The 2020 pandemic and overtourism issues of recent years have shown us the benefits, relevance and limitations of tourism. In response, several international partners launched TourismFromZero, which has already received more than 900 responses discussing related issues and ideas. In April 2020, several students submitted ideas via the TourismFromZero questionnaire with a common focus on local "from zero” experiences. They were invited to join the TFZ team to guide them in implementing their idea. The group formed the LocalsFromZero startup, invented a new concept for local tourism collaboration, and implemented the first minimally viable LocalsFromZero (LFZ) prototype. LFZ is an experiential platform in the form of an e-marketplace with a profound social twist: education and support for the digitization of smaller, authentic providers and the opportunity for students to gain real work experience. A new platform/business model layer is included through the LFZ Scouts. Scouts are field agents who know their region inside and out. Their job is to find hidden local experts and hosts - and help them become part of the tourism market. These small but important players are often overlooked, even though they contribute greatly to the preservation of local traditions (past and present), culture and environment. The case study presented analyzes the process from the initial pandemic response to youth activation and intergenerational collaboration that developed in and through unique circumstances and drivers of innovation. 

 

This research is partly carried out in the framework of the EU-funded HORIZON 2020 project SMARTDEST.