EURegionsWeek workshop: Tourism as a driver of social exclusion

On Tuesday 11th October, Senior Researcher Anna Bornioli will discuss pre-covid trends of tourism and social exclusion in Europe, from the H2020 SMARTDEST project. The goal is to provide insights that can inform policies for post-covid tourism recovery. The event is part of the EURegionsWeek 2022 (https://eu.app.swapcard.com/event/euregionsweek-2022).

The SMARTDEST Project

In 2020, the H-2020 SMARTDEST project started to tackle the exclusionary power of tourism and related mobilities in European cities and regions, and to seek planning solutions that mitigate these effects and innovative policy frameworks that produce resilient resident communities.

This session will present the intermediate results of the SMARTDEST project at European regional level and in selected case study cities, engaging policy stakeholders in their discussion. The session will be structured into four interactive presentations and related debates: 

1. The SMARTDEST concerns and research approach: is what we’re doing new, and how?
2. Results from the pan-EU analysis: the key challenges for social exclusion in different regional types
3. Forms of tourism-related social exclusion in case study cities: evidence and voices from the field
4. The pandemic and recovery scenario. Is this the right moment for a policy turn, and in which direction?

The ambition of the SMARTDEST project (H-2020, ref. 870753) is to contribute to the urban policy agendas that take tourism mobilities seriously. The research carried out in this project produces insights at pan-EU level on the key challenges faced by resident communities in the face of the transformative force of tourism and related global mobilities, such as labour conditions, housing affordability, quality of life and gender inclusion. For our 8 case study cities, evidence is provided of how different community groups are challenged and how they cope with these pressures. Even in the face of the current pandemic crisis, these insights may inspire innovative planning frameworks and smart solutions that favour social justice and inclusiveness in recovery strategies. The session hopes to engage policy stakeholders, eliciting their perceptions and contextual knowledge, and to establish synergies for the next stages of the project.

Register at: https://eu.app.swapcard.com/event/euregionsweek-2022/planning/UGxhbm5pbmdfOTYwNTEy

More information about SMARTDEST: https://smartdest.eu/