The officialization of this incorporation took place this Wednesday during the meeting of the UN Tourism Commission for Europe, held in Malta. The president of the Visit València Foundation and Councilor for Tourism, Innovation, and Investments, Paula Llobet, attended the event, as reported by the city council in a statement.
Valencia, which has joined the network along with Malta and Madeira, becomes the 45th member destination worldwide. The city is one of the first Spanish destinations integrated into this network, and the first in the Valencian Community, along with territories such as Navarra, the Canary Islands, Mallorca, Barcelona, Málaga, and Vizcaya.
The objective of the INSTO network, created in 2004, is to accompany and support the improvement of sustainability and resilience in tourism activity. This is done through studies and the exchange of analytical data, to create a network of collaborators that benefits both inhabitants and visitors, with the aim of preserving destinations for future generations. Collaborating observatories commit to evaluating the impact of tourism in different areas.
“"Valencia's incorporation into the Insto network recognizes, among other things, the work that the Visit València Foundation develops with Focus, a tool that allows measuring and analyzing the impact of tourism from a global and shared perspective. With this integration, a layer of sustainability indicators has been added, aligned with UN Tourism standards. Thus, Focus monitors aspects such as water footprint or tourist occupancy to adapt its strategy more efficiently and sustainably."
Valencia's representation at the UN Tourism Commission for Europe meeting was completed with the participation of the Visit València Foundation in the Tourism Tech Adventure: Malta, the final of an innovation challenge focused on mitigating urban heat in tourist destinations. This initiative promotes innovative solutions to address the impact of high temperatures in cities, improving their climate resilience and visitor experience through areas such as green infrastructure, urban design, and climate technologies.
Furthermore, the city of Valencia has been chosen as an example of good practices in sustainable tourism and selected to participate in the round table Co-creating solutions from shared challenges, focused on the balanced management of tourist flows in Europe to ensure a positive impact on both residents and visitors. The session will bring together representatives from academia, institutions, and businesses this Thursday.
