such it attracts a lot of visitors each year. This takes a heavy toll on the scenery, and there is a need for managing that impact as well as developing it into something that creates local value rather than frustration.
It is called a ‘strategy for the development and authorization of a national tourist trail’. In reality, it is a carefully curated ideal experience of one of nature’s wonders.
The time machine trail
A walk from sea level to where the glacier begins is a walk through time. As the ice draws back from the sea, it reveals a surface that has been covered for thousands of years. This archaeological fact is both a tangible testament to our ancient past as well as our present challenge with the global increase in temperature. A place-making project on Svartisen certainly becomes a dissemination project as well as an accessibility project.
We have made a concept that carefully and respectfully preserves the natural beauty and value, while still being inviting and servicing for visitors. It is as local as it is universal and as visible as it is unobtrusive. It tells old stories of our past and new ones about our future.
As of right now, the project is being funded and awaits realization. It already has the all-important support of a proud local community.
