Seminário de Investigação GOVCOPP | fevereiro 2026

Resumo

Contemporary tourism is undergoing a critical moment of conceptual and practical redefinition. The intensification of mass tourism, increasing pressure on territorial resources, and the gradual weakening of local socio-cultural and food systems have exposed the limits of dominant tourism development models. In this context, several authors highlight the need to move beyond approaches focused solely on mitigating negative impacts — traditionally associated with sustainability — and to advance toward transformative and regenerative tourism perspectives (Higgins-Desbiolles et al., 2019; Bellato et al., 2022; Bellato & Pollock, 2025). Within this framework, this presentation proposes a theoretical and conceptual reflection on the relationship between tourism and food heritage in living territories, understanding this pairing as a foundational element for building regenerative tourism futures. Food heritage is here understood as a living, dynamic system that encompasses traditional know-how, culinary practices, endemic products, food landscapes, and modes of production deeply rooted in local cultural contexts (Bessière, 1998; UNESCO, 2003; Gyimóthy & Mykletun, 2009). Far from being static or merely instrumentalized tourism resources, these heritages are conceived as social processes in continuous construction, negotiation, and transmission, intrinsically linked to the identity of territories and the communities that sustain and reinvent them (Smith, 2006). This perspective necessarily calls for an integrated approach that recognizes the interdependence of culture, nature (Etic ZOE - Braidotti, 2013), economy, and territorial governance (Pratt, 1991; Askins & Pain, 2011). From a theoretical standpoint, this presentation engages with contributions from regenerative tourism (Becken & Kaur, 2022; Miedes-Ugarte & Flores-Ruiz, 2025), critical sustainability, and the circular economy (Geissdoerfer et al., 2017), questioning the linear logic that structures the traditional value chain (Porter, 1985). Alternatively, it proposes viewing tourism as a complex ecosystem (Morant-Martínez et al., 2019) and draws on the concept of value constellation (Normann & Ramírez, 1993), in which value emerges through processes of co-creation, cooperation, and shared responsibility among multiple actors. In this framework, local communities, food producers, tourism operators, public institutions, and visitors play an active role in shaping tourism experiences and territorial development trajectories. The concept of living territories thus assumes a central analytical role, allowing us to understand territories as genuine contact zones (Askins & Pain, 2011), where humans and non-humans (more-than-humans) coexist (Latour, 2005; Braidotti, 2013; 2019), shaped by collective memory, senses of belonging, and food practices as structuring elements of place. Within this context, regenerative tourism is understood not merely as an operational strategy but as a paradigmatic shift oriented toward ecosystem restoration, cultural revitalization, and the strengthening of social cohesion (Bellato & Pollock, 2025). Integrating food heritage into tourism strategies thus becomes crucial for promoting territorial development models that are more resilient, inclusive, and rooted in local specificities. Finally, it is argued that an ethical, conscious, and ZOE-aligned integration (Braidotti, 2013) of food heritage into tourism offers a clear alternative to extractive, consumption-driven models, often associated with cultural commodification and territorial homogenization (Richards, 2018). In contrast, regenerative tourism grounded in food heritage fosters situated experiences, strengthens the intergenerational transmission of knowledge, and enhances communities’ agency in defining their own development pathways. It is concluded that this approach provides a robust conceptual framework for building regenerative, resilient, and culturally meaningful tourism futures, aligned with contemporary territorial development challenges.