The Pillar of Sustainability in the Spanish Smart Tourism Destination (DTI) Model

Abstract

Being sustainable is a priority for any tourism destination aiming to be competitive. The chapter reviews the sustainability concept, addressing the main challenges that DMOs must face to achieve it. It also explains how the Spanish Smart Tourism Destination Model responds to these challenges, with a methodology based on a process of continuous enhancement, defining and measuring sustainability requirements in destinations, and providing recommendations for improvement. Due to the great relevance of the sustainable tourism management of destinations, environmental, economic and social impacts, this pillar has the greatest weight of all the pillars of the DTI Model, with its requirements representing about 40% of the total of the model. This pillar integrates four key areas of action: Tourism sustainability managerial tools; Conservation, recovery and enhancement of cultural heritage; Conservation and enhancement of the environment and, Socio-economic development and circular economy. Finally, by areas of action, this chapter details the requirements and indicators of the sustainability pillar together with the main recommendations, associated with each of the areas of the pillar, useful for destinations implementing the DTI model in terms of sustainability.

1 Introduction

As part of the first block of this manual, a description has been provided of how tourism activity is a global and social phenomenon that serves as a driving force for local economies (Balaguer & Cantavella-Jordá, 2002; Mérida & Golpe, 2016; Tugcu, 2014; Uysal et al., 2016). Even in times of crisis, it has been proven that tourism activity serves as an engine that boosts economic recovery and reinforces the resilience of the destination (Dogru & Bulut, 2018; Elliot et al., 2011). Its transversal and multidimensional nature, encompassing multiple sectors and agents in its activity, makes tourism one of the most dynamic sectors of socio-economic progress (Brida et al., 2016; De Vita & Kyaw, 2016; UN, 2022). Beyond the purely economic benefits, it has also been recognised how the cultural exchange between residents and visitors also generates social benefits (García-Zarza, 2002).

However, the excessive growth of tourism activity in recent decades has been the subject of significant debate, as tourism development causes direct negative environmental and socio-economic impacts (Fernández-Alcantud et al., 2016). On account of this unprecedented growth and the associated externalities, a number of sectors have called for the need to review and redesign processes to make them more sustainable (OECD, 2020; Saarinen & Rogerson, 2013; WEF, 2022). Professor Rachel Dodds discusses this issue in the box below.

Considerations for Achieving More Sustainable Tourism

With the continued increase in tourism demand, as well as the global recognition that many destinations are suffering from too many tourists, there is no longer any debate about the need for more sustainable tourism. Many governments are now highlighting sustainability in their master plans and policies which is encouraging, however, along with the advances in thought, there are still key challenges to consider.

More and more destinations and tourism bodies recognise that all stakeholders must participate in tourism, aligning their interests and coordinating their efforts. The challenge is to consider and acknowledge that inevitably the power of one dominates over others.

There is also a positive acknowledgement of the need for data-driven decision-making in destinations. The challenge is that there are few destinations measuring success or competitiveness using sustainability-based principles rather than the traditional metric of tourism arrivals and there is also little actual collection of sustainability-based metrics. Destinations who wish to shift are challenged in that there are hundreds of indicators proposed to measure sustainability rather than the current singular universally comparable metric of arrival numbers.

The COVID-19 pandemic shifted the focus of Destination Marketing Organizations to Destination Management Organization as they played the role of liaison between the government and stakeholders on the ground. Post pandemic, these organizations must now refocus their attention from solely promoting tourism to less economic-driven issues such as quality of life and actually managing and mitigating tourism impacts. The challenge is that the organization and funding structure for these organizations is often based on a model contradicting this need.

As of late, many regional and national agencies are acknowledging and supporting the role of tourism as a development tool. The challenge is that few regional and national organizations support local actions, especially local efforts to restrain tourism growth. There is generally a reluctance to take any measures which might reduce the appeal and/or the actual volume of tourism.

Tourism can become more sustainable, but the focus must shift from an end goal to it being a process that is ongoing. Tourism’s aim should be to ensure the destination is better for all rather than the few. It is fundamentally unsustainable to continue to focus on continued growth and profit under the guise of sustainability.

—Dr. Rachel Dodds,

Professor at the School of Hospitality and Tourism Management as well as past Director of the Hospitality and Tourism Research Institute.

Toronto Metropolitan University, Canada

There is now a unanimous agreement that sustainability should be an objective that is taken on board by citizens and integrated into all areas of the tourism strategy (Aladag et al., 2020; Arbolino et al., 2021; Gössling & Higham, 2021; Santos et al., 2022). Sustainability is considered the only possible way of ensuring that tourism activity strikes a positive economic, social, cultural and environmental balance, whilst ensuring that the tourism industry remains competitive, resilient, inclusive and responsible as regards the planet as a whole (UNWTO, 1999; OECD, 2021).

Historically, however, the sector has almost exclusively pursued ever-increasing tourist arrivals and income, ignoring the carrying capacity of the destination. Tourism carrying capacity is an indicator of the destination’s limit when it comes to accommodating tourists, ensuring that they have a satisfactory experience without compromising natural heritage or impairing the quality of life of local residents (Coccossis & Mexa, 2004; O’Reilly 1986). Therefore, the carrying capacity of tourism destinations represents the “threshold” beyond which tourism activity in the destination becomes unsustainable and harmful. Interpreted as such, the carrying capacity of a destination sets out the threshold number of tourists that should be welcomed and that should not be exceeded. However, in practice, the carrying capacity of a destination can be scaled in the medium and long term and increased to a certain extent. The technical carrying capacity can be expanded by applying good management and planning infrastructure investments to increase the capacity to welcome visitors to the destination, for example by improving waste treatment or water management. A destination’s carrying capacity can also be optimised by harnessing the opportunities offered by the digitisation of the destination to optimise the management of the tourist inflows (Coccossis, 2022). Despite this, strategic sustainable management is relatively uncommon (Torres-Delgado & Saarinen, 2014), and the promotion of sustainable and responsible tourism activities remains one of the main challenges facing the tourism sector at present (Bulter, 2019).

Against this backdrop, the Smart Destination Management (DTI) Model considers sustainability as one of its main strategic pillars, offering destinations a guide that helps them plan and structure the different strategies and actions to be undertaken to genuinely manage tourism activity in the destination in a sustainable way (UNWTO, 2017, 2018).

Smart Destinations as a concept enshrine sustainability as a fundamental pillar of any destination that claims to be “smart” and competitive (WEF, 2019), pursuing a sustainable tourism management model, based on knowledge and tourism intelligence, generated through technological and innovative tools applied to the decision-making process in destinations. The implementation of this model helps destinations to improve the way in which they use their resources and to optimise their tourism carrying capacity, minimising the negative impacts caused by tourism (WTTC, 2020).

As will be seen over the course of this chapter, sustainable destination management necessarily involves structuring, reconciling and aligning the destination’s interests in environmental, cultural, social and economic spheres, and to this end, in recent years technology has assumed a leading role.

It offers an approach to the concept of sustainability (Fig. 1), which has gained depth and breadth over time. This conceptualisation will subsequently help to understand the four areas of action into which the sustainability pillar of the smart destination strategic management model is divided. After describing these areas, the chapter then goes onto present, for each of these areas of action, the requirements and indicators that the Model sets out in each case, as well as offering examples of the recommendations made to destinations to help them meet the requirements defined for each area.

Fig. 1

Chapter outline

Finally, the chapter concludes with a reflection by the SEGITTUR team on the main lessons learned during the 10-year period in which the DTI Model has been implemented with the destinations. As in the case of the other chapters, readers can also find the references cited in the text at the end of the chapter, offering them the opportunity to explore the topics covered in greater detail if they wish.

2 Approach to the Concept of Sustainability

Bearing its universality and relevance in mind, the definition of sustainable tourism proposed by the UNWTO (2002, 2013) provides a good starting point from which to approach what the sustainable management of tourism destinations entails. The UNWTO describes sustainable tourism as “tourism that meets the current needs of regions and tourists, protecting and improving future opportunities. It must also be focused on managing resources to meet economic, social and aesthetic needs, respecting cultural integrity, essential ecological processes, biological diversity and life support systems”. This definition provides the reader with an idea of the scope and complexity involved when it comes to the sustainable management of tourism destinations; it entails an extensive task that goes far beyond environmental conservation and includes the management of cultural, social and economic aspects of the destination. With this in mind, sustainable destination management not only pursues the preservation of environmental heritage but also tangible and intangible cultural heritage; the social and economic development of the destination; improving the quality of life of the local community etc.

In short, the paradigm of sustainable development lies in ensuring a balance between economic prosperity, environmental preservation and socio-cultural sustainability, in order to build a future based on fairer, more diverse tourism activity that respects both the territory and its inhabitants (SEGITTUR, 2015).

In the case of tourism destinations, to achieve this balance, it will be critical that both managers and stakeholders operating in the destination assume a series of commitments and measures in energy, environmental, cultural, social and economic plans, making it possible to achieve the different objectives associated with the effective sustainability of tourism activity: improving the quality of life of local residents; enhancing the visitor experience; preserving the destination’s environmental, patrimonial and cultural resources etc. To identify and prioritise the measures to be adopted, sustainability must be analysed from multiple perspectives complementary to the environmental viewpoint: the perspective of local businesspeople, who need economically sustainable business models; the cultural perspective, which requires strategies to be defined that facilitate the immersion of the visitor in the local traditions and history without negatively influencing them and the social perspective, residents who will take a stance against tourism activity if they do not notice that these activities benefit them (SEGITTUR, 2015). With this in mind, tourism sustainability is a cross-cutting objective for the tourism destination and achieving it involves getting all stakeholders who participate in the provision of tourism services involved, aligning their interests and coordinating their efforts.

Figure 1 illustrates the series of objectives to be achieved for a tourism destination to be truly sustainable, grouping them into four areas of action: social, environmental, economic and cultural. It also includes the concept of institutional sustainability (Ritchie & Crouch, 2003), bearing in mind that sustainable management is a factor in the strategic management of destinations that require continuity to bear fruit as well as the firm commitment of all the stakeholders involved to transcend political cycles and agree on objectives that represent the interests of all stakeholders affected by tourism activity. As a result, the sustainability plans defined do not lose validity after each political cycle and serve a long-term purpose.

As can be seen in Fig. 2, there are different areas of action involved in the management of the sustainability of a tourism destination, to which end coordination is required. These areas are interrelated, meaning that the achievement of each of their objectives is linked to the accomplishment of the rest. Each of the areas (social, environmental, cultural and economic), constitutes in themselves very extensive lines of work that need to be defined, structured and broken down into specific objectives, making the work achievable (García-Moreno & Fernández-Alcantud, 2022).

Fig. 2

Spheres of action in the sustainable management of tourism destinations. Source: By the authors, inspired by Choi and Sirakaya (2006)

In all the processes, the adoption and use of technology leverage the efforts done by the DMOs on sustainable management, fostering the outcomes of the implemented actions. It is also necessary to identify and assess the existing interdependencies between the objectives set in each area (Fig. 3).

Fig. 3

Sustainable tourism management: spheres of action. Source: Prepared based on Ivars-Baidal’s Sustainable Tourism Conceptual Model (2001, p. 11)

In relation to environmental and cultural preservation, an intergenerational perspective must be adopted when establishing the objectives and actions required to conserve natural and cultural heritage, safeguarding biodiversity, ensuring the rational use of resources, protecting cultural identity in the territory and, ultimately, avoiding the impairment of cultural or environmental heritage due to tourism activity. It is about minimising the negative impacts on the environment, managing waste, avoiding the gradual deterioration of renewable resources, minimising water and air pollution, noise pollution, protecting wildlife and plant life, promoting reuse and recycling etc. Along these lines, efforts will be made to preserve cultural heritage, raise awareness of it, make it accessible to both residents and tourists, improve the way in which it is interpreted etc.

When it comes to the social aspect of sustainability, efforts will be made to ensure that tourism contributes to local development, promoting the well-being of the host community to encourage social cohesion, fostering quality employment, stimulating the fair distribution of resources, expanding the cultural offer accessible to residents and tourists, setting out appropriate health and safety standards and generally improving the quality of life of the local population, involving them in the management of the destination.

As regards the economic sphere, efforts will concentrate on ensuring that tourism activity and the companies organising tourism activities are economically feasible, whilst adequately satisfying the demand. Also in this area, priority must be given to economic development structured around the principles of the circular economy, in such a way that negative environmental impacts are minimised and the social well-being of residents is fostered.

Having reviewed the concept of sustainable management, the reader will now understand that sustainable tourism development cannot be identified as a utopian state, but rather as part of a process of qualitative change that guides the tourism development of a territory towards specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-based objectives. The sustainable tourism management of a destination therefore involves undertaking rigorous strategic planning which, by diagnosing the specific situation of the destination, makes it possible to define the path to be followed in the short, medium and long term, to ensure that the tourism activity in the destination is sustainable.

Bearing in mind that the path towards sustainability is a dynamic and continuous process, a series of structured steps can be established to achieve this goal; these steps are the same phases followed by any strategic planning and management process (Fig. 4). This process, as described in chapter “Methodological Framework of the Spanish Smart Tourism Destinations Model”, entails an initial diagnosis, allowing managers to identify areas for improvement, define the priority objectives of the destination to this end, define strategies and a work plan and seek the commitment of all the stakeholders involved for its implementation.

Fig. 4

The process of towards sustainable destination management. Source: By the authors, inspired by the Responsible Tourism Institute (2017, p.5)

Taking this approach, the sustainable management of the destination is the cross-cutting tool to be adopted to guarantee the continued provision of quality tourism services in the future, ensuring the satisfaction and well-being of both tourists and residents. Furthermore, as achieving the cross-cutting objective of sustainability must be reflected in the achievement of specific and different objectives in terms of economic, social, cultural and environmental matters, its achievement is also linked to the need to address these matters systematically, through tourism policies that remain in place over time and supported by a comprehensive tourism knowledge system that makes it possible to monitor the actions undertaken and assess their effectiveness. All these challenges associated with the sustainable management of tourism destinations have been considered in the DTI Model, shaping the areas of work, requirements and indicators reflected in Sect. 4 of this chapter.

3 The Management of Tourism Sustainability in Spain: Challenges

The DTI Model allocates particular weight to sustainability, bearing in mind that sustainable management and the rational use of available resources inevitably shape the identity of any smart managed tourism destination. Furthermore, the management of tourism destinations in terms of sustainability provides destinations with competitive and comparative advantages in the short, medium and long term.

However, going beyond the work undertaken by SEGITTUR over the past decade, defining and validating the smart destination work methodology, the promotion of sustainable and responsible tourism activities is currently the main challenge facing destination Spain. The goal is to promote the migration of the traditional tourism management model towards a truly sustainable model, consolidating the desired shift in the approach to tourism management. With this in mind, Spain has deployed different strategic plans, aligned with the 2030 Agenda (Red Española del Pacto Mundial de Naciones Unidas, 2019) and the Sustainable Development Goals (UN, 2015).

Worth particular mention in relation to these plans is the Transformation and Resilience Recovery Plan (Gobierno de España, 2021), which seeks to channel the EU funds allocated to Spain to the recovery of the tourism sector following the COVID-19 pandemic, making the commitment to the economic reactivation of tourism businesses affected by the pandemic, enhancing their economic feasibility and resilience in the face of future crises and ultimately to build a more sustainable future; as well as the Sustainable Tourism Strategy 2030 (SET, 2021), which aims to make the system profitable by promoting its competitive transformation and the sustainable growth of tourism destinations. With these goals in mind, the strategy defined is structured around tourism intelligence, innovation and collaborative governance, getting people, companies and territories involved to further diversify today’s tourism attractions and seasonally adjust tourism demand.

Generally speaking, the principles that served as inspiration for the 2030 Sustainable Tourism Strategy are: (1) Socio-economic growth, fostered by improving the competitiveness and profitability of the sector, making the commitment to quality and speeding up the digital transformation process; (2) Preservation of natural and cultural resources, bearing in mind that the conservation of the cultural and natural heritage is critical to maintaining the position and attractiveness of Spain’s tourism attractions; (3) Social benefit, seeking the fair and efficient distribution of benefits in the sector, whilst looking to respond to problems including the depopulation of rural areas in Spain and (4) General implementation of a participatory destination governance model, coordinating the necessary mechanisms for effective cooperation between the State and the competent authorities at all levels.

As the reader gains in-depth knowledge of the objectives and scope of the DTI Model over the course of this manual, they will find that it proposes and defines the guidelines contained in the master document that establishes the strategic guides for destination Spain (2030 Sustainable Tourism Strategy), facilitating the operationality of its objectives and providing destinations with the necessary instruments to implement them: specific requirements, indicators for monitoring compliance with the requirements, indications and recommendations for implementing the required actions and making the destination sustainable, competitive and smart.

As explained in previous chapters, a smart destination is an innovative tourism destination based on a state-of-the-art technological infrastructure that guarantees the sustainable development of tourism areas, promoting universal access, enabling visitors to integrate and interact with their surroundings, raising the quality of their experience at the destination, and improving residents’ quality of life. With this in mind, the prioritisation of Sustainability is an inherent part of the smart destination concept, serving as a backbone of the Model and addressing it in all its dimensions: cultural, environmental, social and economic.

Furthermore, the smart destination methodology sets out a management model for destinations that, bearing in mind the singularity and differentiating features of destinations, is structured around the transversality of tourism activity, aligning objectives, interests and offering guidelines to coordinate the work of the different stakeholders involved in the provision of services to tourists. The sustainability pillar of the smart destination methodology proposes standards for destinations to adopt a sustainable tourism management model, where carrying capacity, thresholds, circular economy, efficient use of resources, the fight against climate change, the conservation of biodiversity, the promotion of culture, sustainable mobility and accessibility, the reactivation of the local economy, support for businesses, local producers and tourism companies etc., are the lines of action that guide the daily management of destinations and therefore shape the sustainability strategy of destinations.

Going beyond the smart destination methodology, bearing in mind the limitations and practical difficulties that the transition from the traditional management model to the sustainable model entails, the Smart Tourism Destination Network (Red DTI) was created, serving as a support group and guide for the planning, implementation and monitoring of sustainability in destinations. As it is explained in chapter “The Spanish Smart Tourism Destinations Network: The Instrument for Transferring and Stimulating the Adoption of National Tourism Policies”, the aim of the DTI network is to assist destinations in the performance of essential tasks to ensure that sustainability goes from being a declaration of intent to an effective reality.

The next section provides a detailed description of the pillar of sustainability of the DTI Model, with its corresponding requirements and indicators.

4 The Pillar of Sustainability in the Strategic DTI Model

Based on the definition provided of what being a sustainable tourism destination is all about, the DTI Model sets out four areas of action in relation to the pillar dedicated to sustainability management: (1) Management of tourism sustainability; (2) Conservation, improvement and recovery of cultural heritage; (3) Conservation and improvement of the environment and (4) Socioeconomic development and circular economy.

In relation to these areas, the smart destination methodology provides destinations with a basis for defining their own tourism development strategy, guaranteeing the destination’s competitiveness through a continuous and structured improvement process.

At present, these four areas of action consist of 38 requirements to be met by the destinations, representing 39% of the total requirements included in the DTI model. Achieving these requirements is assessed based on 116 Indicators, which in turn represent 44.5% of the total indicators considered in the smart destination model. The significant weight accounted for by the sustainability requirements and indicators in the smart destination model as a whole, 39% and 44.5%, respectively, offer managers an idea of the gravitas of sustainability when it comes to making the management of a tourism destination “smart”.

The first area of action is dedicated to the comprehensive management of sustainability in the destination. The purpose of this area of action is to establish a framework that facilitates and promotes the definition and development of actions in the other three areas of work: (1) Conservation, improvement and recovery of cultural heritage; (2) Environmental conservation and, (3) Socio-economic development and circular economy (SEGITTUR, 2019, 2022a, 2022b, 2022c). Therefore, as part of this area labelled as “Management of tourism sustainability”, the destination is expected to define tourism planning in line with the Sustainable Developmental Goals (SDGs) as well as identify a series of sustainability indicators making it possible to monitor the progress made by the destination, ascertain whether the planned objectives are being met and introduce the corresponding corrective actions in case of significant deviations. As part of the strategic planning of the destination, particular attention must be paid to existing legislation for protecting heritage, territorial planning and management, as well as mobility management in the territory. This strategic planning will also set out a marketing plan for the destination that considers sustainability as its guiding principle, prioritising the development of tourism products and services that sustainably put in value resources and also seek to reduce the seasonality of tourism activity, distributing its impact more evenly throughout the year. To this end, priority will be given to the design of innovative tourism products that break with this seasonality, promote visitor interaction in the destination and/or serve to raise awareness amongst tourists and residents alike of the need to adopt behaviours that are respectful of the environment. Professor Sara Dolnicar discusses this issue in the box below.

Enticing Tourists to Behave in Environmentally Friendly Ways Is Crucial

Enticing tourists to behave in environmentally friendly ways is not trivial. Although tourists like to think of themselves as environmentally sustainable (Juvan & Dolnicar, 2014) and—when asked—report making environmentally sustainable vacation decisions (Karlsson & Dolnicar, 2016), they rarely do. Reasons include that vacations are characterised by the pursuit of pleasure, so tourists forgive themselves for not being quite as environmentally sustainable as usual; and simple infrastructure limitations, such as the availability of recycling bins. Despite these challenges, several studies have demonstrated how theory-informed behaviour change interventions can successfully entice pro-environmental tourist behaviour: asking hotel guests to commit to towel reuse and giving them a pin to publicly signal their commitment increases towel reuse from 24 to 35% (Baca-Motes et al., 2012); telling hotel guests how many other guests in that room reused their towel pushed towel reuse to 49% (Goldstein et al., 2008); reducing the plate size at hotel buffets by 3 cm decreases the amount of uneaten food left behind by tourists by 20% (Kallbekken & Sælen, 2013); a stamp collection game reduces uneaten food left behind by families at a hotel buffet by 34% (Dolnicar et al., 2020); showing tourists in real-time how much water they use in the shower reduces energy use for hot water heating by 11% (Tiefenbeck et al., 2019); showing senior travellers a video about the climate challenges of future generations increases online booking of low-emissions holidays (Araña & León, 2016); sharing with guests the savings from waived daily hotel room cleans reduces room cleaning by 42% (Dolnicar et al., 2019); and changing the default from automatic daily cleaning to free cleaning upon request reduces room cleaning by 63% (Knezevic Cvelbar et al., 2021). Destinations and tourism businesses have many tools they can use to entice tourists to behave in more environmentally sustainable ways. It is time for them to embrace and deploy them.

—Sara Dolnicar, Ph.D.

Professor in the Tourism Department at UQ Business School,

The University of Queensland, Australia

Finally, within this area of work, destinations must promote the commitment of the private tourism sector to sustainability, reflected in the form of economic support, in such a way that tourism spending contributes to the sustainability of the destination.

The other three areas of action pursue more bounded and specific objectives. Action area 2, “Conservation, improvement and recovery of cultural heritage”, for example has been structured in such a way as to ensure that destinations define strategies to safeguard, through protection figures and related action plans, cultural heritage, landscape, local culture etc.

The third area of action, “Conservation and improvement of the environment” aims to manage environmental resources sustainably, ensuring the quality of air and water, avoiding noise pollution, ensuring energy efficiency and adaptation to climate change. The sustainable management of waste in the destination also falls under this working area.

Finally, “Socio-economic development and circular economy” addresses actions linked to the economic and social aspects of sustainability. Actions including the protection of the local economy and the promotion of zero-km-products, local tourism and responsible purchases fall under this area. Linked to the marketing of the destination addressed in area 1, area of action4 is also dedicated to the diversification of the destination’s attractions, its position and segmentation, with a view to reducing seasonality, and with it the precariousness and instability of employment in the sector, generating fair employment opportunities. Also, in line with area of action1, efforts are being made in this area to promote programmes to redistribute the benefits and burdens generated by tourism. Actions in this area also require coordination between the Destination Management Organizations (DMOs) and training institutions in the destination to design and deliver training activities and programmes on sustainable development and management. Finally, this area also deals with all the necessary actions for guaranteeing the health, safety and resilience of the destination in the face of crises.

In short, as part of the framework proposed by the DTI Model, making tourism destinations sustainable entails ensuring that economic activities are feasible in the long term, reporting benefits to all agents and ensuring these are distributed efficiently and fairly, offering stable employment opportunities, generating income for residents, improving social services in the territory, reducing poverty etc. With this in mind, efforts are being made to improve the social and economic well-being of local residents, cushioning the adverse impact that the pressure of tourist flows has on the use of public services. Furthermore, the DTI Model helps to preserve socio-cultural uniqueness and authenticity, developing tourism products that showcase the unique resources and cultural attractions in the destination. Finally, the DTI Model helps to optimise the use of environmental resources, respect essential ecological processes, help to conserve natural resources and the biological diversity of the destination, safeguarding its singularity.

Below, details are provided of how each of these areas of action are reflected in the requirements and compliance indicators, in such a way that the destinations implementing the DTI model have a very specific guide for accomplishing this.

5 Areas of Action, Requirements and Indicators as Part of the Sustainability Pillar in the DTI Model

As in the case of the other chapters dedicated to the pillars of the DTI Model, below detailed tables are provided containing the requirements and their corresponding compliance indicators by action areas.

5.1 Area of Action 1: Tourism Sustainability Management

In area 1, the requirements have been defined for encouraging the destination to ensure all the necessary elements are in place to roll out and implement a genuine sustainable tourism management policy. With this in mind, the DTI Model provides destinations with 14 requirements to be met (Table 1) and the corresponding achievement indicators, which serve to guide the efforts of destination managers.

Table 1 Sustainability pillar, DTI model: area 1: requirements and indicators

These 14 requirements take a wide variety of elements into consideration: sustainable and responsible tourism policy instruments deployed in the destination; whether sustainable tourism planning and destination management is in line with the SDGs (UN, 2015); whether urban planning responds to the principles of sustainability; whether orderly and sustainable mobility is encouraged; whether tourism resources are managed in a sustainable manner; whether the tourism carrying capacity is measured and taken into consideration; whether the destination has a system of sustainability indicators to assist and guide its management; whether the sustainability of the private tourism sector is financially supported; whether there is an awareness of the importance of promoting tourism sustainability; whether the contribution of tourism spending to sustainability is measured; whether the seasonality of the destination is managed; whether there is distinctive marketing for sustainable tourism products in the destination; whether there is specific legislation in place to protect cultural and natural heritage in the destination; whether visitors are involved in adopting responsible and sustainable behaviours in the destination; whether interaction between visitors and residents is encouraged and, finally, whether awareness of sustainability is promoted amongst visitors and residents.

5.2 Area of Action 2: Conservation, Improvement and Recovery of Cultural Heritage

Area 2 consists of 12 requirements (Table 2) defined to assess whether the destination has set up mechanisms to protect tangible and intangible cultural heritage, as well as to promote the development of tourism products based on resources in relation to this heritage.

Table 2 Sustainability pillar, DTI model: area 2: requirements and indicators

5.3 Area of Action 3: Conservation and Improvement of the Environment

The requirements in this area address aspects related to the sustainable management of the destination’s physical space, its environmental protection and the efficient use of its resources (Table 3).

Table 3 Sustainability pillar, DTI model: area 3: requirements and indicators

5.4 Area of Action 4: Socio-economic Development and Circular Economy

This aspect was introduced to ensure that destinations are also sustainable in relation to economic and social aspects. With this in mind, 11 requirements have been defined (Table 4) in relation to the protection of the local economy, the prioritisation of zero-km raw materials, responsible procurement, the promotion of local cuisine, training in sustainability, promotion of fair local employment opportunities, redistribution of the benefits and burdens of tourism, security and crisis management, civil protection, local experience-based tourism, healthcare for tourists, within other issues that readers will see in next tables.

Table 4 Sustainability pillar, DTI model: area 4: requirements and indicators

6 The Sustainability Pillar in Practice: Recommendations

To provide the reader with an idea of the practical implications of the implementation of the sustainability pillar in tourism destinations that aspire to be a smart destination, this section sets out, by area of action, some of the main recommendations, linked to the SDGs, made to destinations following the initial diagnosis of their starting point.

6.1 Main Recommendations, Area 1

As described in Table 5, area 1 refers to the management of tourism sustainability; with this in mind, the usual recommendations aim to help destinations define a strategic plan that supports all the actions to be performed to help the management of the destination become more sustainable: urban planning, measurement of impacts for their subsequent management, planning and management of tourism flows or differentiation and positioning of the destination as a more sustainable tourism destination.

Table 5 Examples of recommendations for improving the sustainability of the destination in area 1

6.2 Main Recommendations, Area 2

Area 2 addresses the conservation, improvement and recovery of the destination’s cultural heritage, ensuring that the destinations have figures for the protection of cultural heritage; agree on criteria for the design, construction and protection of heritage and the landscape; and define action plans both for the conservation and recovery of heritage as well as for the promotion and protection of local cultural resources. With this in mind, the area was structured so as to ensure the conservation, improvement and recovery of cultural heritage; thus “typical” recommendations encourage destinations to develop one-of-a-kind sustainable tourism products structured around the heritage resources available in the destination (as Table 6 illustrates). To this end, it is assumed that the enhancement of tangible and intangible cultural heritage facilitates its preservation as well as its enjoyment by residents in the destination.

Table 6 Examples of recommendations for improving the sustainability of the destination in area 2

6.3 Main Recommendations, Area 3

Area 3 addresses aspects regarding the conservation of the destination’s environmental resources; therefore, as described in Table 7, the following recommendations often apply to this area: the introduction of systems for the efficient administration of natural resources, the definition of measures for recycling and waste management, or actions to reduce carbon footprints, to name just a few.

Table 7 Examples of recommendations for improving the sustainability of the destination in area 3

6.4 Main Recommendations, Area 4

Finally, area 4 sets out the requirements that destinations must meet to pursue their economic and social development, promoting a circular economy in the destination. Therefore, the recommendations offered to destinations in this area seek to raise awareness and involve all local stakeholders to ensure their cooperation with one another, meaning that tourism attractions in the destination are characterised by their authenticity, uniqueness and promotion of everything local (see Table 8).

Table 8 Examples of recommendations for improving the sustainability of the destination in area 4

7 Lessons Learned in the Field of Smart Destination Sustainability: Challenges

Spain has been developing the DTI model for more than a decade, and a foundational principle during this time has been that a destination cannot be smart if it is not sustainable.

Enjoying existing tourism resources, including natural and cultural spaces, is a right of today’s society and it is the responsibility of the public powers and citizens to preserve them for use by future generations. The managers of tourism destinations and other agents participating in the territorial management process must ensure sustainability within their own sphere of action. This is the main objective of the DTI model, justifying the huge weight of the sustainability pillar and its relationship with the SDGs. Through smart destination diagnoses and planning, we contribute to the creation of sustainable tourism spaces, or in other words, smart ones.

The smart destination model is structured around sustainability as its central pillar of action, on the premise that destination tourism management must necessarily be responsible and sustainable, understanding sustainability from the different approaches: conservation and improvement of cultural heritage, conservation of the physical-environmental space and improvement of the socio-economic development and circular economy of the destination. Understanding the DTI model as a process of continuous improvement, based on the measurement of indicators and the implementation of an action plan as a result of a situation diagnosis, embodies a firm commitment to sustainability. A consolidated and clear commitment to sustainable tourism, where carrying capacity, thresholds, the circular economy, the efficient use of resources, the fight against climate change, the conservation of biodiversity, the promotion of culture, sustainable mobility and accessibility, the reactivation of the local economy, support for businesses, local producers and tourism companies... are the levers for change.

The main sustainability challenges detected during the smart destination diagnostic processes undertaken to date by SEGITTUR have been as follows:

• Challenge 1: Need for adequate management or governance instruments for tourism sustainability.

  Destinations face the challenge of having adequate tourism policy instruments in line with the promotion and management of tourism sustainability, such as a sustainable tourism master plan and a tourism marketing plan that adopts a sustainable approach, also in line with the SDGs. This challenge also encompasses the sustainable management of tourism resources.

• Challenge 2: Implementation of sustainability as the driving force in the management of the private tourism sector.

  It has been identified that continuous and programmed efficient management of sustainability in the local tourism sector is either lacking or insufficient. With this in mind, public–private collaboration should encourage the private tourism sector to participate in managing the sustainability of the destination and, in turn, sustainably manage its tourism business.

• Challenge 3: Management of seasonality and tourist flows in the destination.

  With tourism sustainability in mind, adequately managing tourist flows throughout the entire year is considered a priority; this would entail depersonalising tourism demand, with actions such as promoting senior tourism, nature, rural, shopping and culture whilst also redirecting tourist flows to the non-saturated areas of the destination. In this sense, it is advisable developing appealing tourism products in those areas to increase their interest of tourists.

• Challenge 4: Conservation, improvement and recovery of cultural heritage.

  Destinations need to have an inventory and action plan for the conservation and improvement of their historical and artistic heritage with a view to subsequently designing recovery programmes and encouraging its tourist or cultural use.

• Challenge 5: Need for sustainable mobility.

  It has been found that there is an urgent need for the efficient planning and implementation of sustainable mobility management in destinations and towards tourism destinations. The destination’s Mobility Plan must consider tourist inflows and their direct impact on urban mobility. Actions must be implemented to improve mobility using bike and electric mobility and to facilitate parking and urban public transport.

• Challenge 6: Tourism must play a critical role in the adaptation to climate change.

  Tourism is one of the sectors that has the biggest influence on climate change and can also be negatively affected by the consequences of climate change. With this in mind, it is recommended adopting Climate Change Adaptation Strategies in which the tourism sector participates in the reduction of greenhouse gases, electric and sustainable mobility, calculating and offsetting the carbon footprint, use of clean/renewable energy, energy efficiency, air quality etc.

• Challenge 7: Knowledge of tourism sustainability.

  It has been found that a system of destination sustainability indicators dashboard needs to be set up. We also recommend measuring the carrying capacity during the high season or when the influx of visitors is highest and in places where the concentration of people is highest. As well as performing an environmental impact assessment in terms of the territoriality of tourism use. DMOs must remember that they cannot improve something that has not been measured, on this extent see the discussion in the box bellow, by Professor Enrique Navarro-Jurado.

The Path Towards Sustainable Tourism

Sustainability is a path, not just a goal, which involves multiple agents with conflicting interests. That is why we speak of a process of social and political construction. It has various characteristics, including sustainability has to be measurable, and this means quantifying objectives and results; there is no sustainability without limits and the most effective tool is load capacity, because “sustainable tourism growth” is an oxymoron and responds to a partial and very economical view of the concept.

Tourist destinations must show their commitment to moving faster. And there are three basic challenges for sustainability in tourism:

• 1. Establishing the load capacity of destinations, provided for in requirement 5 of the sustainability axis in the DTI model, especially with respect to basic resources, such as water, energy and soil, together with the perception of residents and tourists, combining qualitative and quantitative limits (Thiel Ellul & Navarro Jurado, 2018).

• 2. Demonstrating the social benefit, provided for in requirement 14 of the sustainability axis of the DTI model, so that residents know how the benefit derived from tourist activity has a direct impact on their quality of life, accounting for what is invested in health, education or social services thanks to the economic impact of tourism, through the so-called “rate of social compensation” (Navarro Jurado et al., 2023).

• 3. The climate and energy emergency, which will cause the mandatory adaptation of destinations, provided for in requirement 24 of the sustainability axis of the DTI model, to changes in demand—the market’s top concern—triggered by changes in the source space. However, a more decisive role is played by the adaptation in the receiving destination to the increase in heat waves, the increase in extreme weather phenomena, water scarcity, the intensification of coastal erosion and rising sea levels, the proliferation of exotic species (algae, mosquitoes, etc.) (Blanco Vílchez & Navarro Jurado, 2023).

In short, the future success of Smart Destinations in the medium term will depend on their ability to adapt to the challenges posed by a new era.

—Associate Professor Enrique Navarro-Jurado,

Geography Department, University of Málaga, Spain.

• Challenge 8: Training in tourism sustainability.

  Destinations need to make progress with training and education in tourism sustainability, which involves detecting training needs in sustainability for both public employees and the private sector in local tourism. Those identified qualification needs will serve as a base to set up the training programmes to be delivered for the tourism sector professionals at the destination.

• Challenge 9: Socio-economic and workplace sustainability.

  The tourism industry is affected by significant seasonality and a clear component of underground economy; with this in mind, ensuring labour rights and gender equality in tourism must be a priority for tourism managers and actual compliance must be ensured. The 2022 labour reform in Spain represented a step forward to this end, in the form of Royal Decree-Law 32/2021, of 28 December, on urgent measures for labour reform, the guarantee of employment stability and the transformation of the job market has reduced the seasonality of employment and improved the social security affiliation ratios in the sector as well as decent working conditions.

Appendix

Rachel Dodds, Ph.D., is a professor at the Ted Rogers School of Hospitality and Tourism Management at Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly known as Ryerson University). Rachel is known globally for her work to help make tourism more sustainable both within academia and industry and she is passionate about making change. Rachel has widely published on the topics of sustainable tourism, overtourism, destination planning and policy, islands and consumer motivations. Rachel is also the Director of Sustaining Tourism, a boutique consultancy where she has provided advice to governments, industry, and the non-profit sector.

Sara Dolnicar, Ph.D., is a Professor of Tourism at The University of Queensland in Australia. Her current research program develops and experimentally tests measures that trigger pro-environmental behaviour in tourists. Professor Dolnicar currently serves as the Co-Editor in Chief of Annals of Tourism Research. She was awarded the Travel and Tourism Research Association Distinguished Researcher Award in 2017, and named the Slovenian Ambassador of Science in 2016, the highest honour the Republic of Slovenia bestows on expatriate Slovenian researchers in recognition of global excellence, impact, and knowledge transfer.

Enrique Navarro-Jurado, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Tourism Management and Planning (University of Malaga, Spain), specialized in planning and sustainability management of tourism destinations. About his current research interests: The integration of tourism into sustainable development model of territories; tourism resources management: strategies and public policies for the formation and restructuring of tourism destinations; the analysis of the environmental impact of tourism; and tourism development as a vehicle for the empowerment of rural areas.