The University Institute of Tourism and Sustainable Economic Development (TIDES) is a research centre that aims to develop outstanding research, generating and circulating scientific knowledge, and integrating itself into international networks of excellence. In addition, it provides education, training and applies the knowledge generated to promote the improvement of economic, social and environmental tourism development in tourist destinations.
TIDES, as the institute responsible for research in tourism at the Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC), has contributed to innovation actions in the field of Tourism Development and Planning, Management of rural areas and inhabited protected areas, environmental and socioeconomic evaluation, experiment design to study consumer behaviour, islands vulnerability, climate change and related policies.
The Canary Islands are the most important region in Europe in terms of international arrivals. The fact that this enormous activity is based on the consumption of a fragile and fragmented ecosystem makes TiDES and the Canary Islands a unique “living lab” to understand the relationships of social activities and many key sustainability research areas like Environmental quality, water consumption, waste management, urban planning, governance structures, economic development and wealth inequality.
As a result of these actions, the centre offers a new climate service, materialised in an online platform entitled ¨Regional Exchange Information System-REIS¨. REIS platform aims to assist policymakers and practitioners in the design of tailored climate change adaptation plans.
The platform offers two main services:
-An experts panel composed of a multidisciplinary group of scientists and policymakers with great experience in the analysis of climate change impacts for the context of islands. The panel provides assistance and advisory in supporting downscaled climate change forecasts (regions, islands) and the subsequent socio-economic impacts on sectoral activities through a well-personalised networking area.
- The Adaptation Support Tool for Islands is a practical guide to understand Climate Change impacts for the context of European Islands and Outermost Regions. It provides specific knowledge regarding physical impacts, non-market and socio-economic consequences of climate change for the 12 EU islands case studies. Alternative viable adaptation pathways that can be implemented on these islands are also proposed in the tool, which is framed by the geographic, economic and social context of each island analysed. It works as a compass where we choose three coordinates following this order: 1.Archipelago/Island, 2. Sector and 3. Hazard.
For more information on REIS, click here.
For more information on TIDES, click here.