TThe California Tourism Resilience and Sustainability Dashboard is the product of a collaborative initiative designed to establish a regional understanding of resilience and sustainability across California's 12 tourism regions. This project is a cornerstone of the Regional Strategic Tourism Plans, aiming to deliver actionable insights for building resilient and sustainable destinations

The dashboard serves as a centralized platform for tourism stakeholders to monitor and improve the sustainability and resilience of California’s 12 tourism regions. By consolidating data from natural hazard assessments, climate impact projections, and standardized performance metrics, the dashboard empowers destination managers, policymakers, and local communities to make data-driven decisions for the long-term resilience and sustainability of the California tourism economy.

The dashboard’s Resilience and Sustainability Scorecard assesses each region across seven Critical Success Factors (CSFs). These factors represent essential areas for sustainable and resilient tourism management and align with global frameworks like the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (SFDRR).
The seven CSFs are:

1. Understanding Risks – Assessing multi-hazard and climate impacts on tourism assets.
2. Managing Resilience – Developing and maintaining resilient infrastructure and planning capabilities.
3. Preparedness and Response – Enhancing readiness for effective crisis management.
4. Investing in Sustainability – Allocating resources to sustainable infrastructure and practices.
5. Managing Growth – Balancing growth with environmental and community impacts.
6. Community Well-being – Fostering partnerships with local communities and enhancing their well-being.
7. Environmental Conservation – Promoting conservation efforts and responsible environmental practices.

Each CSF is rated on a 5-point scale, with scores ranging from minimal awareness (1) to full integration and transformation (5). This rating system provides a clear picture of where each region stands in terms of resilience and sustainability and highlights areas needing improvement.

The dashboard combines quantitative data (e.g., climate projections, environmental metrics, and destination indicators) with qualitative insights (e.g., stakeholder assessments on resilience and sustainability). Data is presented across interactive maps, charts, and tables, allowing users to explore specific data points for each of California’s tourism regions. Users can filter data by region and data theme. Data is also organized by seven Critical Success Factors (CSF) for resilient and sustainable tourism growth for each region.

The scorecard employs both qualitative and quantitative approaches, giving a comprehensive view of each region’s resilience and sustainability status.

The dashboard is more than just a data repository; it’s a tool for active planning and decision-making in tourism resilience. Here’s how users can apply its insights:

• Destination Managers can use the dashboard to understand key risks, and prioritize areas needing improvement. For instance, by observing risk scores for climate and natural hazards, managers can implement tailored adaptation strategies to protect tourism infrastructure.
• Policy-Makers can rely on the dashboard to allocate resources more effectively. For example, if a region scores low on preparedness (CSF 3), resources can be directed towards training and infrastructure enhancements to improve crisis response capabilities.
• Community Leaders and Local Businesses can leverage the dashboard to advocate for sustainable tourism practices. Data on community engagement (CSF 6) and environmental conservation (CSF 7) can support efforts to develop community-based tourism and conservation initiatives.
• Hotels and Tourism Operators benefit from the dashboard’s integration with the Hotel Resilient platform, which highlights sustainability and resilience practices in California’s hotels. Operators can identify gaps in their practices compared to regional benchmarks, helping them to enhance their resilience profiles.

The development of the Dashboard was led by Risklayer GmbH, an international company in risk and resilience planning for tourism destinations. This was a collaborative effort with JLL’s Tourism Development Advisory Services, a globally recognized team specializing in tourism and development planning and SWCA, a California-based environmental consultancy.

Risklayer designed and developed the dashboard and contributed international expertise in the development of the Resilience and Sustainability Scorecard, ensuring that the methodology reflects global standards and best practices.

SWCA provided localized knowledge and insights, integrating California-specific environmental, regulatory, and community factors into the assessment.

JLL’s planning teams worked alongside these partners to conduct focus group and expert panel interviews to develop a tailored Resilience and Sustainability Scorecard. This scorecard serves as the foundation for the dashboard, offering detailed, region-specific recommendations to support the long-term sustainability of California's tourism ecosystem.

Together, this multidisciplinary team crafted a robust, data-driven tool that empowers California’s tourism stakeholders to track, analyze, and enhance resilience and sustainability across the state. This collaboration highlights the value of combining global insights with local expertise to address the unique needs and challenges faced by California’s diverse tourism regions.