Tourism is the key factor of human presence in the Arctic region. The number of tourist visits has been growing extensively since the end of XX century. The Arctic region is not regarded only as prospective region for oil and gas industry but now it is also recognized as the region with high potential for tourism development. The research is dedicated to the assessment of the spatial distribution of human presence within the Arctic region on the basis of statistical analysis of population and tourist visits in different parts of the Arctic. Taking into account the uncertainty of regional Arctic borders definition, which are commonly determined in accordance with given purposes and tasks, we assessed the population and tourist visits for the Arctic Zone of the Russian Federation as administrative union as well as for the Arctic region as physic-geographical region.The growing number of tourists in the Arctic region influences future development prospects of the region. In 2017 the Arctic region with population of 4.3 million people was visited by 10.2 million tourist. While the favorable environmental conditions of Arctic ecosystems exist, the Arctic region should be considered as the source of nature resources for tourism and various recreational activities. Modern technologies enable the development of travel industry in the region, and therefore the industrial paradigm of “conquer” and “utilization” should be replaced with the axiological paradigm of “Arctic beauty” and recreational resource value.

Contrary to popular ideas about the destruction of environment of Russia, almost half of its spaces are not burdened by anthropogenic or technogenic impact. Russia owns 15% of almost untouched by human activity Earth´s land. Geographically the country is close to all the most powerful and the most populous states in Western Europe, Asia and America. And demand for travel and vacation in underpopulated and clean environment there constantly growing, landscape tourism, nature and holistic therapy are getting the larger popularity. The global role of Russia lies in the fact that it can be positioned and percepted as a kind of biosphere-therapeutic reserve. The geopolitical, ideological, economic, image significance of rural and farmstead tourism are justified in the article. The construction of a positive image of the territory should be from correction of curriculums geographical, humanitarian and tourist specialties in higher educational establishments. None significant foreign university can be represented without human-geographical understanding of resources of its country. We have nothing like this, and if it planned, so only in the historical and archival manner. Meanwhile, the revival of studies of Russia allows not only expanding the philosophical and substantive field of recreational geography, but also improving the overall competitiveness of the country in the fields of tourism services.

The cognitive capabilities of the teleological paradigm of purpose are discussed. An inquiring mind everywhere sees that inanimate matter serves for living, and that, in turn, serves for a man. However, such a concept as “purpose” turned out from the contemporary science, although for a long time it went along the path of becoming the doctrine of purpose determination, or nomogenesis. The history of the substitution of the main paradigm of science from purpose to chance is traced. The overcoming of the catastrophic representations of Cuvier by the provisions of actualism and evolutionism is considered. From the middle of the 19th century, public opinion began to strengthen that every new scientific achievement casts doubt on religious beliefs. Criticism of biblical history began with the events of the Great Flood, as the key one in the Bible. The negative attitude to catastrophism in the Soviet scientific literature and the importance of ideology in the methodology of science are considered. The anthropic principle predetermines a radical restructuring of the general scientific methodology. It finally comes closer to religious knowledge. The anthropic principle is teleological and contains that goal (“eidos-entelechia”) in the structure of matter that impels it. In this light, the power of science is again seen not in confrontation with religion, but in harmonization with it.