International Journal of Event Management Research Volume 6, Number 2, 2011 www.ijemr.org Page 30 © IJEMR All rights reserved TOURISM DEVELOPMENT AND EVENTS: AN ANALYSIS AT A LOCAL SCALE IN CATALONIA Francesc González Reverté Oriol Miralbell Izard Universitat Oberta de Catalunya ABSTRACT Catalan events are rich and varied, they are regularly distributed along the whole region, and they have experienced a rapid growth in the last decade but maintaining a strong identity and playing a role as a singular tourism offer. The main aim of this paper is to analyze the events’ ĐharaĐteristiĐs ;ŵaŶageŵeŶt, marketing, economic impact, and stakeholders involved) and their relationship with local development. The methodology is based on a multivariate analysis applied to a database obtained from a telephonic survey made to 264 Catalan event organizers in 2009. The results distinguish different management event models and to differentiate geographical areas according to their level of event development and their associated economic impact. Also highlighted are different strengths and weaknesses of Catalan events, which can be helpful in identifying strategies for a future tourism events development policy. KEY WORDS Events, Cultural tourism, Local development, Catalonia _______________________________________________________________________________ ________ INTRODUCTION The tangible and intangible elements of cultural heritage have a unique characteristic that gives them a very strong potential to become tourist resources and to be transformed into products. We are talking about goods that are sensitive to the nature of the region in which they are rooted. The production of cultural goods is idiosyncratic and projects character into the specific places where they belong. Tourism that is tied to regional cultural references is a key element in facilitating a tourist view that can be replicated almost everywhere, producing very diverse experiences (Urry 1990). Culture nowadays plays a very important role as a product to be consumed in a framework that some authors have defined as the transition from industrial production to cultural production (Rifkin 2001). This role becomes more evident through two typical parameters of the present economy. On the one hand is the knowledge economy, which gives leisure a role of discovery and learning (edutainment), highly appreciated when it deals with cultural goods. At the same time it acts as a trigger for the constant renovation of events (Valls 1999). On the other hand, in the context of a global economy, cultural production increases the possibilities for local diversification and specificity. Heritage also acts as a basis for producing specific products addressed, at the same time, to large and specific markets.