Monitoring Sustainability Along Cultural Routes: The MED Sustainable Path and Cultural Route Model

The chapter describes the theoretical and methodological approach followed to develop the MED sustainable path and cultural route (MED S&C Path) model as a practical tool to monitor sustainable tourism development along cultural routes. In the framework of BEST MED (Beyond European Sustainable Tourism MED Path) project, the model aims at improving the management of cultural routes by assessing their sustainability level using a set of criteria and indicators. The implementation process of the model proposes a multi-stakeholder approach which contributes to higher levels of cooperation at local, regional, and transnational level, improving the governance of cultural routes. The MED S&C Path model responds to the concrete need of increasing the tools to measure cultural routes' social, economic, and environmental impact, in order to raise awareness among policy makers about their strategic role in sustainable local development, especially in rural and less-known areas.