BUILDING CIRCULAR CITIES AND DESTINATIONS:

AN INTEGRATED EU LEGAL MODEL FOR SUSTAINABILITY IN THE ALPINE–ADRIATIC REGION

DOWNLOAD DOI: 10.62897/COS2025.3-1.125

Albert Korolenko,*
a,*Faculty of Law, University of Maribor, Maribor, Slovenia
albert.korolenko@student.um.si

Abstract: This paper develops an integrated EU legal model for circular urban and tourism transition in the Alpine–Adriatic region. The study links environmental law, sustainable finance, cohesion policy, and destinationgovernance tools in one operational pathway moving from legal obligations to financeable projects and then to measurable outcomes. The analysis is grounded in Treaty principles on environmental integration and prevention, the European Green Deal, the Taxonomy Regulation, the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation, cohesion-policy instruments, and destination-monitoring frameworks. It argues that circular transition in cities and destinations becomes more effective when legal requirements are translated into project categories that can attract public and private capital, including revolving urban-development instruments. The paper further proposes a compact indicator architecture combining destinationmanagement metrics with environmental and socio-economic measures relevant for residents and visitors. The Alpine–Adriatic space is used as an illustrative cross-border setting because it concentrates tourism intensity, urban mobility pressures and strong potential for coordinated circular investment. The main conclusion is that the EU already provides most of the legal and financial tools required for circular transition, but stronger integration between law, finance and measurement is needed to convert fragmented initiatives into durable regional sustainability outcomes. 

 

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