A “Marshall Plan for tourism” – but with what aim?

The concept of sustainable tourism was invented 45 years ago – but it was added to global mass tourism, it did not replace it. Since then, although sustainable tourism brands have proliferated, mass tourism has continued to devastate its ‘destinations’ with growing intensity.

Until Covid.

It’s tempting, post-Covid, to welcome the grounding of the world’s climate-destroying aircraft. But in Europe alone, the fate of 27 million jobs, & three million small firms, are also on the line. Our story, going forward, must include them.

EU Commissioner @ThierryBreton promises a “Marshall Plan for tourism” – but with what aim?

The old tourism story was about perpetual growth combined with feeble attempts at damage limitation. In this talk, I propose a new story in which the design of new urban-rural relationships creates value by leaving places healthier.

Good work, in this new economy, ranges from ecological restoration, farmer-city connections, and open food networks  – to learning journeys, biohacking, and village revitalisation.

The talk concludes with a policy proposal: the focus of any Europe-wide ‘Marshall Plan’ needs to be on social infrastructure – the coordination and connecting work needed to create these new urban-rural livelihoods.

(My talk was part of the symposium Re-Thinking Tourism for a Planet in Crisis organised by Jakob Travnik @tuvienna and @AASchool)
http://www.gbl.tuwien.ac.at/rethinkingtourismforaplanetincrisis/