Love it or loath it, the Festival and the Fringe define Edinburgh in the summer, but as researcher Veselina Stoyanova points out, Edinburgh has been wrestling for years with the question:

What is tourism actually for? If the answer is simply “more visitors, more spending”, the city will keep winning by numbers while residents feel they are losing by experience.

Stoyanova, Edinburgh resident and Associate Professor in Strategy & International Management, University of Birmingham, argues that "regenerative tourism" offers a different ambition:

Sustainable tourism asks how we can reduce harm – fewer emissions, less overcrowding, better waste management.

Regenerative tourism asks a bolder question: how can visitors leave a place better than they found it?

Better for its communities, its culture, its public spaces and its local economy. It treats a destination not as a product to be consumed but as a living system to be strengthened.

Success should be reported not only in arrivals and spend, but in resident wellbeing, local business survival, affordable housing pressure and cultural participation by Edinburgh’s own communities.

When we read Stoyanova's recent article, we were fascinated by the idea of Edinburgh's festivals becoming regenerative festivals:

• What could this mean for the city that's our home?

• How might it change the lives of residents and visitors for the better?

• Could it help tackle the climate, nature and social crises?

• How might Edinburgh become the "world's first regenerative festival city"?

We'd love to discuss these questions with others who are curious about this idea and how it might be realised.

Join us, Osbert Lancaster and Megan Fraser, for a walking conversation in the Meadows:

🌳 Details & Register: Netwalking for Changemakers, 9am Thursday 17th September 2026