Creathon 2025 in Rome

Cansu Demir Represents the University of Salzburg at Creathon 2025 in Rome

From June 11 to 13, Cansu Demir, PhD student in Human-Computer Interaction, represented the University of Salzburg at Creathon 2025, hosted at Sapienza University in Rome. The hackathon focused on the growing challenge of overtourism – the overcrowding of popular travel destinations – and called for innovative, sustainable solutions.

Cansu Demir presented DecSys, an AI-powered system designed to intelligently manage tourist flows. By analyzing real-time data such as crowd density, weather conditions, and event calendars, DecSys provides personalized recommendations for alternative destinations that are less crowded but equally rich in cultural value. The system aims to ease pressure on tourist hotspots and contribute to more sustainable urban tourism.

Developed in collaboration with Master’s student Aysenur Gürel, DecSys has already been piloted in Salzburg and holds potential for wider implementation across European cities.

The Creathon was part of the CIVIS Days, a Europe-wide university initiative that fosters interdisciplinary and international collaboration – demonstrating how academic partnerships can address real-world societal challenges.