Tourism, Water, Sustainability and Development (TOWARD)

Summary

Tourism is closely embedded in the natural, social, cultural and economic systems of the territories where it develops. It generates employment, supports local businesses and infrastructure, and contributes to the valorisation of natural and cultural resources. At the same time, tourism can intensify pressure on resources and ecosystems, particularly in destinations characterised by water scarcity, environmental vulnerability or high economic dependence on tourism.

This project investigates the relationships between tourism, water, sustainability and development, with water as its central dimension: both as a fundamental resource for tourism and local communities, and as an environmental, landscape and heritage asset that shapes the attractiveness and identity of destinations. The research also addresses climate change, natural and cultural heritage (including gastronomy and landscape identity), resource management, local communities and territorial development.

Adopting an interdisciplinary and comparative approach, the project examines tourism–resource dynamics in mature, emerging and transitional destinations. It combines quantitative and qualitative methods, including tourism and environmental indicators, spatial analysis, assessment of resource use and environmental impacts, stakeholder and community research, and analysis of tourist and resident perceptions. The research explores how tourism development affects natural resources and territorial systems, how environmental and socio-economic change affects tourism, and how stakeholders respond to these challenges.

The project further identifies destination management strategies that support more sustainable patterns of tourism and development, including efficient resource use, environmental management, climate adaptation, heritage valorisation, stakeholder collaboration, governance and capacity building. By integrating tourism research with environmental sustainability and development perspectives, it aims to provide evidence-based knowledge for policymakers, destination management organisations and local stakeholders, fostering more balanced relationships between tourism, natural resources, communities and territories.

Sustainable Development Goals

6. Clean Water and Sanitation

8. Decent Work and Economic Growth

11. Sustainable Cities and Communities

12. Responsible Consumption and Production

13. Climate Action

15. Life on Land

17. Partnerships for the Goals

Responsible Researcher

Makhabbat Ramazanova

Researchers

Isabel Freitas

Ana Matilde Castro

Luís Miguel Pacheco

Other Researchers

Tomaz Ponce Dentinho
Bartolomé Deyá Tortella
Anuarbek Kakabeyev

Partners

University of the Balearic Islands, Spain
Ualikhanov University, Kazakhstan

Publications

Pacheco, L., Tavares, F. O., & Ramazanova, M. (2026). Tourists’ opinions when visiting Samarkand (Uzbekistan): Analysis of reviews on Tripadvisor. GeoJournal of Tourism and Geosites, 64(1), 349–360.

Ibragimov, K., Marques, J., Jr Flores, R., & Ramazanova, M. (2025). Evaluating the drivers of outbound tourism: Evidence from Central Asia. Tourism and hospitality management, 31(1), 151-155.

Ramazanova, M., Freitas, I. V., Castro, A. M., & Dentinho, T. P. (2025). Perceptions of residents of the North of Portugal on traditional gastronomy with a generalized Q analysis. Revista Portuguesa de Estudos Regionais, (72), 97–113.

Ramazanova, M., Silva, F. M., & Freitas, I. V. (2024). Tourists’ views on sustainable heritage management in Porto, Portugal: Balancing heritage preservation and tourism. Heritage, 8(1), 1–14.

Ramazanova, M., Deyá Tortella, B., Kakabayev, A., Caldeira, A. M., & Carneiro, M. J. (2023). Do sustainability perceptions affect lake destination loyalty? Sustainability, 15(18), 13954.

Vaz de Freitas, I., Sousa, C., Ramazanova, M., & Albuquerque, H. (2021). Feeling a historic city: Porto landscape through the eyes of residents and visitors. International Journal of Tourism Cities, 8(2), 529–545.

Castro, A. M., Ramazanova, M., & de Freitas, I. V. (2026). Water and Heritage: The Water Potential of Miranda do Douro for Sustainable Tourism. In The Strategic Role of Water in Sustainable Tourism Development (pp. 61-84). IGI Global Scientific Publishing.

Ramazanova, M., Albuquerque, H., & Marques, J. (2025). Climate change and tourism: a global challenge with regional impacts and responses. In Tourism and Climate Change: Research on Global Challenges and Opportunities (pp. 3-16). Cham: Springer Nature Switzerland.

Silva, F. M., Ramazanova, M., & Freitas, I. V. (2025). Safeguarding traditional Portuguese gastronomy as an intangible cultural heritage through tourism: The case of North of Portugal. Tourism and Hospitality, 6(2), 92.

de Freitas, I. V., & Ramazanova, M. (2025). The Potential of Military Tourism for Peace Fostering and Sustainable Heritage Management. In Dynamics of Heritage Management and Tourism Development (pp. 157-174). Apple Academic Press.

Ramazanova, M., Shenin, A., & Ahrorov, F. (2024). Editorial Note: Regional Development in Central Asia. Regional Science Policy & Practice, 16(3), 170.

Yessenzholov, B., Khussainov, A., Kakabayev, A., Plachinta, I., Bayazitova, Z., Kyzdarbekova, G., ... & Ramazanova, M. (2024). Assessment of hydrometeorological impacts of climate change on water bodies in Northern Kazakhstan. Water, 16(19), 2794.

de Freitas, I. V., Ramazanova, M., Cortés, R. E., & Leite, P. P. (2021). Water conservation in the urban landscape through heritage and capacity building: The case of Guimarães, Portugal. In Capacity Building Through Heritage Tourism (pp. 1–29). Apple Academic Press.

Ramazanova, M., Deyá Tortella, B., Tirado, D., & Kakabayev, A. (2021). Determinants of water consumption in tourism lodging sector. The case of Kazakhstan. Tourism and Hospitality Management, 27(1), 83–98.

Raikhan, B., Gulnur, S., Aizhan, Z., Ramazanova, M., & Assel, T. (2020). Geoecological maps of surface water pollution Akmola Region of Kazakhstan based on hydrochemical analyzes. In IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering, 901(1), 012017. IOP Publishing.

Ramazanova, M. (2020). Tourism and water resources: Interrelationships and consequences. The case of Kazakhstan [PhD thesis summary; Supervisor: Prof. Bartolomé Deyá Tortella; Co-supervisor: Assoc. Prof. Anuarbek Kakabayev; University of the Balearic Islands, Spain; defended 3 June 2019]. European Journal of Tourism Research, 26, 2611.

Ramazanova, M., & de Freitas, I. V. (2020). Water and the city: Valorising Guimarães water heritage for tourism. In ICTR 2020: 3rd International Conference on Tourism Research (p. 213). Academic Conferences and Publishing Limited.

Ramazanova, M., Bulai, M., Ursu, A., Deyá Tortella, B., & Kakabayev, A. (2019). Effects of tourism development on surface area of main lakes of Shchuchinsk-Burabay resort area, Kazakhstan. European Journal of Tourism Research, 21, 69–86.

Ramazanova, M., Deyá Tortella, B., Kakabayev, A., & Bulai, M. (2019). Water quality of the lakes: Consequences of tourism development. In 2nd International Conference on Tourism Research (p. 421).

Ramazanova, M., & Bolatbekov, A. (2018). Sustainable tourism indicators as tools for destination development. In Proceedings of the Sustainable Euroregions and Cross-Border Areas Conference. Romanian Academy, Iași, Romania.

Deyá Tortella, B., Tirado, D., & Ramazanova, M. (2017). Water and tourism: The case of the Balearic Islands. In Economic Theory and Practice 2017: International Scientific Conference (Book of Abstracts). Matej Bel University in Banská Bystrica, Slovakia.