Strategic Stewardship: A New Compass for Destination Leaders
A few weeks ago, I was on a call with a group of public sector leaders. The discussion turned to the future of tourism. When I introduced the idea of strategic stewardship, there was an immediate reaction: “Yes, that’s exactly what we need. But we don’t yet have the language or the frameworks for it.”
That response was telling. It captures what so many leaders are experiencing right now: a sense that the role has shifted, but the vocabulary and tools haven’t quite caught up.
The Leadership Tension
Tourism leadership has long been shaped by what we might call management instincts: growth targets, compliance, reports, control. That playbook worked when success was defined by more visitors, more spend, more bednights.
But the context has changed. Climate pressure, cultural erosion, fragile communities, and declining public trust now sit at the table. Growth still matters, yet it matters differently. Success is no longer about volume alone but about the vitality of place.
Here’s the tension: leaders are being asked to deliver stewardship outcomes while still judged by management-era metrics. It feels like trying to navigate new terrain with an old map — no wonder so many feel stretched thin or pulled in opposing directions.
From Map to Compass
This is where Strategic Stewardship comes in. It’s less like carrying a map, more like carrying a compass. A compass doesn’t give you every step. What it does is steady you and those you lead, helping you hold orientation when certainty isn’t possible.
The compass points toward vitality — resilient communities, ecological balance, cultural continuity. It doesn’t discard growth, but it places growth in service of resilience and regeneration.
Early Signs of the Shift
Stewardship shows up in practical, observable shifts:
- From assets to partners. Place is not just a resource to be managed but a living partner whose vitality determines tourism’s future.
- From control to convening. Leaders step into roles that align people, policy, and place rather than trying to control every variable.
- From growth to vitality. Metrics expand. Alongside arrivals and revenue, we begin to notice the number of children in local schools, the pride in community, the strength of networks.
These shifts are already emerging across destinations. What’s missing is the language and frameworks to name them, align around them, and lead with confidence.
Naming What’s Really Happening
At The Tourism Space, we’ve been working on ways to make stewardship tangible. One of those is our Stewardship Spectrum — a framework that traces the evolution from a management era, through a transition era, and into a stewardship era.
It’s a way to help leaders see that they are not failing. They are working in a paradigm gap. They’ve been handed a stewardship mandate, but are often still equipped with management reflexes. Naming that gap, and having words to describe it is the first step toward closing it.
Why This Matters for Public Sector Leaders
The real challenge is not skills or resources. Its orientation. Leaders are being asked to deliver outcomes in conditions where old measures no longer fit. Strategic Stewardship provides a compass: a way to steady yourself and those you lead, to align across agencies and communities, and to hold direction toward vitality even when certainty is absent.
Leadership Brief: The Stewardship Compass
To accompany this article, we’ve created a one-page Leadership Brief available to our subscribers.
It includes:
- A visual compass to orient leadership decisions.
- Three key questions to ask when maps no longer fit.
- Phrases you can use to bring stewardship language into conversations with boards, funders, and communities.
It’s designed as a quick reference - something you can keep on hand as a reminder that orientation, not certainty, is what matters most.
