Newsletter wwww Issue N. 03 may 2011

Contents: I-SPEED Wynne Jones about Political Steering Group meeting in Powys 1 Wynne Jones about Political Steering Summary of the 1st Political Steering Group meeting 1 Group meeting in Powys Announcement of next workshop in and 3 New I-SPEED partner: National Association It was with great of Bulgarian Municipalities 4 pleasure that we How can tourism affect the economy greening? 4 hosted the first Political Steering B2N project 4 Group at Lake Itineraries for cultural routes 5 Vyrnwy, Powys in Nordic countries continue ranking high February, where even though the in the Global Information Technology Report 5 sun did not shine, Events 6 the peace and tranquillity of the area provided a magnificent backdrop and Link 6 environment to work within. We greatly appreciated the opportunity to showcase Powys to our European Partners, it also gave a great insight into the challenges faced by the tour- ism industry in Powys in relation to trav- elling from overseas, information provi- sion, availability of 2g and 3g coverage etc. This added another dimension to the discussion and the ability to receive firsthand professional feedback in rela- tion to Powys as a destination is con- tinuing to prove invaluable. The conference proved to be an excel- lent networking opportunity both inter- nationally and also from within Powys. The good work already achieved within

Lake Vymwy

I-SPEED Political Steering Group Meeting

The I-SPEED Political Steering Group a new political framework for tourism in (PSG) was held on February 9th 2011 at Europe », already analysed in the 2nd Lake Vyrnwy (Powys County). I-SPEED newsletter. In particular Ms In the morning session, 2 representatives Boros emphasized the importance of of the European Commission explained the new political framework for Tourism the “New consolidated framework for in Europe in line with the Lisbon Treaty the EU Tourism Policy”. Krisztina Boros and the and Krista De Spiegeleer explained in Europe 2020 Strategy for growth and Project co-financed by the European Regional details the Communication « Europe, employment. Development Fund and the Norwegian Funds the world’s No 1 tourist destination - 4 experts from Spain, Norway and Unit-

www.ispeed.eu Facebook: http://bit.ly/c5d8ug Flickr: www.flickr.com/ispeedproject twitter: twitter.com/ispeedproject N. 03 may 2011 I-SPEED proved to be motivational and ed Kingdom gave an overview of some a catalyst for the joining up of other relevant projects in the fields of: tourism existing initiatives across Powys that innovation, social media, cluster organi- could benefit from the priorities identi- zation and destination management. fied through ISPEED. From the perspective of Powys, it was I-SPEED PSG participants: encouraging to hear the Chief Execu- • Carla Rey, Deputy Mayor for Com- tive express his thoughts that Tourism merce and Urban Quality, City of Venice has a place within Powys and the ac- • Christian Haugen, County Com- knowledgement that ICT can and must msioner Hedmark County Council be the driving force to increase eco- • City of Warsaw representative nomic growth that is very much need- ed at this unstable time. • Region of Crete representative • Wynne Jones - Councillor, Portfolio The political debate highlighted that Holder for Regeneration and Develop- It’s very important to stress that political even though as partners, we represent areas of differing terrain and economic ment, Powys County representatives (many of them will end wealth; the issues faced had a com- • José Paz, Director of the Tourist Re- their commitment before 2015) put at monality such as interaction with trade, search Institute, Galicia Region the first place, in 2015, their commu- destination management and govern- • Gian Paolo Manzella, President De- nity well being and the quality of living ance. legate for Innovation and Economic De- for all the populations in their region or velopment, city. This is not so banal in a project that The debate has highlighted core ar- eas for development. Current priorities • Valérie Demangeau, Vice President has the SMEs in tourism sector as a main were acknowledged as booking plat- Nantes Municipality target. We dare say that a new sensibility forms and digital branding. Medium is coming on in EU to the core of tour- term visions for 2010 included quality Extract from PSG report made by ism sustainability: the best reciprocal ef- of life, destination management, social COSES (Giovanni Santoro) : fects between visitors and inhabitants, networking, mobile applications. The PSG meeting went on in two sec- and vice versa. In other words I-SPEED This is very relevant to the aim that we tions. During the first one, political rep- partners do not seem hard-tourism strive towards as cited within the Cor- resentatives from 8 partner countries fans, but quality of place caretakers. porate Improvement Plan of Powys presented their answers to the 2 ques- To resume actual situation in a slogan, County Council: “to improve the quality tions prepared by the research centre we are facing an ultimate passage from of life for every Powys resident and all COSES, and anticipated via mail. In the era of ICT totem in tourism (and those who visit our county” the second interactive section of PSG travel) hubs to the era of one visitor-one I-SPEED could potentially provide a meeting, Professor Fabrizio Panozzo of hub, where personal mobile applica- “tool” to achieve this great aim and it University of Venice ran a scoring proce- tions empower the traveller with a mess was interesting to learn that Venice dure on 3 themes and 15 items, set by of information he/she would be able to also strive towards treating all visitors COSES, to survey in a synthetic way the manage, with the same device, toward as temporary citizens for the time that evaluation of political representatives a deeply individual and satisfying way. they are in Venice which they hope will about the project aims and its strategic The customer do the customization of promote a sense of respect between priorities. the supply by him/her self, becoming members of the community and visi- The strategic priorities set by the PSG the ultimate step on guide of each site, tors to create a much more pleasant environment within which both can live and visit. PSG Meeting - Interactive Section Conclusion It is the intention that we at Powys will • Despite different conditions there seems to be common understanding of both current challenges and future priorites learn at both a political and ground • More important in the present are “booking platform”/ “eductation and knowlege level to create a tourism product that management” / “digital branding” is beneficial to all. Discussions had at • Of greater importance for the vision 2015 are “quality of life” / “destinations management” the conference will be in the forefront / “social networking” / “mobile apps” of our minds during development of fu- • In the transition to the future what becomesmore relevant is: social networking” ture policies, strategies, and decision / “destinations management companies” and mobile applications making on the ground. • What is perceived as becoming less important are “onformations and booking platforms” / ”project development funds” / “certifications labels and audit schemes” Wynne Jones, Councillor, Portfolio Holder for Regeneration and Develop- ment, Powys County just in time. I-SPEED partners confirm for the 2015 vision involves: the awareness of this forthcoming fu- • quality of life; ture. • destination management; A better rating position for destination • mobile applications; management, in 2015, is greatly reas- • social networking. suring tourism experts: I-SPEED part- ners show a good awareness that, once developed, a tourism place needs to be

www.ispeed.eu Facebook: http://bit.ly/c5d8ug Flickr: www.flickr.com/ispeedproject twitter: twitter.com/ispeedproject N. 03 may 2011 managed and not let run by itself, to avoid congestion or bad quality sup- ply and visitor experience. Destination management is a deep rooted concept among tourism researchers and there is a growing number of best practices about it (i.e. //venice>connected), not yet satisfying if compared to some dra- matic management lacks. It absolutely remains an important strategic purpose for local administrators. Last but not least the % upgrading for the issue social networking does con- I-SPEED team at Lake Vyrnwy firm an high sensibility for local commu- nities, since the use of these practices is growing as far as people become ICT any place, from the storytelling of real first should be not so tomorrow. UE has literate and generations turn over, and experiences, by real people. COSES to be satisfied with the sensibility that the virtual places become more and suggests that, in a short time, the us- I-SPEED project has collaborated to more a new space for exchange: so- ers of //venice>connected will become generate among partners and with the ciality and marketing as well. In 2015, the best promoter of the booking sys- readiness of Cities, Counties and Re- surely, the social network communities tem, if they had been satisfied of the gions to afford the challenge of a never will work as the main global square to experience, telling the story on what- ending changing. inform and to exchange valuation on ever social network, at a zero cost for It’s no so banal among politicians and holiday destinations. Not to be there //venice>connected itself (and the City European Community has to support will be equal to not be at all. as well). this new style, will and capability. The experience of tourism providers, Politicians seem to have the aware- collecting their customer valuation, will ness that the ICT development is a be overcome by social networking as very fast one. The device can change Giuseppe Mella, City of Venice main source for knowing the reality of abruptly, and one goal that is today the Giovanni Santoro, COSES

Third I-SPEED Workshop in Rome

Domus mosaic

a) giving partners and its staff members deeper understanding and knowledge about the selected practices b) providing analysis to the good prac- tice guideline

The first 2 days the meeting will be hosted in Bracciano, known mostly for its castle and the lake of Bracciano. The castle “Orsini-Odescalchi” is one of the most noteworthy examples of Renaissance military architecture in . Three towns The third I-SPEED workshop will be held ect phase, which is the process of actual encircled the lake: Bracciano, Trevignano in the Province of Rome from May 25th transfer of Good Practices into I-SPEED Romano and . to May 27th 2011 and it will be dedicated regions / cities and the final version of the The last day Province of Rome has to analyse I-SPEED good practices iden- Good Practice Guide. planed a visit in the centre of Rome in tified and described in the Good Practice The work shop will give participants op- where the “Domus Ro- Guideline. portunity to discuss, exchange experi- manae” are located. It will be possible to The result from the work shop will give ences and analyse the practices further take a tour of the 3D journey through a valuable input for the next I-SPEED proj- in detail, aiming at: patrician “Domus” from .

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In fact two patrician villas unearthed un- the imperial Forums (Fori imperiali). During on 2005 and still going on, has recently der Palazzo Valentini (headquarter of the these last years, an important work of re- brought two large sculptures and at least Provicne of Rome) here recently have cover y and improvement of the building two Patrician domuses dating back to the been brought to life through an on-site has taken place; the antique statues that middle and late imperial period have been multimedia reconstruction. Palazzo Val- had been restored have been placed back brought to light. entini was built at the end of the sixteenth to their original position, from the court of Google map: http://tinyurl.com/3ftc4lu century on the initiative of Cardinal Mi- the Palace under the arcade. Besides, the Bracciano wiki: http://en.wikipedia.org/ chele Bonelli, who promoted a large rec- important activity of archaeological exca- wiki/Bracciano lamation scheme of the area surrounding vations in the underground area, started Laura Latini, Province of Rome

New I-SPEED partner: How can tourism affect National Association the economy greening? of Municipalities driver for world economy growth (tourism creates 5% of world GDP and employs of Bulgaria 6-7% of workers); • rapid growth of tourism sector contrib- (NAMRB) utes 5% to global green house gases emission as its connections with trans- The “National Association of Mu- port, energy sectors are very strong, tour- nicipalities in the Republic of Bulgaria” ism relations with water consumption and (NAMRB) replaced the City of Plovdiv as wastes generation are also environmen- I-SPEED partner. NAMRB was founded tally challenging; in 1996 and its members are 264 mu- • as tourism indirectly influences and is nicipalities in Bulgaria. NAMRB signed linked with other economy sectors it has an agreement for cooperation with the United Nations Environment Programme a great potential to create green jobs and Government of Bulgaria. The Associa- has recently elaborated report entitled combat unemployment and poverty on tion provides support to Bulgarian mu- Towards a Green Economy: Pathways to the local level; nicipalities and its representatives par- Sustainable Development and Poverty • investing in the greening of tourism ticipate in the various committees in the Eradication, where by analysing particu- can reduce the cost of energy, water and different fields: tourism, regional policy, lar sectors of economy, their potential in waste and enhance the value of biodiver- social policy, SMEs. terms of reaching goals of green and sus- sity, ecosystems and cultural heritage; NAMRB website: www.namrb.org tainable development is taken under con- • greening of tourism is welcomed by sideration. The chapter dedicated to tour- travellers, who have admitted that they ism was developed in partnership with are able to cover higher costs of tourism Giuseppe Mella, City of Venice the World Tourism Organization. The main environmentally-friendly offer and servic- conclusions are: es as their interest in nature-based tour- • tourism sector has a great potential as a ism is constantly raising; • small and medium enterprises have the biggest potential in reaching green econ- omy goals; B2N - Business to Nature • destination planning and development strategies are the first steps towards the Powys County Council is partner of the INTERREG IV project “B2N” greening of tourism; (“Business to Nature”), together with 10 other public sector organi- • cooperation between public and private sations from countries across Europe: Bulgaria, France, Italy, Poland, sector is crucial. Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, and Sweden. Full version of the report is available on We are glad to host on the I-SPEED newsletter some information about the UNEP website: http://www.unep. their activities, specifically focusing on sustainable growth. org/greeneconomy/GreenEconomyRe- The B2N project is a new initiative co-financed under the INTERREG IVC programme, which port/tabid/29846/Default.aspx aims to contribute to the economic and sustainable development of European regions by demonstrating and promoting best practices in entrepreneurship development in natural ar- Elaborated on the basis of Towards a eas. Green Economy: Pathways to Sustain- able Development and Poverty Eradica- • How to balance the need of stimulating economic development against the need tion to preserve outstanding natural areas? • How different European regions are dealing with entrepreneurship in natural areas? • What lessons can be learnt? What mistakes should be avoided? Karolina Iwinska, City of Warsaw

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These are the main questions which the B2N project is addressing. Partners of the B2N ture) named the EICR as a body active on project believe that economic development can become the victim of its own success if a European level in the field of Culture, in it does not develop in a sustainable way. This is particularly visible in vulnerable natural recognition for its essential role in creat- areas, where some regions already face problems connected with an unbalanced devel- ing a coherent programme of sustainable opment. However, the central emphasis of B2N strategy lies in understanding that eco- cultural tourism initiatives promoting the nomic development can also contribute to the creation and strengthening of protected “Destination Europe” and encouraging areas. This can be achieved by building on local skills, the attractiveness of the natural Europeans to discover their common environment and best practices in entrepreneurial initiatives in natural areas that have roots and history through travel and the already proved to be successful. exploration of material and immaterial heritage. The project’s website: www.business2nature.eu The Institute is a member of NECSTOUR Elaborated on the basis of www.business2nature.eu and it is currently working with the Coun- cil of Europe and the Tourism Unit of the Giuseppe Mella, City of Venice European Commission on a study into the impact of the cultural routes on small and medium businesses. In 2011 the Institute should welcome a Itineraries for cultural historical requirements of the themes, in Partial Agreement aimed at combining those countries which have had and con- the voluntary contributions of those routes tinue to have close relations with Europe. member countries of the Council of Eu- The EICR resides in the Centre Culturel rope who wish to increase the funds I-SPEED and The European Institute of de Rencontre – Abbaye de Neumünster, available to the cultural routes. Cultural Routes have started a coopera- in Luxembourg. Since the opening up of Europe to the tion in exchanging good practices and in It retains all relevant documentation and East, the Cultural Routes have enabled, promoting activities and initiatives.The maintains a specialist library on the and continue to enable (particularly by European Institute of Cultural Routes routes. The EICR is also charged with expanding to include the Southern Cau- (EICR) was established as a European participating in European training, re- casus), the creation of a real dialogue be- public service and technical body as part search and analysis programmes con- tween Eastern and Western Europeans. of a political agreement between the cerning cultural tourism, for the Europe- The opening of a resource centre for the Council of Europe and the Grand Duchy an Commission and various governments Cultural Routes in Sibiu, in the Casa Lux- of Luxembourg (Ministry of Culture, Fur- and project managers. The Institute or- embourg, in liaison with the European In- ther Education and Research). ganises themed symposiums and spe- stitute of Cultural Routes in Luxembourg Since 1988 the Institute has worked in cialist training, collaborates in the setting and the Mioritics Association is testa- close collaboration with the Council of up and running of the Routes, and par- ment to this. Europe in carrying out its responsibilities, ticipates in specialist exhibitions while namely to ensure the continuity and de- promoting a greater awareness of the More info: velopment of the programme of the Cul- links between culture, tourism and the www.culture-routes.lu tural Routes in the 50 signatory countries environment. of the European Cultural Convention In 2008 the European Commission (Di- Eleonora Berti, and, depending on the geographical and rectorate-General Education and Cul- Council of Europe

Nordic countries continue versary edition of the report covers 138 Nordic countries are again ranked high in economies worldwide and focuses on the Global Information Technology Re- ranking high in the Global ICT’s power to transform society in the port. With Sweden in 1st place, Finland next decade through modernization in 3rd, Denmark in 7th and Norway in 9th Information Technology and innovation. place, the report confirms the leadership Report Networked Readiness Index 2011-2012 (top 10) Information Communications Technolo- Economy Rank 2010- 2011 Rank 2009-2010 Change gy (ICT) is a key enabler of a more eco- Sweden 1 1 0 nomically, environmentally and socially Singapore 2 2 0 sustainable world in the aftermath of one Finland 3 6 3 of the most serious economic crises in Switzerland 4 4 0 decades. The Global Information Tech- United States 5 5 0 nology Report 2010-2011 highlights the Taiwan, China 6 11 5 key role of ICT as an enabler of a more Denmark 7 3 -4 economically, environmentally and so- Canada 8 7 -1 cially sustainable world. The 10th anni- Norway 9 10 1 Korea, Rep 10 15 5

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The Networked Readiness Index (NRI) of the best climates for technological the table are Estonia (26), Malta (27) and featured in the report examines how pre- adoption and innovation. Penetration of Cyprus (31). pared countries are to use ICT effectively new technologies is among the densest The full report is available at the World on three dimensions: the general busi- in the world, with over 90 percent of the Economic Forum website. ness, regulatory and infrastructure envi- population using the Internet on a regu- ronment for ICT; the readiness of the lar basis. Source:http://www.weforum.org/issues/ three key societal actors - individuals, Finland moves up three positions and is global-information-technology businesses and governments - to use in 3rd place with a consistently out- Elaborated on the basis of http://i4c.eu and benefit from ICT; and their actual us- standing performance, featuring in the age of available ICT. top 10 of eight pillars. For the second year in a row, Sweden Besides the Nordics and Switzerland, Giuseppe Mella, City of Venice tops the NRI thanks to an outstanding the Netherlands (11th), Germany (13th), performance across the board. The Luxembourg (14th), the United Kingdom country ranks 1st in 12 of the 71 indica- (15th), and France (20th) rank among the tors composing the NRI and within the most networked economies worldwide. top 10 in a further 35. Sweden offers one Out of the new member states, first in

Events

Future Network & Mobile summit 2011 Warsaw, Poland, 15-17.06.11 http://www.futurenetworksummit.eu/2011/default.asp?page=c4p

Context based services in tourism workshop Bournemouth, UK, 7-8.07.11 http://www.ifitt.org/home/view/context-based-services

1st International conference on tourism management and tourism related issues Rimini, Italy, 15-16.09.11 http://www.eiasm.org/frontoffice/event_announcement.asp?event_id=789

Conference on Social Media and Tourism Verona, Italy, 21-22.10.11 http://www.cpe.vt.edu/mpd.htmsocialmedia/index.html

eChallenges conference Florence, Italy, 26-28.10.11 http://www.echallenges.org/e2011/default.asp?page=themes

Link

International Conference on Tourism (ICOT 2011) http://www.cut.ac.cy/icot/

Eris@ annual conference: http://www.erisa.be/annual-conference-2011/default.aspx

I-SPEED Newsletter Editorial Team

Communication Manager: Giuseppe Mella giuseppe.mella@.venezia.it City of Venice

Editor: Karolina Iwinska [email protected] City of Warsaw

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