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Every year, more than one million visitors seeking nature, sports, and recreation are drawn to this sports tourism destination in the Black Forest. However, the increasing intensity of use raises the potential for conflict between tourism and nature conservation. Among the challenges facing the region is the rising volume of traffic caused by visitors arriving and departing.
To enable the region’s sustainable and long-term successful development, the Institute for Outdoor Sports and Environmental Research at the German Sport University Cologne has been commissioned to develop a framework plan for the area’s development. The concept supports responsible decision-makers and stakeholders in the region in developing a system of objectives and concrete strategies. The goal is to shape the entire sustainable development process through cooperative collaboration with policymakers, government agencies, civil society, and affected stakeholders. The work focuses on the areas of transportation, snowmaking, infrastructure, and the development of offerings and products.
As part of a comprehensive baseline survey, data was collected on the natural environment, infrastructure, restaurants and lodging, as well as sports tourism offerings. To gain an overview of the economic significance of tourism, a detailed expert report is being prepared. Various research methods, such as visitor and traffic counts and drone surveys, provide precise results on current traffic volumes. In addition to figures on overnight and day visitors and data on tourists’ spending habits, the study determines the induced revenue and value-added ratios generated by tourism. The data collection makes it clear that tourism on the Feldberg plays a significant social role in addition to its central economic role. It creates numerous jobs in the secondary economic sector and thus serves as a livelihood for the local population. Therefore, the continued development of the region’s performance and competitiveness is indispensable.
The development of guiding principles and development goals takes place through stakeholder interviews, workshops, and meetings. The so-called “Feldberg Round Table” is composed of affected counties, municipalities, and representatives from specialized agencies and associations, as well as citizens. To advance the sustainable development of the Feldberg sports tourism region, extensive surveys of guests, residents, and service providers also make a significant contribution. The survey results from the various stakeholder groups sometimes serve as the basis for further development measures.
The mission statement defines the jointly developed goals, such as qualitative product development, destination management, visitor guidance, and traffic management systems. The resulting concrete recommendations for action and projects are now being implemented collaboratively.
In 2019, the institute, together with three other institutions, was commissioned to develop a sustainable development concept for the ski lift facilities and slopes, including snow management.