Agenda

The meeting brought together the partners of the European project TO CARE MED, funded under the Interreg Euro-MED programme, in Molise from 23 to 25 September 2026. The event was hosted by the Unione dei Comuni del Tifernum.

The main focus of the meeting was the development of more sustainable tourism, through the use and adaptation of the Tourism Carrying Capacity Limit (TCCL) concept. TCCL refers to the capacity of a destination to accommodate tourism activities without exceeding its environmental, social, cultural and economic limits.

The project aims to turn this approach into concrete destination-management actions for Mediterranean territories.

1. First day: reviewing the work carried out

On 23 September, in Petrella Tifernina, the partners presented the progress made by their respective Destination Working Groups.

The discussions focused in particular on:

• the involvement of local stakeholders;
• the results and scenarios developed through the TCCL methodology;
• the challenges and issues identified in the different territories;
• the priority actions to be included in future intervention plans.

Project-management issues, monitoring, reporting and coordination among partners were also addressed.

In the afternoon, the participants visited Castellino del Biferno and Lucito, where they had the opportunity to gather contributions and testimonies from local representatives.

2. Second day: designing new tourism experiences

On 24 September, in Montagano, the focus shifted towards the design of tourism experiences and the transformation of strategies into concrete Action Plans.

An important part of the day was the discussion on ecotourism in rural Mediterranean destinations, focusing on the opportunities and challenges faced by local areas and on the expectations of local communities.

The participants then walked part of the “Romanic@mente in cammino” route between Montagano and Matrice, also visiting Campolieto.

The initiative promotes forms of tourism based on slow and sustainable mobility, with particular attention to the landscape, cultural heritage and local communities.

3. Third day: transferring experiences into Action Plans

On 25 September, the work focused mainly on communication and dissemination.

The partners reflected on the lessons learned during the field visits and discussed how these experiences could be transferred into their respective Action Plans.

The aim was to ensure that the knowledge gained during the meeting could contribute to the development of practical and locally relevant measures within the project.

Why Molise was chosen:

One particularly interesting aspect of the meeting was the presentation of Molise as a kind of “living laboratory” for the project.

Compared with Mediterranean destinations affected by mass tourism, Molise offers rural areas and small villages that are less congested and therefore provide an opportunity to experiment with alternative forms of tourism based on:

• slowness and tranquillity;
• direct interaction with local communities;
• walking routes and cultural itineraries;
• the enhancement of villages and local heritage;
• ecotourism;
• new forms of accommodation and destination use, including opportunities linked to digital nomads;
• the potential regeneration and enhancement of villages affected by depopulation.

The meeting also received media attention through TGR Molise, which interviewed the project group on 24 September.