Case study at Summer School "Leadership and Governance for Sustainable Tourism - 1 July 2014, Finland

1. PM4ESD
EUROPEAN SUMMER SCHOOL 2014
“LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT FOR
SUSTAINABLE TOURISM ”
SUSTAINABLE DESTINATION OF
VITORIA-GASTEIZ &THE PROVINCE OF ALAVA
(SPAIN)
@agrotravel

2. Who are we?
 We are the first Spanish company certified with Travelife,
specialised in Responsible & Sustainable Tourism
We are working as both an outbound and inbound travel
agency, in Spain and especially in the Basque Country
We are also a tour-operator of community-based tourism &
ecotourism in Mexico, Totonal Viajes que Iluminan
In addition, we are developing projects related to sustainable
tourism, to promote and advise in this field in different
destinations around the world.

4. DESTINATION POTENTIAL
Vitoria-Gasteiz / Álava
 Located in the Basque Country, an unknown yet surprising
destination
 Its natural richness, cultural identity, and variety of food &
wine makes it a destination with a great sustainable potential
 A small but emerging destination: Vitoria-Gasteiz receives
346.000 visitors last year, and the entire Álava province 526.000 .

6. Tourist potential as a sustainable destination
Vitoria-Gasteiz/Álava
 Vitoria-Gasteiz = European Green Capital 2012, with a sustainable
city development and urban expansion
 The province of Alava has :
- protected natural areas
- wine region candidate for UNESCO World Heritage Sites
- restored historical centres given Europa Nostra awards.
 Great diversity of traditions, customs, and unique cultural events

8. Destination Leadership & Governance
Vitoria-Gasteiz/Álava
The Strategic Tourism Plan 2020 of the Basque Country supports
its sustainable development
 At the same time, local administrations such as the City Council of
Vitoria-Gasteiz and the Álava County Council, have made
sustainability the main strategic focus for future tourism
development
 The project leadership is managed by local public institutions
promoting the participation of the local tourism industry
 The leading hub for the entire province’s sustainable destination
development is its capital, Vitoria-Gasteiz

9. Destination’s objectives in terms
of sustainability
We believe the best option is to work on a long
term basis searching for progress in the field of
sustainability and responsibility.
This work should help in building a renowned
sustainable destination and thus a responsible
one, for tourists to enjoy.

10. Destination’s objectives in terms
of sustainability
1. Transform Vitoria-Gasteiz and Alava in a sustainable and
responsible destination.
2. To promote the involvement and participation of the tourism
industry as well as the local community.
3. To present and to position the city as an pioneering
destination in sustainable tourism,in order to attract tourists
interested in sustainable and green destinations.

11. Phases of the project
1. To evaluate the destination according to the GSTC criteria
2. After obtaining the evaluation results, start working with the
stakeholders:
- Implement a Sustainable Tourism Forum in Vitoria-Gasteiz
- Practical workshops with concerned parties in other parts of the
province: the tourism industry, local institutions, local community,
local businesses, cultural and environmental associations etc.
3. With the conclusions drawn from phase 2, launch the
corresponding initiatives to improve the destination’s
sustainability
4. To implement a destination management based on the EU
Sustainable Tourism Indicators ( TIES)

12. Phase 1: Evaluation of the Destination
• This phase was developed by implementing the
PM4ESD methodology, with the idea to apply it to
the next phases of the project
• The difficulties we found :
- the Project Board’s lack of understanding of the
methodology,
- Business Case,
- Risk management,
- Finalizing the phase.

13. The Analysis & the Evaluation of the results
• Results are quite good at the provincial level
especially in the environmental indicators
• Allows to set a starting point to begin working on the
weakest sustainability aspects detected
• Factor of motivation for local region to continue
working towards making a sustainable destination

14. Phase 2: Working with stakeholders
• The concerned stakeholders identified in each region
are already taking part in the project to decide
together on future necessary actions to progress
towards a more sustainable destination
• To involve the local tourism industry, the local
community, and of course the tourists. Fields in which
more weaknesses were detected.

15. Conclusions on the work
that has been achieved so far:
• Everyone is learning a lot on how to work towards sustainability
• This project is being considered as platform for future collaboration
within Álava
• One of the biggest difficulties is to manage the communication and
participation of all stakeholders
• It is necessary to transfer the leadership to the private industry and
the local community, although under public administration control

16. MANY THANKS FOR YOUR
ATTENTION
www.turismoresponsable.
es
info@turismoresponsable.e
s
QUESTIONS?