MOTION’s context lies in overtourism in five EU regions: Toruń, Poland; Granada, Spain; Klaipeda, Lithuania; Fehmarn, Germany; and Rovaniemi, Finland. The project addresses overtourism problems, such as overcrowding, tourism’s problems with residents, environmental & heritage degradation, and low-quality experiences. Six project partners, Laurea UAS, Kiel UAS, Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń, University of Granada, Klaipėda University and municipality of Monachil, form a strategic partnership to create awareness leading to actions to combat overtourism issues. Awareness and actions are aided by MOTION’s objective to help SMEs and students generate solutions and new sustainable tourism services with Futures and Design Thinking. Objectives leading to awareness creation are to develop a prospect business model tool that takes sustainability into account, a toolkit to help tackle overtourism issues, and an online community for online training, networking and co-creation for SMEs and HEIs. One objective is to create a handbook to help other territories to multiply the results, and to create a Futures Vision that will guide regional decision-makers and businesses in developing sustainable tourism. At least 125 students and 14 teachers and professors will participate in this process, together with at least 25 SMEs and five associate partners. Additional students will participate in many activities through their interest and studies at their HEIs. Residents in the regions will be involved in some ways during the project. The priorities of MOTION include the environmental and climate goal, innovative practices in a digital era, and tackling skills gaps and mismatches. With the activities, MOTION focuses on the priorities, aims and objectives to create awareness on sustainable tourism and overtourism issues. Activities include developing sustainable tourism services with SMEs, Case Studies from the activities, Futures scenario workshops in regions, regional scenario books, a prospect business model tool, an online community for sustainable tourism, a solution toolkit, local guidelines and policy recommendations, a handbook on processes to multiply results, as well as a Futures Vision on sustainability, and surveying the present situation of tourism (autumn 2020) in the EU and organizing an online sprint ideathon. Five Intensive Study Programs, seven Multiplier Events, one Short-Term Staff Training are organized.
The main methodologies implemented are Futures and Design Thinking and LFA, and different Intellectual Outputs have different methodologies to run the output work, such as PDCA, LFA, and design-based research. Results and impact envisaged include increased awareness among target groups on overtourism and sustainable tourism, sustainable new tourism services, co-creation activities on regional level between different stakeholders, 625 ECTS from ISPs, 220 workshop/Multiplier Event participants; and results listed above. Potential long-term benefits include SMEs and others interested in sustainable tourism receiving training in the online community after the project ends; co-creation activities between SMEs and HEIs; multiplied results in other territories; increased number of sustainable tourism services; and high-season problems becoming smaller due to increased awareness and actions taken to solve overtourism issues. Also benefits include: increased awareness of a person’s own impact in sustainable tourism, business and consumer behavior through joint activities, workshops, multiplier events and dissemination activities; and higher awareness concerning the state of the future, individually, in organizations, in regions through joint activities, workshops, multiplier events, policy recommendations and dissemination activities. More benefits are skills in Foresight, Futures & Design Thinking through joint activities, staff training, workshops, learning activities, online community; increased sense of initiative and entrepreneurship through joint activities, workshops, multiplier events, training and learning activities, online community, policy recommendations and dissemination activities; as well as improved levels of skills for employability and new business creation (including social entrepreneurship) through joint activities, workshops, learning and training activities, online community and its courses, multiplier events, policy recommendations and dissemination activities; and more active participation in society through all project’s activities.
José Alberto Castañeda García
Departamento de Comercialización e Investigación de Mercados
jalberto@ugr.es