Title: Exploring entrepreneurship, innovation and tourism development from a sustainable perspective: evidence from Greece

Authors: Eleni Triantafillidou; Stefanos Tsiaras

Addresses: University of Macedonia, Egnatia 156, 540 06 Thessaloniki, Greece ' Faculty of Agriculture, Forestry and Natural Environment, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 541 24 Thessaloniki, Greece

Abstract: The aim of this paper is to explore the concepts of entrepreneurship, innovation and tourism development from a sustainable development perspective. Sustainable innovation leads to sustainable entrepreneurship, and consequently to sustainable tourism development. The paper examines several case studies from Greece and attempts to summarise the most interesting findings in the field of sustainable tourism development. Despite the lack of data regarding sustainable tourism in Greece since the early '00s, recent papers have established the relationship among sustainable tourism, innovation and entrepreneurship. Tourism is the most prominent sector of the Greek economy and its contribution is continually rising, despite the economic crisis that has seriously affects Greece in recent years. The factor that seems to affect most the promotion of sustainable tourism practices is the age of the entrepreneurs. Finally the role of local communities is also crucial since every tourist destination should rely on all dimensions of sustainability in order to be competitive.

Keywords: sustainable development; entrepreneurship; innovation; tourism development; Greece.

DOI: 10.1504/JIBED.2018.090020

Journal for International Business and Entrepreneurship Development, 2018 Vol.11 No.1, pp.53 - 64

Received: 31 Aug 2016
Accepted: 15 Sep 2016

Published online: 27 Feb 2018 *

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