On March 25th, 2025, the TOURAL project was at the Living Lab participatory workshop held at the Rector’s Palace in Pag, focusing on the future of tourism in Šimuni, a coastal settlement on the island of Pag. The event was organized by the Zadar County Development Agency ZADRA NOVA as part of the project’s local implementation in Croatia, with support from the Pag Town Tourist Board.
The workshop brought together 20 participants representing a wide cross-section of local stakeholders, including institutions, tourism operators, community associations, and public agencies. Their shared goal: to co-create a sustainable vision for tourism development in Šimuni, rooted in cultural and environmental authenticity.
Participants included representatives from ZADRA NOVA, the Pag Town Tourist Board, Zadar County, the University of Zadar, the City of Pag, the International Center for Underwater Archaeology in Zadar, the Zadar County Rural Development Agency (AGRRA), the Šimuni Association, the Šimuni Local Board, and local enterprises such as Pag tours d.o.o., ACI d.d., and U.O. Nevera.
Using TOURAL’s inclusive and participatory methodology, the Living Lab enabled a collaborative exchange of ideas on how Šimuni can leverage its unique assets—natural beauty, cultural heritage, and local identity—to build a resilient, year-round tourism model. This aligns with TOURAL’s broader objective to co-create tourism strategies and products through community-driven innovation across the Adriatic-Ionian and Black Sea regions.
The Šimuni Living Lab stands as a strong example of how TOURAL fosters grassroots innovation, participatory governance, and transnational cooperation, strengthening local capacity to shape the future of tourism in harmony with sustainability goals.
