European tourism embraces sustainability
Sustainable tourism in Europe could be the answer to countering the impact of mass tourism on Europe's popular vacation spots. At the same time, it could strengthen local traditions, protecting the environment and encouraging local employment. Applying such a vision requires proper research and development that leads to effective regional development policies. This was the aim of the EU-funded project 'European research network on sustainable tourism' (ERNEST)(opens in new window) . The project articulated a strategy to coordinate sustainable tourism research programmes across 14 regions, articulating protection and prevention measures to preserve European destinations. It focused on maintaining the beauty and creating experiences around the destinations by fostering exchanges in the field among partners. Participating regions such as Toscana in Italy, Aquitaine in France and Ilia in Greece added to the knowledge of other regions in Denmark, Hungary, Spain, Slovakia and Wales. Representing nine countries overall, the project consortium embarked on joint activities and knowledge exchange to build a long-term vision of sustainability. It studied the dynamics of sustainability and competitiveness in tourism, as well as innovation through research and the need to promote the economy without damaging nature and cultural heritage. In more specific terms, the partners mapped regional research policies and programmes on the topic and documented almost 80 good practices in sustainable tourism. It focused on issues such as impact of transport, residents' quality of life, energy consumption, resource use and waste management. Conserving heritage, identity and culture was considered very important in developing good practices as well. One emerging result was a report on regional policies, strategies, programmes and capabilities offering clear statistical and graphical data collected from all partners. Another represented an interregional comparison of regional tourism and sustainable tourism programmes. Study visits, capacity building, workshops and preparations for a joint call for relevant EU-funded projects were also part of ERNEST's key achievements. Under the call, several interesting projects were financed, touching on topics such as beach accessibility, beach ecology, electric mobility for urban tourism and preservation of thermal baths. Noteworthy as well is a powerful online tool called NETJAC that promotes joint activities, good practices and research programmes. The online platform fosters dialogue, virtual visits and even ratings of experiences. ERNEST has no doubt furthered sustainable tourism, improved networking and organised funding in the field.