Models of cultural tourism development in peripheral territories. Insights from the In Luce funding programme

Local development in peripheral areas is a central topic at the European level. Promot-ing local tangible and intangible cultural resources to sustain regional growth through tourism is frequently considered a successful strategy for depopulated and less developed territories. A “culture-led” approach to local development is combined with a “tour-ism-led” one. To better understand and classify the multiple links between cultural en-dowments and tourism promotion in peripheral areas, the In Luce call launched in 2021 by the Compagnia di San Paolo Foundation in Northern Italy is analysed. The study is conducted through an in-depth analysis of the 15 projects awarded by a grant and the related territory. Combining the types of heritage promoted by the projects, the associated types of tourism activated, and the degree of tourism specialisation of the involved munic-ipalities, three leading models for culture-ledtourism development are identified: Cultural Activation, Cultural Diversification and Tourist Leverage.