Cultural tourism and good urban governance

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Cultural tourism and good urban governance

• Dr. Krassimira Paskaleva-Shapira
• (with Edith Besson)
• Karlsruhe Research Center, Germany
• paskaleva_at_itas.fzk.de

• PICTURE Final Conference, Session 4
• Luxemburg, September 21-23, 2006

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Objectives of the presentation

• To set up the framework and endorse the notion
  that good urban governance
• can enhance sustainable cultural tourism that
  preserves local heritage and quality of life of
  smaller urban destinations in Europe
• innovative governance styles and stakeholder
  participation in cultural tourism management is
  necessary to facilitate the process.
• To reveal the extent to which European smaller
  cities are successful in applying these potential
  synergies
• Promote the role of cultural tourism as a
  corner stone of integrated management and policy
  in urban cultural tourism destinations using the
  governance approach.

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Context European cities treasure the wealth of
the past, future

• Cities leave marks on our spirit cultural
  tourism is an unsurpassed source of inspiration,
  life-long memories empathy to place and people.
• What makes a memorable city - one that offers
  unforgettable enjoyment, fulfillment
  inspiration makes us aspire to return take
  pleasure again.
• Together, urban spaces, qualities people,
  locals and visitors alike, shape our senses
  impressions.
• The art responsibility of staging rest on all
  community, authority, residents and tourists.
• Mastering the governing of stunning
  affluent cities of heritage and prosperity is a
  21st Century challenge to society.

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Cities 21st century challenges

• The vision is of sustainable, prosperous and
  appealing cities governed by all, for all.
• Governing for sustainable cities is participatory
  with residents, steered by their local
  government, taking ownership of their
  communities and addressing the challenges of
  sustainability collectively in a spirit of
  cooperation and long-term commitment.
• Which requires a shift from a top down to
  a more dialogue-based approach, known as
  governance.

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New dimensions of CT In a growing competitive
market the sector becomes

• A strategy for
• building quality services and products and
• sustainable management of the urban community
• A means of attracting responsible and engaged
  tourists
• A way of developing competitive city
  destinations.

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Novel approaches are required to CT development

• Planning for destinations and communities, not
  just for tourism or culture
• Integrated, inclusive management and
• Effective tourism policies
• To maximise the benefits, curb the flaws
  economic, social, environmental.

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Emerging need Building sustaining competitive
CT urban destinations

• Because of the multi-actor complexity of the
  cultural tourism sector, their resource
  dependency, the public-private dimensions and low
  predictability context of destination
  development, a CT destination becomes truly
  competitive when it is able to
• create integrate value-added products that
  sustain its resources capacity while
  maintaining relative market position and
• develop governance mechanisms that allow, create,
  sustain, and enhance opportunities
  sustainability of destination development
• Competitive destinations is one that combines
  the comparative supply able to meet the visitors
  expectations with a positive contribution to the
  development of cities and the well-being of their
  residents.

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Destination competitiveness (DC) from a
governance approach

• DC is a unique challenge to cities CT image,
  attractiveness, vibrancy, sustainability
• Range of actors and stakeholders are concerned
  Needed is a relationship approach
• Whole host community is affected Necessary is a
  strategic policy-driven framework based on
  community goals and appropriate organization,
  structure, systems, processes
• Destinations vision is key to fostering
  objectives, actions
• Cities should be responsible for creating
  opportunities for innovation dialogue for
  developing/enhancing CT
• Yet, urban CT destinations lack governance
  structures for a comprehensive and strategic
  destination development

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Methodology Qualitative quantitative research
methods

• Critical literature review
• Urban governance and management
• Sustainable tourism in city context
• Strategic planning of urban CT
• Innovative governance approaches and styles
• Findings of the EU FP6 PICTURE project Urban
  Governance of Cultural Tourism Study
• Aimed to identify effective collaborative
  management styles to benefit smaller towns in the
  sustainable management of CT in view of Good
  Governance and Sustainability.
• Feedback from the PICTURE end-user group
• PICTURE Resource centre of urban CT best
  practices

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Our analytical framework approach

• PICTURE 2004 Survey 112 European cities were
  surveyed 41 questionnaires were analyzed for
  research, policies development trends.
• Results were summarised in 6 categories and
  action lines
• Strategic development and planning
• Sustainable management
• Policy development and delivery
• Government steering
• Stakeholder involvement in decision-making
• Partnership strategies and implementation
• Development trends the key needs of local
  authorities for improving CT management and
  strategic policy-making were then defined.

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Research results applications 1. General
trends developments

• Culture is a lead form of urban tourism
• Business tourism 35
• Conference 45
• Cultural tourism 90
• National management styles vary
• France ? Public Tourism Offices Germany ?
  Private Tourism Bureaus UK ? Multi-Actor
  Partnerships
• In-country governance structures are also
  diverse in view of
• Local contexts for tourism development
• Degrees of inter-relations between stakeholders
• Responsibility for policy making and
  implementation
• Flexibility of governance styles

• Event tourism 40
• Recreation 63
• Resort tourism 8

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2. Strategic development and planning

• Overall
• Critical lack of comprehensive/ reliable/
  comparable data on cultural tourism at the
  city/regional scale
• Need for precise information on
• Number and profile of tourists
• Motivation for travel
• Level of satisfaction
• Intention to come back
• Inclusion of day visitors in statistics
• Need for dedicated tourism bodies able to
  coordinate and manage complex tourist
  information.
• PICTURE best practice references Aire 198
  Tourism network (Poitou-Charentes Region,
  France), Avila Tourism Observatory (Spain).

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3. Sustainable management

• Wide organisational differences in CT management
  priorities
• City authorities, heritage organisations ? Needs
  of the community
• Private tourism bureaus, development agencies ?
  Needs of tourists
• Focus of cities management measures
• High Low
• Management/protection
• of cultural attractions 84
• Promotion/communication 82
• Visitor care/orientation 71
• Authenticity used by 47 of cities mostly to
  define image of the destination, little for
  sustainable destination management
• PICTURE Best practice references Eichsfeld
  Regional Strategy (Germany), Malaga URBAN
  Programme (Spain)

This reinforces the need of collaborative
approaches
Training personnel 39 Support to professionals
26 Impact assessment 39 Carrying capacity
19 Behaviour management 14
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4. Policy development and implementation

• Sustainable development plans that include
  tourism 80
• Local agenda 21 including tourism 56
• Formal strategy for tourism including
  sustainability 70
• Cultural and tourism objectives are rarely
  integrated in a single plan/strategy
• Issues such as quality of life, economic
  development and cultural identity remain
  scattered in policy statements

Visible commitment towards sustainable tourism,
yet
PICTURE best practice references Lucca Strategic
Plan (Italy), York Action Plan (UK), Belfast
Cultural Tourism Strategy (Northern Ireland, UK).
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5. Government steering

• Local government is by far the main promoter and
  enabler of good governance for urban cultural
  tourism
• Leads collaboration
• Ensures openness between stakeholders
• Distributes of CT benefits among the urban
  community
• Current weaknesses in cities steering capacities
  materialise in
• Defining and clarifying responsibilities of each
  CT stakeholders in development and implementation
  of cultural tourism plans
• Leading comprehensive impact assessment and
  monitoring procedures
• Learning from best practices in other European
  cities
• PICTURE best practice references Beaune Tourism
  Office and Provins
• Municipal Cultural Tourism Strategy (France),
  Syracuse Integrated Territorial
• Project (Italy).

Importance of government steering stressed by a
majority of cities (84)
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6. Stakeholder involvement in decision-making

• Expertise in planning and management of CT
  scattered and fragmented across the urban actors
• Cities authorities urban planning, cultural
  policy
• Private organisations (development agencies,
  tourism bureaus, consultants) tourism
  strategies, monitoring, impact assessment,
  carrying capacities, ecological planning
• Tourism professionals market trends, tourism
  services
• Cultural heritage organisations valorisation and
  management of cultural attractions
• Regional and national agencies and research
  organisations comprehensive expertise,
  monitoring, foresight studies
• Residents impact of tourism on quality of life
• Tourists attractiveness of cultural tourism
  products
• Participation of residents and tourists in the
  integrated management of CT is low (26) and
  usually late in the decision-making process.
• Expertise of public and private research and
  development agencies (local, regional/ national)
  often unaccounted by urban authorities (19)
• PICTURE Best practice references Tourism
  monitoring techniques used in Avila (Spain),
  Cambridge Tourism forum (UK), the Syracuse local
  Forum (Sicily, Italy).

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7. Partnership strategies and implementation

• Cities recognise the role of partnerships in
  fostering cultural tourism objectives and
  development of inclusive policy strategies, yet
  reality differs
• Formal partnerships for cultural tourism are yet
  to materialise in many cities (50)
• Few urban partnerships integrate tourism and
  cultural capacities
• Majority are loose relationships (61)
• Leadership and responsibilities between partners
  often unclear
• As a result - lack of openness between partners
  (74)
• PICTURE best practice references First Stop
  York Tourism Partnership (UK), Fidenza Tourism
  Board (Italy)

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Key study conclusions - 1

• This study reinforces the challenges of
  governance and integration in urban CT and
  the radical changes in governing their
  implementation requires in cities.
• Particularly, in increasing governments role in
  strategic planning, impact assessment, best
  practice exchange and over-viewing sectoral
  development in context of the strategic
  destinations development.

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Key study conclusions - 2

• A destinations vision, strategic framework, and
  stakeholder participation can be seen as both an
  improvement and a challenge to traditional forms
  of decision-making in many cultural tourism
  smaller cities in Europe.
• Innovative governance styles need to be
  established to promote a more integrated
  management of the sector which supports diverse
  and far-reaching communitys welfare-driven
  goals.
• Establishing a strategic policy framework for
  collaboration by the local authorities to engage
  with the actors is necessary to facilitate the
  process. We advanced one such framework, and call
  for future discussions.

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Urban Governance of CT Framework A Draft
OUTCOMES AND BENEFITS
IMPACTS ON THE CITY
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Urban Governance of Cultural Tourism Framework (a)
Urban Governance
of Cultural Tourism
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Urban Governance of Cultural Tourism Framework (b)
OUTCOMES AND BENEFITS
Direct material benefits to community
Non-material gains for tourists and residents
- Heritage enhancement
- Learning
- Economic wealth
- Heritage appreciation
- Income distribution
- Positive experience
- Employment creation
- Tourist satisfaction
- Social prosperity
- Community values
- Environmental quality
- Cultural identity
- Urban quality of life
- Local pride
IMPACTS ON THE CITY
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Finally, we argue A sustainable urban CT
destination is a four-part strategy of community
choice

• Integrated urban cultural tourism sector
• Inclusive sector management for long-term urban
  solutions
• Cohesive policy-making towards urban
  sustainability
• Governing by governance - an indispensable
  relationship between civil society and local
  government for local prosperity and urban
  sustainable development.
• THANK YOU!
• THANK YOU!