THE ANSWERS

The results that emerged from Future Lab

In 2019 the local community of the Altopiano della Paganella, at the pinnacle of its success as an Alpine tourist resort, began reflecting on the future, seeking to conceive of a more sustainable form of tourism better suited to facing the great challenges of the future: climate change, generational turnover, and managing the relationship between tourists and local residents. An additional challenge was added to the mix, as unexpected as it was serious: Covid-19.

An exchange of views involving the entire community and lasting 2 years led to the definition of a “Values Charter” and a “Project Catalogue”.

Charter of Values

In the past, many local councils across Trentino created their own so-called “Charter of Regulations”, setting down rules for civil cohabitation based on a centuries-old tradition. We drew inspiration from this tradition when drafting our future oriented “Charter of Values” for the communities of the Paganella. We started from 10 guiding principles applicable to private citizens, companies, organizations, and public institutions with the aim of promoting the development of a community founded on shared values, with tourism as the engine for planning and developing the future.

Charter
of
Values

Prioritize quality above quantity

In recent years our resort has experienced constant linear growth in tourism, but this is not an objective in itself that can be pursued forever. As a result we are committed to reasoning instead in terms of value: we will no longer focus on volume (numbers of visitors and nights), instead giving precedence to the quality of the experience of tourists and the benefits for the local community.

Consider the long-term first

We suggest always maintaining a perspective oriented towards the future, without ceding to the temptation of immediate short term gains. Decisions that affect the entire resort must always be guided from the perspective of the local community’s long-term wellbeing.

Aspire to be season-free

Everybody knows that in the future mountain tourism will no longer be able to depend mainly on the winter. Instead we must aspire towards being “season-free”, taking advantage of our local territory 365 days a year and not just during specific seasonal peaks, creating a holiday resort capable of expressing its full potential throughout the entire year.

Tourism should benefit the entire community

We believe that tourism must be in harmony with the local area and people, providing opportunities for a better and more prosperous life for the entire society. Our local community must always have the final word on how to build and develop our future prospects.

Become a tourism-powered destination

Precisely because we acknowledge the enormous value of tourism for our local community, we do not want to be totally dependent on it. Our ambition is to be a holiday destination that consciously manages the tourist phenomenon, making use of the emerging lessons and benefits to promote growth and success in other sectors of the local economy.

Pursue a value-based relationship between visitors, territory, and residents

Tourism cannot be reduced to a simple financial transaction between visitors and local operators. Visitors and organizations must share values, ideas, and experiences for a tourism that evolves and grows in harmony with the environment and local community, helping improve quality of life in our holiday resort.

Future generations will need to be our pioneers and innovators

We believe in the importance of reducing the generation gap and eliminating obstacles for the new generations trying to establish themselves locally. Rather than seeing young people merely as “labour” we have to consider them as future leaders, innovators, and entrepreneurs, creating conditions that facilitate their development.

Aim to become a climate-neutral destination

We are aware of our responsibilities and the need to play a part in countering climate change by ensuring that our tourism evolves sustainably. This implies not just innovating locally, but also providing an example for others by promoting a sustainable development model.

Protect our heritage and strengthen our sense of belonging

We believe that Dolomiti Paganella is something more than just a holiday resort or a collection of various local councils. We are a community whose lives are shaped by the mountains (our identity is moulded by this even more than by tourism) and this translates into a lifestyle in which adaptability, innovation, and tradition are values that unite past, present, and future.

Always consider people as our most important resource

We know that everything starts from people, which includes locals who have always lived here, visitors who briefly share our home, and new arrivals who come here to open a new chapter in their lives. We thus see tourist development as being closely correlated with the creation of a place that is attractive for residents, visitors, and new talents coming from other regions or even outside Italy, who understand the implicit culture of the community and want to build their future here.

Projects

Guided by the views and aspirations we gleaned from the local community, and the 10 principles of our “Values Charter”, we defined 10 future oriented projects that will help the Altopiano della Paganella become a more balanced holiday destination in the future, both for residents and tourists.