2025/07/22 by Roosa Ridanpää · 1 voice
Social Sciences · Business, Management and Accounting · #Diverse Aspects of Tourism Research #Entrepreneurship Studies and Influences #Tourism, Volunteerism, and Development
paper · pdf · doi:10.1080/14616688.2025.2535690
openalex publication_date 2025/07/22 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/06/15
Small enterprises are key actors in transforming tourism towards regenerative futures. Though the importance of regenerative tourism has been recognised by some researchers, it remains on the periphery of mainstream discourse. Thus, we need better understanding of what tourism enterprises can do to effect the necessary paradigm change in tourism production and consumption. To address this, the present paper focuses on the reciprocal relationships of enterprises within place using Northern Finland as a research area. The research is based on interviews conducted with small and micro-sized enterprises (SMiEs) that are strongly committed to sustainability and even exploring regenerative pathways. Firstly, the study presents a framework for regenerative tourism entrepreneurship that suggests how enterprises could practice regenerative tourism through their relationship with other stakeholders. The framework highlights the relational role of enterprises in tourism living systems. Secondly, the findings demonstrate that other stakeholders have a crucial role in supporting regenerative enterprise practices. In Northern Finland specifically, others’ lacking responsibility, inadequate collaboration, sustainability bureaucracy, and carbon-dependent travel systems pose as challenges. Ultimately, the study provides new insights into the reconfiguration of tourism stakeholder roles required for the transformation towards regenerative tourism futures.