Dr Anna Torres-Delgado

In this introduction to the special issue, we identify the key tensions underpinning the challenge of developing indicators of sustainable tourism, and use the papers submitted to the special issue to exemplify these tensions. The paper questions why it is that we need to measure sustainable tourism, the risk of becoming too focussed on measurement itself and losing sight of what is really important to sustainability. We consider who it is that should be undertaking the measurement of sustainable tourism and offer evidence of the way that societal power can be rebalanced by the kind of research inclusivity that controlling data collection brings. Determining the spatial boundaries has been a long-held tension between wanting data specificity and achieving wider comparability and engagement from policy makers and other stakeholders, while technological and methodological advances may allow for more progress to be made in addressing the weaknesses of measuring sustainable tourism. The paper questions whether indicators have led to any significant policy change, or whether the changes that have come are the result of indicators serving to create more sustainably literate stakeholders, more informed discussions and so a climate more receptive to taking decisions in support of a more sustainable tourism industry.

We aimed to evaluate the impact of sustainable tourism indicators on destination competitiveness with reference to the European Tourism Indicator System (ETIS), a scheme funded by the European Commission to address the evidence gap in tourism policy making. To do this, we evaluate the absorptive capacity of destination management organisations (DMOs) to implement and use sustainable tourism indicators to make policy decisions. We provide evidence of how DMOs have acquired knowledge about the importance of sustainable tourism indicators through ETIS, and how they have assimilated it by developing their own systems based on the principles of ETIS. However, we find that the European Commission had unrealistic expectations that DMOs, or their policies, would be transformed as a result of the use of indicators, or that indicators would be exploited to improve tourism sustainability and competitiveness. We contribute to the study of policy science by showing how absorptive capacity can be used to analyse and evaluate policy interventions, despite being a linear rational approach to explaining a complex policy context.

This report is a policy briefing containing the main findings of the PhD project Co-Creation of Sustainability-Oriented Innovations (SOIs) in Tourism. This project was conducted in close partnership with the Barcelona City Council to co-design institutional innovations to address sustainability challenges in the city by widely engaging stakeholders in a participatory process. To enable an open participatory process, the project was nested in the Consell de Turisme i Ciutat, which gathers key public, private and civil society organizations to discuss the main tourism development issues in the city of Barcelona. The project gathers data by conducting individual interviews, and a series of stakeholder workshops to better understand the complexity of designing SOIs collectively.  Amongst the main findings, this report identifies how individual and collective conceptual nuances of innovation and sustainability affect the stakeholders' ability to embark on sustainability innovations in tourism. Further, it describes collective objectives, drivers and barriers that stakeholders identified when developing SOIs. The report also offers an analysis of current tourism specific and non-tourism SOIs in Barcelona and potential ways in which these existing SOIs could be leveraged to facilitate systemic change. One of the key findings of the study is a collection of co-created SOIs by the stakeholders, which are analysed in terms of their sustainability impact and their type of innovation. These SOIs include a wide range of policy actions and interventions related to management, product development and marketing, education, incentives and monitoring and evaluation.  Amongst these SOIs, during the project, the stakeholders decided to focus on expanding on four SOIs which could have a greater potential to create systemic change in the sustainable development of the city and thus in the tourism sector. These four SOIs are presented in this report as one-page business plans to facilitate its potential application. Finally, the study provides a series of recommendations to enhance collaboration and governance mechanisms to allow SOIs to thrive as collective actions that are powered by legitimacy, trust and a fair distribution of power. In this line, to empower stakeholders to utilize the findings of this project the report introduces the idea of creating a Sustainability Innovation LivingLab.

Purpose This study aims to examine the main factors and the related impacts that have caused a negative shift in the social perception of tourism among residents of Barcelona. Namely, it contextualises the recent evolution of the impacts and the social perception of tourism among the city's residents; analyses the relationship between the social perception of tourism and different tourist, real estate, demographic and economic factors; and lastly, it identifies the social impacts that majorly influence the negative perception among residents in every neighbourhood. Design/methodology/approach This study applies quantitative and qualitative techniques to a selection of five neighbourhoods of Barcelona. First, the character of the neighbourhoods was analysed, and external statistical information was later provided to understand the state and evolution of the factors that shape perceptions of tourism. Secondly, representatives of the community movements were interviewed in-depth. This consecutive qualitative approach enabled the comprehension of how these factors shape the residents' perception. Findings The results showed that residents generally shared similar perceptions despite variations among neighbourhoods. Perceived negative effects included not only the most direct consequences of tourism such as anti-social behaviour and congestion of public spaces but also indirect ones such as population displacement and the weakening of social structures. Originality/value This study's innovation lies in linking objective statistical data that describe the reality of a tourist neighbourhood (housing prices, number of available beds, family income, etc.), to the subjective perceptions of its residents. Thus, it is possible to identify the perceived impacts of tourism (which have an impact on the local population's satisfaction), and relate these to the true evolution of tourism variables in the neighbourhood. This contrasted reading between perception and reality is important for future initiatives for the regulation of tourism in the city.

The aim of this paper is to examine the role of indicators in the transition to sustainability in tourism development and planning, identifying their main characteristics and summarising the challenges posed by their use in tourism development and in the research field. Indicators today constitute significant elements in sustainability programmes, but their use has been hampered by technical and conceptual difficulties. Furthermore, given that specific socio-spatial contexts and scales are highly influential in their application in the field, there is a need to identify the nature and characteristics of these indicators of sustainable tourism. After the in-depth development of a theoretical and phenomenological framework for indicators in tourism sector based on literature review, some interesting findings were identified. Indicators of sustainability have been widely adopted in tourism planning and management, and the indicator type (set or index) is selected depending on the situation under analysis and the purpose underpinning the study. In general, a set of indicators may prove more useful and accurate for assessing sustainability in one tourism destination, while an index may be better suited for comparing different spatial units. However, indicator effectiveness to achieve the ideals of sustainable tourism development is affected by the ambiguity in the definition of the concept of sustainable tourism and problems associated with data availability and baseline knowledge. The main challenge is to overcome strategic guidelines and political and theoretical proposals of indicators and achieve practical applications for the sustainable development of tourism. It is in this regard that innovations and knowledge transfer have been stressed, albeit that the nature of this knowledge remains the key.

This study tackles the primary problems facing sustainable tourism: the absence of any defined limits on sustainability in this sector and the difficulty of measuring sustainability. Based on a system of indicators calculated in municipalities that are representative of the different tourist areas and environments of Catalonia (Spain), the key variables in the study of sustainable local tourism are identified so that they can subsequently be normalised, weighted and aggregated in a single global score: the ISOST index. This index enables the definition of thresholds of sustainable tourism, thereby establishing a destination's level of sustainable tourism. It is a tool that can be applied to the definition of sustainable tourism strategies for the future.

The objective of this research is to provide a scientifically sound, applicable method for studying tourism sustainability at the local level. This is done by developing an indicator system based on an initial literature search that serves to compile a preliminary list of indicators, which are then verified and scientifically validated by conducting a Delphi survey. This process is used to develop a consensual indicator system that is adapted to the tourism sector and includes 26 indicators of social, economic and environmental sustainability. To ensure the applicability of the system, indicator values are then calculated for 20 tourism municipalities in Catalonia (Spain). The results confirm the proposed system is an effective tool for planning and managing tourism at municipal level. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

This article focuses on the design and implementation of tourism indicators for sustainable management of destinations, as part of a project implemented in collaboration between the University of Barcelona and the Barcelona Provincial Council. The objectives are: a) Explain the characteristics of the project, and in particular its conceptual and methodological approach; b) Present the results of the project, specifically on the implementation of the Tourism Sustainability Index (ISOST) and the European Tourism Indicators Systems (ETIS); and c) Provide a brief balance of the results and a reflection on the use of these instruments.

In the last two decades sustainability has emerged as a force in the tourism industry, offering new directions and values for public policy, and inducing the creation of the concept of sustainable tourism. There have been a number of institutional initiatives in this respect, and they have shaped a framework for both theoretic and applied development, and have helped extend the paradigm of sustainability as a general feature of contemporary tourism. The content of this article sheds light on the process of creation and use of the concept of sustainable tourism through the analysis and evaluation of institutional initiatives in tourism policy in the last 20 years. The systematic analysis of 55 institutional documents covering international, European and Spanish initiatives has enabled us to demonstrate the importance of these in the adoption of sustainability by the tourist industry, and their contribution to the growth and spread of the concept of sustainable tourism. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The occupancy of public spaces for private purposes is causing increasing conflicts in several urban tourist destinations. Concretely, sidewalk cafes (which basically consist of tables and chairs) have become a matter of controversy. This research aims to compare both legal framework and factual occupancy concerning sidewalk cafes in urban tourist areas of two Spanish cities (Seville and Barcelona). Content analysis of the legal framework and fieldwork have been the main methods used. Results point to the limited capacity of city ordinances to restrain the increasing occupancy of public space. This phenomenon is more significant in the high-density areas of city centres but it is tempered in those areas where there is a specific regulation.

This paper presents a project involving the design, application, and monitoring of tourism indicators for the sustainable management of local destinations. The aim is to assess the tourism management of destinations and to identify the main drivers of, and barriers to, sustainable management, through: a quantitative assessment based on indicator calculations to assess the degree of sustainability of the destination; and a qualitative assessment through in-depth interviews with the destinations' managers to assess the performance of tourism management. Results reveal that in recent years the majority of destinations have defined strategic tourism plans; the provision of accessible tourist resources and products has increased; more tourists use public transport; policies to minimize light and noise have expanded; and more beaches and ports have been awarded the blue flag symbol. Despite these improvements, a general decrease in traditional economic variables is identified (e.g. spending per tourist, and average length of stay), as well as in certified accommodation (e.g. DGQA, EMAS, EU Ecolabel and Biosphere). Time constraints and limited human and technical resources are the main obstacles to the introduction of more long-term, sustainable planned measures. However, the research shows that improvements are achieved when local managers receive support from higher-level public bodies.

The Carbon Footprint Calculator featured here is part of the SusTPol project (Sustainable Tourism evidence-informed Policy), an initiative funded by the EU with the goal of promoting sustainable tourism practices. The SusTPol project is specifically focused on assisting Destination Marketing and Management Organizations (DMMOs) in making informed decisions by Sustainable Tourism Indicators. This Carbon Footprint Calculator can help DMMOs to take steps towards reducing the environmental impact of their tourism activities.