Tourism is often used to revitalize an area or address specific challenges. But despite the best intentions, destinations often change as more visitors arrive, and residents don’t always benefit. When we develop and promote a (undiscovered) destination, it will be visited by more people. This can be beneficial, but in many cases, the destination also loses its charm, and the impact on liveability and nature is significant.
This can be done differently. I believe in a different form of tourism. A form of tourism that adds value for residents, contributes to the liveability of a place and improves the relationship between humans and nature. I believe place, people, and nature can reinforce each other and that tourism can contribute to that. But for that to happen, we need to change tourism as it is. And for that, more people need to believe in this message ánd act upon it.
For five years I have specialized in the development of sustainable tourism by obtaining a PhD from Erasmus University in 2022. I am now putting this expertise into practice. I started Paradise Found in 2019 to close the (sometimes large) gap between science and ‘the real world’ by applying scientific knowledge in practice. Now the situation is reversed. From my home office in the northern Spanish countryside, I work with governments, destination marketing organizations and tourism companies on sustainable change – always supported by a scientific basis.
Shirley Nieuwland
Founder of Paradise Found
