Neighbourhoods That Rock: the Sant Andreu Regenerative Commerce Route driven by local initiatives
By Anna Higueras, Project Manager, and Pako Rodríguez, Consultant specialised in tourism. (Originally published in Spanish)
Barris que Molen (Neighbourhoods That Rock), the project to democratise positive tourism for local communities led by the Ideas for Change team, has concluded its first Barcelona experience in the District of Sant Andreu at the Fabra i Coats Center. We celebrated the final event of the initiative with the Sant Andreu Regenerative Commerce Route presentation developed by various local initiatives.
The project, which has received funding from Barcelona Activa through its annual call ‘Impulsem el que Fas’ (we promote what you do), was created with the aim of activating a process of economic regeneration through participatory tourism development with local impact in the district. More than 30 local entities and actors participated in the plan to recognise and map the possibilities and resources of the area. The final proposal was a new route of responsible and regenerative tourism in Sant Andreu, enhancing the possibilities of the neighbourhoods that integrate the district.
The Sant Andreu Regenerative Commerce Route includes 7 businesses that have integrated sustainability into their activities: bulk shops, gastronomic establishments that are committed to buying local products, a historic charcuterie that makes its own elaborations, or the sale of biodegradable cleaning products in returnable packaging, are some of the practices that are proposed to be visited along the route.
Who is behind Neighbourhoods That Rock
Neighbourhoods That Rock is a project conceptualised by Ideas for Change, through the Destinations That Rock area. The team is responsible for various projects in the tourism sector, such as the FiturNext observatory, which annually receives and analyses hundreds of initiatives, seeking which of them have the greatest positive social and environmental impact or their replicability in areas such as female empowerment or accessibility.
This first edition of Neighbourhoods That Rock in Sant Andreu has had the participation of various local initiatives, which have contributed with their vision from the beginning of the project. In the initial interview phase, for example, participants worked with the District of Sant Andreu, members of various collaborative initiatives of the Social and Solidarity Economy Network from Sant Andreu (XES), cultural facilities such as Fabra i Coats and the Barcelona Activa team, among others. Synergies have also been established with other regenerative tourism projects operating in other districts of the city, such as the sustainable tourism network Aethnic, or the eXplorins App, which have been involved throughout the process.
In particular, the Sant Andreu Regenerative Commerce Route was developed by Joshua Torres, head of the bulk-buying shop "La Granoleta", and has been supported by the Commercial Axis of Sant Andreu (which currently brings together more than 170 local businesses) and the social return co-working space "Sinèrgics", based in Baró de Viver. As part of the route you can visit La Bodegueta de Sant Andreu, BioPompas, Organic Lab, Abans Morta que Senzilla, Equivalenza, La Granoleta and Cansaladeria Puig.
Results of the first phase
The presentation of the results of the process took place during the closing ceremony in Fabra i Coats. For the occasion, the activities carried out in the hands-on workshops were analysed in detail, and the main resources available to the district, the actions that could be undertaken and the organisations with which synergies should be generated were shared with the attendees. In the same way, we identified what type of visitors had been characterised as part of the process: they mainly have a family profile, or are people coming from other parts of the city and the metropolitan area, who do not stay overnight in the district.
There was also time for a discussion to analyse possible next steps: is it necessary to co-create a discussion table, is the resulting Route the pilot project, and should we wait for its results to develop others?
Finally, it is important to stand out that the conclusion of the whole process is also an open and enriching debate on the opportunities that the visitor economy can bring if it is directed and focused on the segments that traders, neighbours, administration and local communities consider to be of interest.
How is a Destination That Rocks developed as a Neighbourhood That Rocks?
Destinations that Rock are destinations that respect the principles of Regenerative Tourism (responsible, sustainable, adding value to the local community), and are established through the Penta-Care methodology of Ideas for Change.
This methodology allows us to analyse the territory from a local perspective, highlighting the heritage resources and the different attractions of the district through the vision of its residents. This dynamic helps to understand what we have to offer as a destination and who is the visitor we want to attract, in order to know what to offer them and how to approach them so that they will want to visit it.
The training and co-creation sessions carried out have helped to broaden the imaginary of the term ‘tourism’ by explaining new, more responsible and sustainable ways of visiting a destination. The whole process has been based on the design of positive ideas to make Sant Andreu a sustainable, regenerative and cool district for visitors and locals.
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