Sustainable travel is a growing mega-trend, yet the MSMEs that dominate the accommodation sector are struggling to adapt. They find existing sustainability standards too complex, costly, and confusing to implement, which harms their competitiveness.
A consortium of 7 partners from 5 countries aims to overcome these barriers by developing accessible, practical tools for sustainable transformation. SMAC (Sustainability Model for Accommodation MSMEs) will develop a two-part solution to make sustainability achievable for small businesses:
- A Simplified Sustainability Model for Accommodation (SSMA): A clear, streamlined framework.
- An AI Recommendation Tool (AIRET): A supportive technology to guide implementation.
Key Activities & Outputs:
The project will raise public awareness, develop the SSMA and AIRET tools, and train a network of sustainability mentors. These mentors will then support a pilot implementation of the model. The lessons learned will be used to refine the tools and compose a policy recommendation paper to influence wider change. Final Beneficiaries are accommodation MSMEs and their staff, tourism policymakers, tourists, and local communities.
Our project partners:
- Drama Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Greece)
- Alexandria Chamber of Commerce (Egypt)
- Association of the Mediterranean Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Spain)
- Democritus University of Thrace – Special Account for Research Funds (Greece)
- Chamber de Commerce et d’Industrie de Tunis (Tunisia)
- Adana Metropolitan Municipality (Türkiye)
SMAC is a project under the Interreg NEXT MED programme, with a duration of 30 months and a total budget of 2.321.252,02 €, of which 89% is co-funded by the European Union.
#MADE4MED #SMAC
Project website / SMAC Interreg NEXT MED
