Tourism growth, particularly in cities, is coming under increased scrutiny. However, even often visited cities appear to find it difficult to agree upon a strategy to limit tourism growth. The current paper investigates this issue by looking at the extent to which different stakeholders’ perspectives on tourism development align. Q-sort methodology is employed to find the main worldviews and the extent to which they are shared by stakeholders in similar roles (e.g. policymakers, industry, resident). Results point to the existence of five different worldviews, which differ in the extent to which tourism growth is desirable or problematic and whether resident participation is advantageous or counterproductive. Stakeholders have highly different worldviews, even those with similar roles, which may help explain the difficulty to change the tourism growth paradigm as they limit opportunities for generating new consensus-based collective solutions. If we accept that tourism development strategies are driven and informed at least in part by individual worldviews, it may be impossible to make ‘objective’ policy choices. Instead, it might be more useful to explore possibilities to allow stakeholders to express their worldviews to better understand what sustainable tourism development entails for different people at different places and moments in time.
The aim of this QSR 2022 on tourism is to make an attempt to assess available information about the tourism industry from three countries and various sources and present it in a comprehensive manner. We, thereby, describe common features of regional tourism structures, as well as differences, and we present some of the identified data incompatibilities (sections 2.2 and 2.3). The recommendations in section 3 present avenues along which data collection and monitoring can be improved, inspired by a set of key forces driving change intourism that stakeholders should be prepared for (section 2.4).
MULTIFILE
The debate on tourism in cities, both academically and in practice, has for a long time taken place in relative isolation from urban studies. Tourism is mostly addressed as an external agent and economic force that puts pressure on cities rather than as an interdependent part of city systems. The recent debate on city touristification and excessive dependence on the visitor economy, as well as the associated processes of exclusion, and displacement of local city users, serves to highlight how tourism is an integral part of urban developments. A wider urban perspective is needed to understand the processes underlying the tourism phenomena and more transdisciplinary perspectives are required to analyze the urban (tourism) practices. The current article seeks to contribute to such a perspective through a discussion of the literature on urban and tourism studies, and related fields such as gentrification, mobilities, and touristification. Based on this, theoretical reflections are provided regarding a more integral perspective to tourism and urban development in order to engage with a transversal urban tourism research agenda.
MULTIFILE
In the Netherlands approximately 2 million inhabitants have one or more disabilities. However, just like most people they like to travel and go on holiday.In this project we have explored the customer journey of people with disabilities and their families to understand their challenges and solutions (in preparing) to travel. To get an understanding what ‘all-inclusive’ tourism would mean, this included an analysis of information needs and booking behavior; traveling by train, airplane, boat or car; organizing medical care and; the design of hotels and other accommodations. The outcomes were presented to members of ANVR and NBAV to help them design tourism and hospitality experiences or all.
INCLAVI will address the skills mismatches that exist in the aviation sector related to the freedom of movement of persons with disabilities and accessibility requirements in line with the EC Strategy for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities 2021-2030.The project accomplishes this through rigorous cooperation between key global industry and labour market actors combined with a world-class HEI and VET consortium. INCLAVI will also further improve the collaboration between HEIs and VET.INCLAVI will design and co-create a new training curriculum utilising expertise from HEI, VET and Industry Actors to support the reskilling of aviation sector employees and key target groups who have a role in the passenger journey of PwDs from door to door. The training will address students and professionals in areas of work related to travel agencies, airports, and airlines.
JEWELS TOUR is a 4-year project funded by Interreg Europe and dealing with the valorisation of Jewish Cultural Heritage (JCH) in some European cities (Ferrara in Italy, Coimbra in Portugal, Erfurt in Germany, Lublin in Poland, Riga in Latvia, Ośrodek in Poland). Jewish cultural heritage is an integral part of the shared cultural heritage in Europe, and initiatives such as this project bring local stakeholders from different parts of Europe together to investigate the common responsibility of protecting tangible and intangible Jewish heritage. Across Europe, municipalities and local organizations recognize a need to make Jewish heritage accessible, and to do so in a sustainable way, that is in a way that benefit locals as well as visitors, with attention to economic as well as cultural and social benefits. The project aims is to devise policy instruments to promote Jewish cultural heritage, hereby including also digital ones, when possible. Technology is seen as an instrument to collect and share stories with equity, hereby also exploiting the emerging Collaborative Cloud for Cultural Heritage that is promoted at European level.Societal IssueCultural heritage has been increasingly recognised as a strategic asset for an inclusive and sustainable development across Europe, due to its capacity to promote diversity and intercultural dialogue, while contributing to a stronger sense of belonging and mutual respect. The JEWELS TOUR project addresses the challenge of Jewish Cultural Heritage (JCH) discontinuity, reflecting both in a low level of investments and connection between heritage resources and local/regional productive sectors, as well as in the attractiveness regarding the promotion of JC assets as drivers for sustainable tourism and regional development.Benefit to societyIn recent years, Cultural Heritage has been increasingly recognised as a strategic resource for a sustainable and peaceful Europe, due to its capacity to promote diversity and intercultural dialogue, while contributing to a stronger sense of belonging and mutual respect . At EU level, cultural investments are considered as key drivers of territorial development and social cohesion, and as essential elements leading to the promotion of social innovation. JEWELS TOUR contributes to sustainable tourism and social innovation by revaluing Europe’s JCH, reinforcing the sense of belonging and cultural diversity in Europe.Collaborating partnersFerrara Municipality Italy, Breda University of Applied Sciences Advisory Partner Netherlands, Ośrodek "Brama Grodzka - Teatr NN" Partner Poland, Coimbra Municipality Partner Portugal, City of Erfurt Partner Germany, Riga Investment and Tourism Agency Partner Latvia, Lublin Municipality Partner Poland.