FILE - Surfers on a smoky day at the Bend Whitewater Park on Sept. 12, 2022 in Bend, Ore. A recent analysis from Oregon State University's Sustainable Tourism Lab looked at how prolonged wildfire smoke can impact tourism demand in Bend.
Joni Auden Land / OPB
How do climate-driven events like wildfires affect tourism in communities like Bend? That’s one of the questions the Oregon State University Sustainable Tourism Lab is trying to answer. A recent analysis examined how wildfire smoke impacted visitor demand. It found that while one or two smoky days may not affect travel plans, people are more likely to reschedule or cancel their trips during prolonged smoke events.
Todd Montgomery is a hospitality professor at OSU and director of the Sustainable Tourism Lab. Nate Wyeth is the chief of staff for Visit Bend. They both join us to talk more about how climate change is affecting communities that depend on tourism dollars.
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