Swiss Sustainability Forum: Sustainability in Swiss Tourism
Swiss Sustainability Forum has officially come to an end!
Thank you to our conference chairs, speakers, sponsors, partners, and all the attendees for making this a great meeting.
You can download an electronic Certificate of Attendance by accessing your dashboard on Sciforum.net. Please login with the same email you used to register to the conference. The certificate will be found under "My Certificates".
The recordings are available here on the conference website!
the chair
As any other sphere of human activity, tourism needs to be sustainable, to ensure an equitable access to and enjoyment of resources to present and future generations. The very meaning of tourism is to discover new territories, experience tangible and intangible attractions, meet people and learn about their culture. If considered this way – instead of being driven by consumerism or yearning to collect many superficial experiences – tourism can be a means of peace and pacific coexistence, a catalyst of knowledge and mutual respect, it can help to fight against poverty and inequalities.
Sustainability in tourism is mainly considered with reference to behaviours and practices related to the environment, the economy and the society. An environmentally sustainable tourism is one that limits wastes and pollution, makes a balanced use of natural resources and respects the natural landscape. From an economic point of view, sustainability in tourism means that related activities do provide a (reasonable) profit hence not needing to rely on external resources, as well as that value for money for products and services is guaranteed. At the social level, sustainability means that tourists’ behaviors and practices need to be compliant with the values, habits and social norms of local communities and cultural groups. If one visits a city, it is important that s/he does not only know which are its most important monuments, but also that s/he becomes aware of the history behind them, of how citizens live, of which challenges they face. If one climbs up a mountain, besides respecting natural limits not to endanger his/her own life, s/he should admire its beauty respecting it and creating, this way, a sort of bound with the natural elements, which is made up of knowledge and appreciation. If one takes part in a local ritual or buys an artifact of traditional craftsmanship, s/he should acknowledge the specific values and beliefs attached to it.
Sustainability in tourism is linked to issues of authenticity, awareness, cultural respect, quality of products. It is such an important topic today in tourism, that several official tourism bodies have developed ad hoc strategies and launched dedicated campaigns to sensitize both tourists and service providers.
The Swiss Sustainability Forum 2023 will focus on global and local issues related to sustainability in tourism. It will gather scholars and practitioners to present research, practices and initiatives, so to provide a state-of-the art about the topic in the field, develop a shared comprehensive vision and inspire future actions.
Conference Secretariat:
Ms. Sara Ottolini
Ms. Charlotte Gardini
Conference Email: ssf@mdpi.com
Download the Conference Flyer and share it with your colleagues!
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#SSF2023
Important Dates
- Abstract submission deadlineMar 24, 2023
- Abstract acceptance notificationMar 24, 2023
- Full file submission deadlineMar 27, 2023
- Regular registration deadlineMar 24, 2023
Meet Our Speakers
Prof. Dr. Lorenzo Cantoni
USI – Università della Svizzera Italiana;
Lorenzo Cantoni graduated in Philosophy and holds a PhD in Education and Linguistics. He is full professor at USI - Università della Svizzera italiana (Lugano, Switzerland), Faculty of Communication, Culture and Society, where he is director of the Institute of Digital Technologies for Communication.
His research interests are where communication, education and new media overlap, ranging from computer mediated communication to usability, from eLearning to eTourism and digital Fashion, from ICT4D to eGovernment.
He is chair-holder of the UNESCO chair in ICT to develop and promote sustainable tourism in World Heritage Sites, and board member of WHES - World Heritage Experience Switzerland.
He is USI's Deputy Rector and Pro-rector for Education and Students' experience.
He is director of the Master in Digital Fashion Communication and director of the Master in International Tourism.
He has been President of IFITT - International Federation for IT in Travel and Tourism (2014-January 2018).
Dr. Silvia De Ascaniis
USI – Università della Svizzera Italiana;
Silvia is lecturer and researcher (maître d'enseignement et de rechercher) at the Institute of Digital Technologies for Communication of Università della Svizzera italiana - USI, Lugano (Switzerland), and coordinator of the UNESCO Chair in ICTs to develop and promote sustainable tourism in World Heritage Sites.
She got a PhD in Communication Sciences from USI with a thesis on pragmatic and argumentative aspects of Online Travel Reviews.
Her activities lie in the intersection area among digital media, tourism and heritage, and mainly tackle the following topics: characteristics, opportunities and risks of online communication; use of digital media in the promotion of tangible and intangible heritage; social and cultural sustainability of tourism. She has participated in the realization of several Massive Online Open Courses (MOOC) about tourism, heritage and digital media.
She was executive director and coordinator of doctoral schools founded by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF). She is member of IFITT - International Federation for IT in Travel and Tourism.
- STS. Sustainable Tourism Stories
Sponsors and Partners
Organizer
Sponsor
Media partner
