The Círculo Ecuestre Impact and Sustainability Commission, in collaboration with CaixaBank, inaugurated the Tourism, Mobility and Food. Building a sustainable future Cycle on November 27th, with a first meeting entitled Barcelona Destination 4.0. Global attraction, local challenge. This first round table addressed the challenges of sustainability in tourism activity and the visitor economy of Barcelona.
The breakfast-colloquium, presented by Sergio Rodríguez, Commercial Director of Private Banking, began with the presentation of the CaixaBank report Economic and tourism sector perspectives, by its author, the bank's economist David César Heymann. Thanks to this report, attendees were able to learn first-hand about the current situation of the sector, the impact of tourism activity in areas such as catering and leisure, and how, through the use of credit cards, the influence of factors such as climate change on travel patterns and the consumer behavior of tourists can be analyzed.
Following the presentation, Ángel Díaz, president of Advanced Leisure Services, moderated a round table composed of profiles of large companies and entities linked to the tourism and financial sector: Diego Vicente Hernández, director of CaixaBank Hotels & Tourism; Eva Ruiz, Director of Fintech and Crossborder at Visa for Southern Europe; Isabel Galobardes, president of PIMEC Turismo, and Luis Falcón, CEO of inAtlas-Informa.
Throughout the conversation, the speakers assessed the impact of tourism activity in Barcelona in recent decades, thanks to which it has become one of the most attractive cities in the world for attracting people, projects and investments, making it a privileged platform for the development of the visitor economy.
The director of CaixaBank Hotels & Tourism, Diego Vicente Hernández, highlighted the importance and role of sustainability as a fundamental criterion in the financing of tourism projects.
Eva Ruiz, Director of Fintech and Crossborder at Visa for Southern Europe, presented the innovative Barcelona Sustainable Gastronomy initiative, promoted by Visa in collaboration with Turisme de Barcelona. This project, a pioneer worldwide, highlights how sustainability has become a priority for tourists. According to Ruiz, "Travelers are increasingly aware of the environmental impact when choosing their destination and the places where they consume. Through this initiative, we are supporting local businesses in Barcelona to offer sustainable and quality experiences, advising restaurants on improvements to digitize their processes and helping to improve their competitiveness in the global market". "High-value tourists understand the incremental cost of responsible choices and look for destinations with unique credibility. There is a unique opportunity in the type of profiles that the city should attract. For this reason, Barcelona is very clear about its commitment to sustainability", she stressed.
Isabel Galobardes, president of PIMEC Turismo, stressed the importance of SMEs in the reality of tourism activity, as agents of innovation and adaptation, and the challenges that sustainability poses for micro and mini-SMEs: “We SMEs are clear that sustainability is no longer a pipe dream; it is our business segment. Our clients demand it, value it and incorporate it into their business strategy as an element of competitiveness”. “We are making progress in sustainability, but we must speed up the process, always thinking small. Applying the same criteria as for large corporations is not viable for SMEs”, said, and then argued that “bureaucracy and hyper-legislation are important barriers that sometimes create an excessive and unequal burden”.
Finally, the CEO of inAtlas-Informa, Luis Falcón, explained how tourism activity allows us to have a destination that is especially prepared and attractive for developing advanced economies, increasing the competitiveness of the destination and the added value of business activity: “Tourism is an attribute that enables the rest of the competitive economies of the city. This was made clear in 1992, and examples such as the Mobile World Congress would not exist without the tourist infrastructure that we have”. According to the expert, “tourism is no longer a finalist phenomenon; its impact is transversal, touching economic, social and environmental aspects, and it is essential to measure it under these three axes. We cannot continue to measure development only with GDP or annual accounts; we need a new paradigm that values the impact of tourism on sustainability”, he argued. "Barcelona's economy and its ability to attract innovation are directly linked to the tourist ecosystem that sustains the city", Falcón concluded.
The first round table discussion of the Tourism, Mobility and Food. Building a Sustainable Future Cycle offered a comprehensive view, supported by data and knowledge from experts, which highlighted the economic weight of the activity, its driving effect on other sectors, its reinforcing power in the network of SMEs and micro-SMEs, or its effect on the notoriety and positioning of the Barcelona brand, among other aspects.