By definition Creativity is " the capacity and attitude of people and companies to form combinations, relationships or restructure elements of their reality, achieving original and relevant products or results. It is having new and useful ideas". Schnarch Kirberg,(2008) Creativity, therefore, is also called original thinking, creative thinking, inventiveness, constructive imagination or divergent thinking. It is the ability to create, to innovate, to generate new ideas or concepts, or new associations between known ideas and concepts, which usually lead to new conclusions, solve problems and produce original and valuable solutions The situation generated by covid-19 will mean the loss of millions of direct jobs in the tourism sector, which is why our project aims to be an alternative to this problem. Small tourism companies must be able to adapt to this new challenge, changing their model to the new needs of the market. It is within these strategic changes that our creatours project is included, born to promote creativity and to be able to make ideas come to life. We find ourselves in a tourist sector in which Agroturist companies have found themselves in a strong crisis affected by covid-19 and the drastic decrease in the number of tourists. The companies in the rural tourism sector are characterised by a lower level of occupation than the rest and on the other hand there is an atomisation of this type of tourism, which is delocalised from the large urban centres. This make access is more complicated in a situation such as the present one, in which freedom of movement is sometimes interrupted It is within this framework that, through creativity and creative ideas, we intend to break through these difficulties and make companies competitive According to the European Strategy 2014-2020 (Article 5 of the ERDF regulation10) "Tourism plays a key role in the development of many European regions, in particular the less developed regions, due to its considerable spill-over and job creation potential" The priorities of this document include; the promotion of activities who are contributing to research and innovation, e-culture, enhancing the growth and competitiveness of SMEs, development of natural and cultural heritage, promoting employment through development of endogenous potential. In this context is where our project is framed There are differences in the level of development of rural tourism between countries, a fact which we can use to generate demonstration effects through exchange of experiences, good practices Many projects are working with entrepreneurs , supporting the maturation of ideas, but rarely to work on stimulating the idea Creatours project will focus on the creating process of ideas, using creativity techniques The "Creatiours" will boost the entrepreneurial spirit, generating and creating creative synergies, which will make the agro-tourism sector more competitive and encourage the development of high quality relevant skills and competences. "Creatours" focuses on the creating process of ideas, using analysis of trends and entrepreneurs experiences in tourism sector, adapting the methodology to agritourism for entrepreneurs. The Green Paper. Entrepreneurship in Europe (Brussels, 21.1.2003.COM(2003)27final) and the Action Plan:The European agenda for Entrepreneurship,11.02.2004, pose the need to work on entrepreneurship. Additionally According to the European Strategy 2014-2020 (Art5 of the ERDF regulation10) "Tourism plays a key role in the development of many European regions, in particular the less developed regions, due to its considerable spill-over and job creation potential" In this context is where our project is framed The Green Paper explained why entrepreneurship is important, the first reason is that the Entrepreneurship contributes to job creation and growth. It is increasingly new and small firms, rather than large ones, that are the major providers of new jobs Countries exhibiting a greater increase in entrepreneurship rates tended to exhibit greater subsequent decreases in unemployment rates. The Green Paper included the definition the entrepreneurship as exploitation of creativity or innovation, inter alia Entrepreneurship is first and foremost a mindset. It covers an individual’s motivation and capacity, independently or within an organization, to identify an opportunity and to pursue it in order to produce new value or economic success It takes creativity or innovation to enter and compete in an existing market, to change or even to create a new market. To turn a business idea into success requires the ability to blend "creativity or innovation" with sound management and to adapt a business to optimize its development during all phases of its lifecycle. The main objective of our project is to provide an effective tool that enhances the creativity of the individual, making it capable of finding solutions to a situation as complex as the one that currently exist(Covid-19)
The main objective of our project was to provide an effective tool that enhanced the creativity of individuals, enabling them to find solutions to the complex situation caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. The need for transnational solutions arose in the global and European Community environment. Opening borders and understanding the creative solutions discovered in one country could be transferred to another were essential aspects of our transnational project. Collaboration among all partners was necessary to address problems affecting all EU countries, such as the abandonment of rural areas, high unemployment rates, and dependence on traditional activities. Additionally, the aging population in rural areas requires innovative solutions. Throughout the project, we focused on developing a tool that fostered creativity and problem-solving skills, encouraging cooperation and exchanging ideas among countries to find effective solutions to common challenges. Within this context, we aim to overcome these difficulties through creativity and innovative ideas, striving to make these companies competitive once again. Our project seeks to empower and equip these companies with the tools and creative approaches to navigate and thrive in the challenging landscape.
The impact of covid-19 has resulted in the potential loss of millions of direct jobs in the tourism sector. Our project seeks to provide an alternative solution to this problem. We recognize that small tourism companies must adapt to the new market needs posed by this challenge. The "CREATOURS" project was conceived precisely to address these strategic changes and foster creativity to bring ideas to fruition. It operates in a tourist sector where Agrotourism companies face a severe crisis due to the pandemic and the sharp decline in tourists. Rural tourism companies typically experience lower occupancy levels than other sectors, and this type of tourism is spread across various locations away from major urban centers. The present situation, with occasional interruptions in freedom of movement, further complicates access to these companies. Within this context, we aim to overcome these difficulties through creativity and innovative ideas, striving to make these companies competitive once again. Our project seeks to empower and equip these companies with the tools and creative approaches to navigate and thrive in the challenging landscape.