EU strategy for sustainable tourism calls for expertise in balance, data and resilience

According to new calculations by the Joint Research Centre, tourism accounts for over 10 per cent of Europe’s gross value added, when indirect effects are also taken into account. At the same time, the sector is under pressure from climate change, staff shortages, geopolitical uncertainty and unevenly distributed visitor flows. According to Brussels, shared challenges call for a shared approach, and that approach must be based on knowledge.

Balance between visitors and the destination

At the heart of the strategy is ‘balanced tourism’: visitor numbers must be in line with what a destination can cope with, without residents, the natural environment or infrastructure suffering as a result. The Commission is developing an EU model for tourism management, a Council recommendation and a toolbox of best practices. Its aim is to spread visitor numbers more evenly across seasons and regions. This aligns with CELTH’s theme of sustainable destinations, which focuses on measuring carrying capacity, the impact on residents and the distribution of visitors.

Data and monitoring

The Commission is establishing an EU Tourism Observatory and a common European data space for tourism. These are intended to highlight trends and help guide destinations. Such facilities are only valuable if the data is also put into practice. This is precisely where practice-oriented research has a role to play.

Resilience and climate

The strategy focuses on crisis preparedness, including a network for crisis coordination. It also highlights the consequences of climate change and extreme weather for destinations. CELTH investigates the climate impact on tourism and recreation in the Netherlands and carries out climate risk analyses. This knowledge is therefore also relevant from a European perspective.

Skills and education

To tackle staff and skills shortages, an EU Tourism Academy is to be established. It will be supported by a network of tourism institutes, universities and vocational training providers, which will jointly develop training courses and learning programmes. For knowledge institutions in the hospitality sector, this offers opportunities to link their education and research at an international level.

Cooperation

An EU Tourism Alliance will be established to implement the strategy. Within this alliance, Member States, regions, local authorities, businesses and civil society organisations will work together. This approach is similar to that of the ‘Gastvrije Transities’ programme, in which CELTH participates as a partner; here, public authorities, entrepreneurs and knowledge institutions collaborate in regional forums on issues including climate neutrality, broad prosperity and a healthy region.

The EU Sustainable Tourism Strategy demonstrates that Europe wishes to focus more on tourism that benefits both residents and visitors. Through its research, CELTH contributes to the European agenda and translates this direction into practice within the Dutch hospitality sector.