Riattivare il Turismo dopo un disastro Naturale

"<< Background >>The RETOURN (REcovery TOURrism after Natural disaster) project is a vocational training project addressing the lack of preparation and expertise of figures operating in the tourism sector on risk management and the recovery of damage resulting from natural disasters such as earthquakes, floods , hurricanes and pandemics such as the one caused by COVID-19. The partnership represents European communities and territories affected by various natural disasters in recent years includes Chamber of Commerce, VET providers, University, Associations from Italy, Greece, Slovenia, Hungary, and Germany. The premises of the project have been confirmed in the research and implementation conducted with communities affected by natural disasters, proving that it is fundamental, especially in the post-disaster phase, to implement education in emergency management, prevention, the revitalization of communication and the reconstruction of territories starting from tourism, with a bottom-up participatory approach. To do this, the project achieved the goal of proposing and testing a training program that facilitates and recovers the touristic development in areas affected by natural disasters, creating the figure of the Tourism Recovery Expert. << Objectives >>The aim of the project was to structure, implement, test and disseminate the ""Recovery Tourism after Natural Disaster"" training programme, which aims to up-skilling or re-skilling tourism professionals from companies, institutions and NGOs, stakeholders and members of local communities, university students from tourism and business courses. They will acquire the skills to have a positive impact on the area affected by a natural disaster, reactivating economic activities, improve the attractiveness and image of the area and also find new employment if they have lost their job due to the emergency or crisis following the natural disaster. The content of the course builds competences in tourism disaster management and the restoration of the tourist image after the occurrence of a natural disaster, thanks to face-to-face teaching sessions, Open Educational Resource resources, laboratory activities provided according to the alternative didactic method of serious play, to enhance emerging strategy making in complex, uncertain and ""disruptive"" contexts, such as those affected by natural disasters.<< Implementation >>RETOURN provides for the creation of a training path that allows trainees with experience or basic knowledge in the tourism and economic fields to acquire the skills and know-how to act in post-natural disaster contexts. The project's workflow was conceived according to four steps or project results, the results of which are all uploaded to the project website www.retourn.eu • Creation of the Competence Framework for the Tourism Recovery Expert: in this phase, research was carried out in the databases of skills and profiles at European level and in individual partner countries to find, integrate and compose the competences for the figure of the Tourism Recovery Expert, who is was integrated with the results of empirical qualitative research conducted using the focus group (or interview) methodology in the 5 partner countries. The summary documents of the results of these processes were shared and validated by the international partnership, which summarized the institutional, market and cultural stimuli coming from the partners, were the basis for the development of the contents of the training course. These results were also presented in two scientific conferences (AGBRP 2022, International Marketing Trend Conference, 2023) and submitted for publication in scientific journals and international book chapter collections. The PR1 summary documents are uploaded to the project site. • Design of the structure of the new interdisciplinary teaching in Recovery Tourism after Natural Disaster and Processing of the contents of the Open Educational Resources: this project result started from the new professional profile created and in a progressive and iterative logic, where the areas of action, knowledge and competence of the Tourism Recovery Expert were expressed in contents and learning methods. Modules and training units replicated the needs and skill gaps that emerged, while the structure, duration, teaching methodologies were all defined and described for the implementation of the course also within courses aimed at vocational training and higher education. The learning implementation methods, which include classroom learning, online learning in the Open Education Resources and in the SWOT and serious play laboratories, are explained in the summary document. It is also possible to implement the course in its entirety or as single modules, enhancing the adaptability and flexibility of the learning to the specific needs of the participants. At the end of the learning, the learners can download certificates of completion of the learning on the individual skill acquired, once each individual module has been completed. While for the overall certificate of the Tourism Recovery Expert professional profile it is necessary to complete all the learning (lessons, OER, SWOT serious play laboratories). The PR2 document is published on the project website. • Realization of the online platform for the project and realization of the Open Educational Resources (OER): in the Retourn course, the online platform content, i.e. the OER, is inserted and accessible on the Retourn project website, in the ""Education"" section, free of charge, under registration. The OERs are structured according to the provisions of PR2 and have been managed by the partnership according to their level of expertise and specific focus. The OERs consists of introductory videos, units available in English, Greek, German, Hungarian, Italian and Slovenian, in-depth material, links, tests. Additional resources have also been provided for trainers, teachers and professors who wish to implement the material proposed by Retourn in their courses, with some additional materials, application suggestions and exercises. The PR3 result is the learning platform and materials, accessible in the project website. • Piloting of the new training program and SWOT analysis post-natural disasters: following the short-term mobility activity for trainers (LTT) which allowed the partners to learn and apply training and education methods based on Serious Play, the partners have finalized the methods, timing and characteristics of the piloting for the implementation of the training course. The partners piloted the project with 146 beneficiaries, each specializing in different categories of beneficiaries, which could allow them to receive diversified feedback, testing the contents and methods of the course for appropriateness, effectiveness, relevance, flexibility, interest. While VET providers and Chambers of Commerce trained tourism professionals and experts from companies, institutions, NGOs, and universities tested the training especially on students from economic and tourism areas. The results obtained in the piloting are the issuing certificates and obtaining positive scores in the feedback surveys. The PR4 report document is published on the project website.<< Results >>With the implementation of the activities related to the project results, it was possible to: • create a training course created to fill the gaps in skills and know-how on tourism in the post-natural disaster period, in an era unfortunately increasingly characterized by extreme natural phenomena • promote the adoption of a European teaching model that includes traditional and experiential teaching methods • promote quality training that is adaptable to contexts for professionals and experts from companies, institutions, NGOs and different countries, but also students and those unemployed due to disasters, facilitating upskilling, reskilling and greater collective knowledge of prevention issues and post-disaster reconstruction • create stable links between training institutions, businesses, NGOs, territories and communities; • create opportunities for visibility, fundraising, solidarity on the part of non-territorial stakeholders, who can revive the territory with investment, donations, targeted consumption; • develop forms and opportunities for collaboration for tourism businesses at European level, also in order to develop the attitude to co-create value; • promote a participatory approach in the planning of the conversion/restructuring after the natural disaster; • raise awareness of the importance of the impact of natural disasters and the importance of prevention in all areas of human life and in the tourism sector in particular; • diffusion of a culture of prevention, emergency management and reconstruction with respect to natural disasters, from a strategic, systemic perspective, consistent with the vocations of the territories and the communities that inhabit them; • increase the number of staff employed in the areas affected by the disaster through employment or re-employment in the training path; • helping tourism businesses to cope with and survive the recovery period; • help the creation of new businesses and initiatives in areas affected by natural disasters, which emphasize the vocation of the territory and maximize the attractiveness for the local community, tourists and all stakeholders; • propose forms of reconstruction based on an ethical and sustainable use of the natural, economic and social resources of the territory; • show the opportunities for territories to see reconstruction from natural disasters as restoration or as innovation and new vocation; • contribute to the conversion of the tourist image of the areas affected by natural disasters; • attract new tourists and new tourism segments, who would not have known the area before the disaster and reconstruction; • create new opportunities for funding and planning research, thanks to collaboration with research bodies, universities, local, regional, state and European government bodies; • create the prerequisites for greater awareness at European level on these issues so as to be able to produce indications for future practices and regulations aimed at prevention, emergency and crisis management; • encourage greater use of risk management plans in the territory and in particular for the tourism sector."