Optimizing The Potential of Mina Padi as an Edu-Ecotourism Destination Through a Digital-Based Sustainable Tourism Program in Margoluwih Village

Abstract

Margoluwih Village is a village located in Seyegan District, Sleman Regency, Yogyakarta, which has 14 hamlets and possesses potential in agriculture, culture, cuisine, and even tourism. This village is known for its agricultural tourism with the method of combining rice cultivation and fish farming called Mina Padi, which has been recognized by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) since 2015 and has become a model for agricultural management in the Asia-Pacific region. However, since 2019, the intensity and appeal of the mina padi tourism have declined. This is due to the lack of knowledge and skills among the community in Margoluwih Village in managing the potential of rice-fish tourism, as well as the lack of regeneration of rice-fish tourism managers, the minimal use of digital technology for branding and marketing the village tourism through social media, the absence of expanded partnerships with other parties for the development and sustainability of tourism programs, and the lack of regeneration of rice-fish tourism managers in Margoluwih Village. Based on the results of environmental observations and interviews, the UKM KPM UMY, the Margoluwih Village Government, and the local community are collaborating to optimize the potential of mina padi cultivation to strengthen the branding of mina padi tourism by using the Sustainable Tourism method, which involves developing a tourism concept that can provide long-term impacts on the environment, social, cultural, and economic aspects for both the present and future of the local community and visiting tourists.