![Sample our Environment & Sustainability journals, sign in here to start your access, latest two full volumes FREE to you for 14 days]({"type":"image" , "src" : "/sda/5935/TOC-Subject-Sample-2021-Environment-Sustainability.jpg"})
Abstract
This paper seeks to identify the potential that cross-border tourism partnerships may have for destination integration and how it may contribute to advancing SDG goals in these regions. It takes the cross-border Cerdanya Valley as a case study. Tourism development in this region initially evolved without much regard for SDGs, nor for cross-border destination integration. This started to change with the emergence of a community-led cross-border tourism partnership. However, despite the best intentions of those involved in the partnership, it ended in stagnation, and a business-led cross-border cluster ensued. The paper analyses these developments and modes of partnership to (i) identify the dimensions of cross-border destinations that either foster or hinder the contribution to SDGs and (ii) determine how different modalities of cross-border partnerships (SDG17) deal with these hindrances and opportunities for attaining SDGs. Over an eight-year period, data were collected through interviews with the main stakeholders, including tourism entrepreneurs and representatives of communities and local governments, as well as through participant-observation. Results show that areas of concern for partnerships willing to integrate cross-border destinations that contribute to SDGs include the size and peripherality of the region, cross-border complementarities, uneven development, institutional similarities/dissimilarities and methodological nationalism.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.
Additional information
Notes on contributors
Natàlia Ferrer-Roca
Dr. Natàlia Ferrer-Roca is an Adjunct Lecturer at the University of Girona (PhD, Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand; MA, Westminster University, UK; and BA, Autonomous University of Barcelona). Her research focuses on the intersection between media and communication studies, tourism and destination branding, with special focus on political economy. She is also an independent trainer, researcher and advisor having worked for the European Broadcasting Union (EBU, Geneva), the Government of Catalonia and Diputació de Barcelona, among others.
Jaume Guia
Dr. Jaume Guia is an Associated Professor at the University of Girona. He is Programme Director of the Erasmus Mundus European Master’s in Tourism Management (EMTM) and Scientific Director of the Tourism Research Campus at the same university. He has published articles in leading academic journals on a variety of topics including destination governance, cross-border destinations, destination place making, destination image, or tourism networks and clusters. Currently he is leading a research programme on tourism in contested places and the meaning of responsible tourism in those situations.
Dani Blasco
Dr. Dani Blasco is a full-time professor and researcher at the Faculty of Tourism, University of Girona. His PhD is titled Tourism destination zoning and governance in border regions. His research interests are: organisational networks and governance in tourism, tourism destination planning and management, and human capital in tourism destinations and organisations. He has over 20 academic publications in scientific journals and books, and has published in journals such as Annals of Tourism Research, Journal of Sustainable Tourism, Tourism Geographies, Journal of Heritage Tourism, and Tourism Planning and Development. He is member of different international academic, destination and management networks.