Deadline to Apply: July 31, 2026
Opportunity: Destinations International and the Destinations International Foundation are commissioning a landmark research initiative focused on the consequences of defunding, devaluing, diverting, privatizing, or otherwise disrupting destination promotion and destination organization functions within communities
Destinations International and the Destinations International Foundation are commissioning a landmark research initiative focused on the consequences of defunding, devaluing, diverting, privatizing, or otherwise disrupting destination promotion and destination organization functions within communities.
For decades, the destination sector has looked to the Colorado case as one of the clearest illustrations of what can happen when destination marketing investment is eliminated. That study documented a steep decline in Colorado’s tourism market share and visitor spending after state tourism funding was reduced to zero, and it has remained one of the most frequently cited cautionary examples in the field.
Destinations International now seeks a modern successor to that work. This project will examine contemporary cases and develop a broader evidence base that reflects today’s environment, including shifting public expectations, post pandemic realities, governance changes, and increasing scrutiny of the role destination organizations play in their communities.
The purpose of this research is to better understand what happens to a community when destination promotion is weakened, defunded, displaced, or separated from its broader place based purpose. In addition to economic and visitor economy impacts, the study should examine broader effects on business performance, destination competitiveness, community prosperity, stakeholder alignment, and the public value delivered by destination organizations.
By commissioning this research, Destinations International seeks to equip destination leaders, boards, policymakers, funders, and community stakeholders with credible, practical, and research based guidance that can help inform local decision making and strengthen understanding of why destination organizations matter.
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