Overtourism is a growing global concern, with people increasingly vocal about its impact, from unaffordable housing to the loss of local authenticity in shops.
In this #MyEUIResearch video, EUI researcher Mafalda Batalha dives into her work on how the surge in short-term rental platforms, such as Airbnb, is transforming neighbourhoods and entire cities.
Mafalda has witnessed firsthand the impact of booming tourism and of rental platforms in the two cities that she calls ‘home’: Lisbon, where she grew up, and Florence, where she is conducting doctoral research at the EUI. Mafalda examines Florence to understand how the rapid increase in short-term rentals influences local businesses and residents’ decisions on where to live.
Discover more by watching the full episode on YouTube.
Watch all the #MyEUIResearch videos on the EUI YouTube channel.
Mafalda Batalha is a doctoral researcher at the EUI Department of Economics. Her thesis, titled ‘Tourism and Neighbourhood Change: a case study of Florence’, is supervised by Professor Andrea Ichino and Professor Fabrizia Mealli.