The Interaction and Sustainable Efficiency Between Tourism Systems and the Energy–Economy–Environment System: A Novel Parallel Network Super-Efficiency Slacks-Based Measure Model.

Sustainable tourism entails balancing economic growth, environmental protection, and energy utilisation. However, the current interactive dynamics between urban agglomeration tourism systems and the energy–economy–environment (EEE) system, as well as the sustainable efficiency of the tourism–energy–economy–environment (TEEE) system, remain unclear. For the first time, this study employs a super-efficiency network slacks-based measure (SE-NSBM) model to interact with tourism and EEE systems, proposing a novel network structure that includes feedback variables. To validate the proposed model, this study evaluated the efficiency of the TEEE system and its subsystems in the Yangtze River Delta urban agglomeration (YRDUA) from 2016 to 2020. The study revealed significant variations in the efficiency of the TEEE, tourism, and EEE systems among cities in the YRDUA, with a discernible downward trend. The TEEE and tourism systems exhibit relatively weak coping capabilities when faced with significant unforeseen events, highlighting the urgent need to strengthen system resilience. The results also demonstrate that the new model effectively resolves the issue of efficiency overestimation in the TEEE system observed in traditional models, which tend to overestimate actual efficiency by 3%. The novel model and empirical results offer decision-makers new perspectives and practical insights into formulating sustainable tourism policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]