After the participation at the first round of training organized on 6th October, the Lazio Region is now planning the organization of a training based on the results of the analysis of threats and enabling factors for sustainable tourism at local level.

The analysis and the following online survey, addressed to 180 participants, identified the main issues to be tackled to ensure sustainable coastal/maritime tourism in the Circeo National Park, one of the seven pilot areas of Co-Evolve4BG project.

The main issues highlighted as most urgent concerns are the touristic fluxes and carrying capacity of the system; morphological stability and climate change; transport and accessibility of the hinterland/coastal system.  
These are the main themes that the Lazio Region will tackle on the participatory approach phasis.
 

To summarize:

Tourism in the Circeo National Park and Man and Biosphere (MaB) reserve plays a key role in the economy of the province of Latina in Italy with over 2 million people visiting the reserve every summer, but at the same time it is characterized by a highly seasonal nature, producing significant pressures, especially in the seaside resorts. 

The Circeo MaB Nature Reserve has one of the few dune systems still quite intact on the Pontine coast, but it is also exposed to significant anthropogenic influences and climate change. (e.g. walkways caused by the passage of bathers, uncontrolled access to the beach and mechanized cleaning of the beaches). 

Moreover, coastal erosion produces a great impact on tourism with a reduction in the reception capacity of the bathing establishments due to the setback of the beach, leading in the long term to a reduction in the receptive capacity of the entire coastal system and its related activities characterized by seaside and purely seasonal tourism.

Therefore, in order to promote Blue Tourism, it is necessary to adopt measures aimed at promoting the extension of the tourist season (deseasonalization), but also technologies and tourist activities with lower impact on environment.

In this perspective, it is necessary to consider that the Park Authority and the local Municipalities have been developing different mitigation and adaptation approaches (policies, programmes, projects...) to reduce the impacts of climate change in the MaB Circeo area and to balance tourism and environmental protection.

Lastly, the Blue Economy related to transport sectors can also be an opportunity for the implementation of strategies for promoting sustainable tourism and increasing the accessibility of the Circeo MaB Reserve, by fostering the conversion of touristic harbors and marina into "eco-ports", strengthening the connections with the Archipelago Ponziano through sustainable mobility systems (e.g. electric ferries), increasing the accessibility to the area through sustainable mobility to reduce environmental impact, promoting the navigability of inland canals and Lake Paola for access to the area through canoes, kayaks, and electric boats thus promoting sustainable tourism.