Citizens help shape Sylt's tourism strategy
Sylt is considered a vacation paradise on the North Sea - around 870,000 visitors come to the island each year, in addition to millions of day-trippers. Tourism is the region’s most important source of income, but for the approximately 14,000 residents, this success is increasingly becoming a burden.
For this reason, the Sylt municipalities of Hörnum, Kampen, List auf Sylt, Sylt, and Wenningstedt-Braderup commissioned Sylt Marketing GmbH (SMG) in December 2025 to develop a tourism strategy. Through a multi-stage participatory process, the various perspectives on the island’s tourism development are being gathered and systematically synthesized. The process also includes a “random citizen group” with 35 members.
Broad participation
The participatory process is divided into several phases and formats that build on one another. First, starting on April 27, 2026, key topics and questions were identified and structured; then, beginning in mid-June 2026, these were explored in greater depth through various formats and synthesized into recommendations.
The participatory process is supported by a 26-member steering committee comprising the island’s mayors as well as representatives from business, politics, the natural sciences, culture, and civil society. The committee provides expert guidance throughout the process, ensures the inclusion of diverse perspectives, and guarantees that the results form a sound basis for policy decisions.
The nexus Institute, together with facilitator Claudine Nierth, has been tasked with conducting the event. Nierth is the spokesperson for the national executive board of Mehr Demokratie.
Phase 1: Identifying and structuring topics
The first phase focused on developing a so-called “topic map.” This began on April 27, 2026, with a digital survey of municipal representatives to gather relevant topics and questions related to Sylt’s tourism development.
The results were incorporated into the topic map, which was refined and further developed on May 18, 2026, during a dialogue-based topic-gathering session with key stakeholders on the island. Participants included representatives from business, politics, government, nature conservation and environmental protection, culture, and other sectors of society.
Online participation
From May 27 to June 10, 2026, the thematic map was made available for public comment as part of an open online participation process. A total of 759 people participated in the online survey and shared their ideas and experiences regarding the island’s future tourism development. Among them were 337 vacationers, 299 local residents, 97 second-home owners, and 26 commuters.
An initial analysis shows that issues surrounding mobility and accessibility are of particular concern to people - both locals and all other groups. This topic received the most comments. In addition, housing, the design of tourism offerings, and the island’s future positioning also play an important role.
The thematic map serves as a content compass for the participatory formats in the second phase.
Phase 2: Deepening perspectives and developing recommendations
In the second phase, the topics will be explored in greater depth in local groups, focus groups, and a circle of randomly selected citizens.
First, from June 15 to 19, 2026, local groups contributed the perspectives of the twelve island communities. In small groups, discussions centered on the role and profile of each locality, as well as challenges and conflicts, alongside potential opportunities and ideas.
At the same time, from June 15 to July 3, 2026, so-called focus groups worked on specific thematic areas. In these sessions, experts from a wide variety of fields came together to explore questions in greater depth and discuss possible solutions.
Randomly selected citizen group
From July 7 to August 8, 2026, a randomly selected citizen group of 33 people will complement the process. The participants were selected at random from the five island municipalities and assembled according to the criteria of age, gender, place of residence, and level of education to reflect the breadth of the island’s society. To this end, 2,000 people were randomly selected from the resident registration records of Sylt’s municipalities in May and invited to participate. Of those selected, 160 expressed interest in participating. In addition, two people who work on Sylt but live off the island will also be included.
The results of all these formats will be presented at a handover event on August 26, 2026.
Development and adoption of the strategy
The results will then be reviewed by the municipal councils. Based on this, the integrated tourism strategy will be developed in technical detail, after which it will be discussed and adopted at the political level. Implementation will then proceed step by step based on an action plan. The tourism strategy is scheduled for completion by the end of 2026.