VERNE partners meet in Turkey
The VERNE Project is advancing the development of circular and sustainable tourism business models across its five pilot destinations in Europe.
Project partners BUU, ANRI, and ATU are working collaboratively to design, test, and validate innovative approaches tailored to diverse tourism contexts. During this productive meeting in Turkey, the partners worked intensively on developing sustainable business models for our pilot regions. The sessions allowed us discussed deeply each model, exchange insights, and critically discuss their structure and applicability.
The VERNE workflow is built on a structured and comprehensive approach:
- Reclassifying stakeholders and prioritizing them based on their importance
- Conducting a thorough situation analysis of the destination
- Developing a Triple Layered Business Model Canvas (economic, environmental, and social dimensions)
- Transforming this into a Four-Dimensional Business Model
- Creating stakeholder-specific action plans with operational strategies
Next Steps
In spring 2026, a joint team of experts from BUU and ATU will conduct visits to each pilot destination. The visits are focused on presenting initial business model concepts, engaging directly with local stakeholders, and gathering valuable feedback to refine and adapt the proposed solutions to local needs and realities.
These pilot actions span a wide range of themes, including micro-museums for heritage tourism in Sønderjylland-Schleswig (Denmark–Germany border), food-experience tourism in Bornholm (Denmark), eco-accommodation supported by nature-based technologies in Santorini (Greece), virtual nature-based tourism in Uusimaa (Finland), and a zero-food-waste system for green tourism in Pomurje (Slovenia).
These activities build on VERNE’s ongoing research into systemic circular solutions for sustainable tourism, as well as methodologies for assessing circularity. The business models are being developed in alignment with the project’s Multidimensional Transition Framework, which supports tourism enterprises in integrating circular practices into their operations while measuring environmental, social, and economic impacts.
