Innovative strategies for tourism in urban coastal areas. Research, training and experimentation in the case study of the metropolitan coast of Naples

The debate on the regeneration of urban coastal areas, especially from the last years, focuses on the analysis of the role of tourism in the field of sustainable development of the cities, analyzing strengths and weaknesses, evaluating the economic, environmental and social impact. Cities by the sea, particularly, have a strong identity which comes from the historic relationship between urban community and aquatic element. The maritime identity, acquires new meaning for the touristic enhancement of urban coastal areas. In order not to repeat past failures, the strategies to stop deterioration in metropolitan coastal areas should take place both through a conscious and evolved type of tourism both through innovative processes. The paper analyzes some interesting interventions of waterfront regeneration and tourism development in some seaside cities that, by sharing their maritime culture, have realized integrated urban transformations. In such an era of globalization, new models of lateral participation took place as alternatives to the vertical models. This approach have been experimented during the interdisciplinary workshop "Marine Identities for Urban Interculturalism", planning and design workshop based on the collaboration with the stakeholder and the policy makers of the metropolitan coast of Naples. From this point of view, a "collaborative commons" might start its process of training and implementation, recognizing within the urban community the "urban prosumers", producers and consumers of the city for the touristic enhancement of the metropolitan cost of Naples.