Welcome to OUR FUTURE Western Thessaly, Greece!
For Our Future Greece, we broadcast worldwide from our virtual dialogue at the footsteps of the mystical UNESCO World Heritage site of Meteora.
During Our Future, we will gain insights into the overall Greek context for tourism, as well as the complex matters facing the locals when tourism returns to the region. Each of the communities near Meteora (e.g., Trikala, Kalampaka, Kastraki Village) face intriguing, individual challenges and feature varying degrees of progressive smart- and sustainable-strategies. And yet, they bonded by shared challenges such as the effects of rural to urban migration, the tension between established destinations and rural development (e.g., some sites get more than one million visitors per year, while just a few kilometers away, a site may not get a single visitor all year), a lack of innovation as the aging population cannot follow the technology and digitalization of the sector, and so much more.
Contributors:
George Kourelis (GR)
Dimitris Palaiogiannis (GR)
Jane Connelly (ES/USA)
Phakamile Hlazo (SA)
Chris Doyle (US/SWE)
Milena Nikolova (BUL)
Daniel Byström (SWE)
Ásta Kristín Sigurjónsdóttir (IS)
Special Guests:
Pavlos Yeroulanos (GR)
Dimitris Papastergiou, Mayor of Trikala (GR)