
Sustainable tourism indicators for smart destinations

About this good practice
Create digital dashboards for *stakeholders to use in smart and evidence-based planning.
The problem addresses the the lack of data collection that is needed to measure and monitor sustainable tourism at national and local levels. County Donegal is experiencing rapid growth in visitor numbers, especially along the Wild Atlantic Way. Without proper management, this growth could negatively impact the environment, economy, and communities. StoryATU uses the European Tourism Indicator System (ETIS), which provides a toolkit with surveys and indicators covering destination management, economic value, environmental and socio-cultural impact. SToryATU collects 40 sustainable tourism indicators (STIs) and presents them in digital dashboards for stakeholders, to aid smart and evidence-based planning. Visitor, resident, and tourism enterprises surveys gather data on tourist expenditure, waste management, and community impacts. This baseline data supports sustainable tourism planning and policy decisions. The main *stakeholders include local authorities, tourism enterprises, local communities, Destination Management Organizations (DMOs), the government, universities, and international bodies like the UN Tourism Organization. These groups benefit from the practice as it aims to maximize tourism's economic benefits while minimizing negative impacts. Visitors also benefit from enhanced and preserved tourism experiences.
Expert opinion
Resources needed
This was funded by a PhD bursary of 100k
Evidence of success
Data collection used smart methods, the sustainable tourism dashboards were successfully designed and produced the data was then utilised for evidence informed planning.
This allows destination to work on collecting and using their own sustainable tourism indicators to help transition to net zero through smart data-driven approaches.
This can be assessed over time to see the impact on policy instruments for smart and sustainable destination management.
Potential for learning or transfer
Sustainable tourism indicators for smart destinations will be valuable for other regions because they provide a comprehensive system for measuring and monitoring sustainable tourism using STIs. There is great potential in developing the transferable key success factors built on good practice that is both flexible and scalable, allowing regions to adapt the indicators to their specific needs while building on and harnessing new smart technologies. Challenges may include initial resource investment for implementation, and the need for ongoing commitment from stakeholders.
Further information
Images

Documents
Donegal- Dashboard indicators.pdf
Website
Good practice owner
You can contact the good practice owner below for more detailed information.