Regenerative Tourism
VisitScotland/Tourism Innovation Group
Innovation for Regenerative Tourism
VisitScotland's Tourism Innovation Group sits at the sharp edge of a sector facing an existential question: how do you build a sustainable future for an industry whose foundations are built on fossil fuels? Over three years, I advised the Group's Chair on that question - and on what regenerative, rather than merely sustainable, tourism might actually look like in practice.
The work ranged widely. At its most concrete, it involved extensive strategic and organisational development with CairnGorm Mountain Limited - a ski field confronting the collapse of its core business model as global warming left it without snow.
Beyond CairnGorm, I delivered presentations and workshops on regenerative tourism for a range of stakeholders across the Scottish Highlands, including Scottish Natural Heritage, The Nevis Landscape Partnership, Forestry Commission Scotland, and the National Trust for Scotland.
The three years of work contributed to outcomes still visible today: the development of the Scottish National Centre for the Mountain Environment, two successful multi-million GBP£ Lottery Fund applications for community-based tourism development, and a range of initiatives that continue to evolve.
