PROJECT PITCH

TOPIC / ISSUE:

Covid-19 has made the home office the norm for knowledge workers. The mandatory switch to telecommuting was disruptive, but many companies are beginning to see the long-term value of the concept. Some employees are more productive at home; they appreciate the flexibility, the lack of commuting or the ability to work in seclusion without interruption. And companies that build distributed teams can hire the best talent from anywhere in the world. This is a huge opportunity for tourism in Switzerland, because after the positive experiences in the home office, many will look for alternative workplaces, international remote workers but also local Swiss tourists. The first very successful coliving projects are already underway in Grimentz VS (swissescape) and the Mia Engiadina project. New coliving spaces are being created in Aeschiried, Berghaus Gurnigel, Zermatt, etc.

GOAL:

• 13.1 What does a remote work client do in a day?
• 13.2 Is there a Swiss village ready to become a Digital Nomad Village?

CHALLENGES:

So the hotel room alone is not enough. This is where the innovative idea of modern coworking spaces in tourist areas of Switzerland must come into play. It is important that tourism managers are familiar with the requirements of remote workers and digital nomads. A coliving is a place where people form long-lasting friendships and relationships. Some people even meet their partner for life. A coliving creates an experience where human interactions are key - connections and a sense of belonging are created. It is a safe place for people to meet. It is a place where ideas are born and dreams become a reality. It is a place where people push each other to go beyond what they thought was possible and give the best of themselves.

LESSONS LEARNED:

https://www.digitalenomaden.ch/ecosystems A great best practice example from Portugal: If Gonçalo Hall (33), a remote work consultant from Lisbon, has his way, a tiny archipelago could become the next big thing in remote working. Hall is helping to create a new digital nomad community in a tiny village in the autonomous Portuguese region of Madeira. “With a lot of people leaving the big cities right now, we wanted a village in a smaller place where people can build deeper connections than in a city,” Hall says of Digital Nomads Madeira Islands. When the pilot project opens in the village of Ponta do Sol, with support from the Madeira Regional Government and StartupMadeira, it will be ready to house up to 100 remote workers in a co-working space and surrounding village buildings. And plans to expand to other buildings – both in the village and elsewhere on the island – are also in the works. Now it’s a case of waiting until the Corona situation allows the launch.

NEXT STEPS:

GROUP MEMBERS:

A wonderfull team of 12 Remote Work pioneers and Tourism Experts (Hazique Memon, Fanny Caloz, Pascal Eisenhut, Pascal Gebert, Marcel Gasser aka the business buddha, Birgit Pestalozzi, Marcelle Christen Einsiedler, Jacqueline Hutter, Ilona Klama, Sarah Zingerli and Lorenz Ramseyer) worked on this question for the two days on the official Tourism Hackdays from HotellerieSuisse, Opendata.ch, HSLU Hochschule Luzern and Touristofficelab (April 2021)

OUR CHALLENGE OWNER ARE:

Lorenz Ramseyer, BERGSPITZ media Digitale Nomaden Schweiz Digital Nomads Villages - Ecosystems How to build a Digital Nomads Village Ecosystem? Digital nomads choose their destinations based on several factors which influence both living and working in a certain country. The most important factors are the following ones: - 7 Cs (Community, Coworking, Coliving, Conferences, Colearning, Collaboration & Cobalancing)- Infrastructure (Broadband Internet, stable