Introduction

There is a need for digital innovation initiatives in rural areas, where rural development has been marginalised in favor of urban development (see for example Cowie et al., 2020; Pant etal., 2017). By combining tourism research on digital innovation in rural areas (Braunerhielm etal. 2019; 2018; Ryan Bengtsson et al, 2022) with service design (Vink et al., 2020), and value-creating processes (Nöjd et al. 2020), the aim of our research is to contribute with methods for rural sustainable tourism and community development and identify solutions encompassed for businesses in rural settings. Therefore, we contribute with ways of conducting participatory research- and innovation processes, focusing on places as both destinations and local communities. Our current research project is using a participatory approach developed during several years of previous research, albeit in a wider sense where tourism development is put in the context of a general notion of sustainable rural development. The purpose of our recent project ‘Smart Villages’, is to gain increased knowledge and understanding of how smart solutions can address some of the challenges in rural Sweden. Our general research question is: How can ‘Smart Villages’ be used as a concept to overcome challenges and support sustainable communities?