Sustainability of European Tourism

Call to support sustainability of European tourism

The call for proposals for “Support to transnational thematic tourism products as means of enhancing competitiveness and sustainability of European tourism”(43/G/ENT/CIP/12/B/N02S022) has been published by the European Commission, Directorate General Enterprise & Industry.
The present call for proposals  "Support to transnational thematic tourism products as means of enhancing competitiveness and sustainability of European tourism" (43/G/ENT/CIP/12/B/N02S022), is published in the framework  of the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Programme (EIP), one of the three operational programs  of the Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme (CIP), which specifically supports activities aiming at fostering entrepreneurship culture and creating better framework  conditions for Small and Medium size Enterprises (SMEs) operating in EU. It also aims to comply with the overall strategy of DG Enterprise and Industry, as well as with the main objectives of the Commission, as set out in the “Europe 2020” strategy.

The overall objective of the present call for proposals published by the European Commission is to enhance competitiveness and sustainability of European  tourism and to contribute to  the  creation of an environment favorable to  transnational  cooperation among tourism-related stakeholders with a particular emphasis on the SMEs, with a view to:
1)  stimulating the diversification of transnational  thematic tourism products with a high potential for sustainable development of the tourism sector and therefore for contributing to competitiveness in the sector;
2) encouraging a higher involvement of small and micro enterprises and local authorities in the development and promotion of these products;
3) strengthening transnational  public-private  cooperation aimed at developing and promoting competitive and sustainable transnational tourism products.

The current  call for proposals for “Support to transnational thematic tourism products as means of enhancing competitiveness and sustainability of European tourism” includes the following priorities:
- strengthening transnational thematic tourism products with a high potential for sustainable development
of the tourism sector, including the development of concrete tourist offers/packages to facilitate their
market uptake;
- promoting and enhancing the visibility of  transnational thematic tourism products through joint
transnational promotion-communication activities and by, among others, providing comprehensive and
practical information to potential tourists and other tourism stakeholders.
- facilitating public-private partnerships and the integration of tourism-related enterprises, in particular
small and micro size enterprises, in the supply chain of transnational thematic tourism products as well
as into regional development and tourism promotional strategies.

Eligible participants within this call for proposal published by the European Commission are:
- Public governmental  authorities and their networks or associations at  European, international, national, regional  local level or other organizations acting on behalf of a public governmental  authority
- Academic training or education establishments
- Destination management organizations and their networks/associations
- Travel Agents and Tour Operators and their umbrella associations
- Chambers of commerce and industry, chambers of handicrafts or similar bodies and their umbrella Associations.
- Not-for profit/Non-governmental organizations, civil society organizations, foundations, think-tanks, umbrella associations, networks or federations of public or private bodies, whose core activity falls under the following fields: tourism, regional development or any other field that is strictly related to the theme of the proposal
- International, European and national associations active in the field of tourism and related fields
- Federations and associations operating in partnership across the borders of a number of countries with a proven cross-border outreach
- Small and Medium Size enterprises (SMEs)  acting in the tourism sector

The actions that can be funded within the “Support to transnational thematic tourism products as means of enhancing competitiveness and sustainability of European tourism” call for proposals can include:
1) better market visibility of attractive and sustainable European transnational thematic tourism offer
2) development of comprehensive and practical information for potential tourists
3) creation of favorable environment for development of concrete tourist offers/packages in order to increase tourism flows
4) facilitating and stimulating public-private partnerships and the integration of enterprises of the tourism sector, in particular micro and small, in the supply chain of transnational thematic tourism products as well as into regional development and tourism promotional strategies
5) diversification and contribution to the development of sustainable tourism offer in Europe
6)  contribution to  growth and employment in the tourism sector

The maximum budget allocated from the Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme (CIP)
financing decision C(2011) 9230 of 15/12/2011 for this call for proposals is : 1.250.000,00 €. Indicative number of projects: up to 6 projects will be co-finance.

The deadline for submitting proposals in the framework of the current call for proposals “Support to transnational thematic tourism products as means of enhancing competitiveness and sustainability of European tourism” is 25 July 2012.

Further information on the current call for proposals is available on the European Commission’s web site at: http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/newsroom/cf/_getdocument.cfm?doc_id=7488