From 21-23 November 2022 in Valencia, Spain, the 3rd UNWTO World Conference on Smart Destinations will take place, Organised by the UN World Tourism Organisation, the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Tourism of Spain, the Autonomous Community of Valencia and Visit Valencia Foundation.

As part of this, the conference has launched a new call for contributions of research papers to discuss foreseen pathways to a sustainable future for tourism destinations.

The Event

As Smart Destinations continue to progress towards more visitor-centred, increasingly focused on environmental sustainability, the need to accelerate the green and digital transition further and increase the resilience of the tourism ecosystem is evidenced. The advent of technology in the 21st century has led to the growth of user-generated contents on the Internet, as well as the widespread diffusion of technologies in many virtual and physical environments, including travel and tourism.

The digitalisation process framed as Smart Destinations introduces significant changes in destination strategic planning and managerial capacities. This novel approach allows adapting to the new digital ecosystem and leveraging big data and technologies to enhance planning, management and marketing processes, and tourist experiences through better services and co-creation of places and activities. Furthermore, although it has not been fully embraced, the framework features sustainability as a vital pillar.

The Call for Contributions

Identifying possible paths toward more sustainable, resilient, and liveable destinations is vital. In light of the experience gained in the last decades, the 3rd UNWTO World Conference on Smart Destinations launches a new call for contributions to discuss and foreseen pathways to a sustainable future for tourism destinations. While submissions of any research related to Smart Destinations are welcome, the conference will place special emphasis on the following topic areas:

• Collaborative Governance, development and resilience
• Green transition and Sustainability in Smart Destinations
• The advent of technologies and Smart Destinations

Important dates

• Extended abstract submission:  June 28 - 2022
• Notification of acceptance:  July 15 - 2022
• Registration deadline: October 25 -  2022
• Deadline for submission of revised extended abstracts: October 25 - 2022

For more information, including specific topic areas and the submission process, see here