Insights on Entrepreneurship, SMEs, Tourism, Regions and Cities
How can policies support the revitalisation of mountains to be more attractive places for talent on the move?
For almost three years now, the tourism sector has been going through a really tough time. It was smashed by the COVID-19 pandemic and travel restrictions. After hitting 1.5 billion international tourist arrivals in 2019, international tourist arrivals worldwide plummeted by over 70%.
After six decades of consistent growth, the unprecedented shock of the global COVID-19 pandemic saw tourism come to a near complete standstill. Two years on, there’s still huge uncertainty for the tourism sector. What lies in store for tourism in 2023 and beyond?
Yet innovation in rural places tends to follow a different path – focusing on improving production processes, business models or social innovations that are not uniquely profit-driven.
Like COVID-19 and climate change, the energy crisis is revealing urban inequalities as well. Wealthier residents consume roughly double the amount of energy as low-income ones, suggesting that the most vulnerable populations will again suffer the most as energy prices climb.
The average person from an OECD country spends 37 hours a week at work. Unfortunately, it is not always the most fulfilling experience. Indeed, one study found that paid work is ranked lower for wellbeing than any other of the 39 activities sampled except for being sick in bed. It is no longer just about job quantity, but also job quality.
The global pandemic transformed the way we work and shop. While many businesses were able to weather the storm of the global pandemic shutdowns, running a small business along our Main Streets is now more complex.
Over several years, the Innovation Growth Lab (IGL) has worked with the UK government and the European Commission on a new approach to this problem. It has set up experimentation funds to test new interventions to boost innovation and productivity among SMEs.