Tenerife (Spain) to host the Global Summit Tourism: The State of the Art

21-04-24

• The event will be held from June 19 to 21 under the auspices of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO).

• The event is considered to be the largest gathering of tourism knowledge at the international level. 

From June 19 to 21, the island will host the Tenerife Global Summit 2024, sponsored by the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) and considered the largest gathering of tourism knowledge at the international level. The Cabildo, through Turismo de Tenerife, the University of La Laguna and Strathclyde University of Glasgow (Scotland), in a different, innovative and collaborative format, will bring together leading national and international experts to discuss the state of the art of the tourism industry, with the challenges of tourism intelligence and governance, smart destinations, innovation, creativity, inclusiveness, ecological transition and sustainability as major central themes. 

The meeting, which will take place at the University of La Laguna, is the third in the history of this event, after those held in 1994 and 2004 in Scotland. 

The vice-president and councilor of Tourism of the Cabildo of Tenerife, Lope Afonso, points out that "we feel we are a leading destination, but we must necessarily develop a responsible leadership to address the reflections to which the development of the industry gives rise and also its imbalances, disorders and the questions that have to do with the sector and that the economic and social reality impose on us. Sustainability seen from the environmental, social and economic angles. We want to be a very important actor, approaching with a critical spirit the challenges we face".

The CEO of Tenerife Tourism, Dimple Melwani, emphasizes that "this is the most important event held for the island's tourism industry, as Tenerife will lead as a scientific knowledge hub. We will have numerous companies, professionals and students studying tourism and other careers. We will have very important personalities at a world level in the academic field, with affiliated members of the UNWTO, which will give rise to a forum that will mark a before and after".  

The Vice Rector for Sustainability and Infrastructures of the University of La Laguna (ULL), Candela Díaz, comments that "the University of La Laguna is committed to being a world reference on smart destinations. I congratulate all the agents involved who have made Tenerife host this great event next June 202, highlighting the relevance of the island in the tourism industry as an example of a smart destination". 

Eduardo Parra, professor of Business Organization, Digital Economy and Tourism at the ULL, said that "this is a very ambitious project and it will be very important for the island to have agents from all over the world in the tourism industry here, discussing the challenges of the future. We want to place Tenerife as a center of knowledge. We have a lot of hard work ahead of us in the next four months, but we are going to achieve it". 

The technical coordinator of the Affiliate Members department of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), Dmitriy Ilin, indicates that "today is an important day for Tenerife to include in its agenda of events such an important meeting as Tenerife Global Summit 2024, whose objective will be to bring together experts from the academic, business and government sectors to debate for three days the issues of concern to the tourism industry, jointly seeking solutions to the challenges currently faced by tourist destinations".

The contribution of tourism to the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations Agenda 2023, which lays the foundations for the transformation of tourism towards a model of sustainable growth that allows it to maintain its position of global leadership, and where, while improving the capacity and competitiveness of destinations, it reinforces their natural and cultural values and equitably distributes the benefits, is among the main objectives of the conference. Similarly, the event will address the relevance of the tourism industry as a driver of the global economy that takes on new challenges -especially after the pandemic of covid-19- such as digitization, with technology as a catalyst for new business models for a better traveler experience and better quality of life for its residents.

Academics, tourism experts, entrepreneurs, analysts, government officials, universities, R+D+I centers and tourism associations and organizations that will take part in the conference, including Dimitrios Buhalis (Bournemouth University), Ion Vilcu (UNWTO), Youcheng Wang (University of Florida), and Sara Dolnicar (Queensland University Australia), among others, will make their contributions on these issues.

The conference, in a new and innovative format, will be divided into six areas: collaborative and intelligent governance of tourism; new ways of managing tourism; and new ways of managing tourism in a sustainable way.