Regenerative development and tourism: A future-oriented approach

Nadine Schmidt Rojas, who has moved to Australia over 13 years ago, has been working with the international expert Dr. Dianne Dredge at the Australian social enterprise “The Tourism CoLab” since 2023. She passionately shares with academics and practitioners worldwide how regenerative tourism can be designed to make positive contributions to communities, ecosystems, and global challenges.

The lecture focused on the questions “Why?” and “How?”. Nadine Schmidt Rojas presented regenerative developments as a necessary response to the challenges that global crises pose to worldwide health. She calls for a fundamental paradigm shift and a new way of thinking that addresses complex systems and overcomes the historical separation between humans and nature. This approach is based on the interplay of contemporary science, indigenous knowledge, and the wisdom of our ancestors.

The implementation of regenerative principles is based on five pillars: economy, socio-cultural, environment, politics, and spirituality. According to Nadine Schmidt Rojas, by incorporating these aspects, tourism can expand its role as a driving force for community development. The approach transforms traditional stakeholders into “careholders,” and the focus on guests that prevails in tourism is shifting toward a supplier orientation and co-creation. This involves the long-term regeneration of local communities and the experience of a networked host community that creates experiences not only in the service of economic interests but also has a holistic effect. Numerous practical examples from around the world, but also from Germany, illustrated the relevance of the topic in the lecture.

The guest lecture offered both our tourism students and students from related disciplines an exciting perspective on the future. It is particularly important to us to offer our students future-oriented topics such as regenerative development in tourism, as this gives them the opportunity to actively and sustainably shape the future of the industry. Such insights are essential for successfully overcoming existing and future challenges and developing innovative solutions.

In a subsequent workshop with the Altmühltal Nature Park, some aspects were explored in greater depth specifically for the region. Once again, it became clear how important and valuable the cooperation between KU and local partners is for the future development of the region.

The Chair of Tourism would like to thank Nadine Schmidt Rojas for her visit and the interesting insights she provided into regenerative developments and tourism.