Advancing the Smart Region Digital Twin: The Case of UNESCO GEOfood

Abstract

Organic food waste recycling is one of the final frontiers for a sustainable food lifecycle. Digital twins may be helpful to close the loop in more advanced food supply chains, but there is a lack of guidelines on how to adopt this emerging technology in community composting. This paper presents a digital twin-driven design to address this need in a UNESCO-protected region with geological relevance (Geopark). The design science research project offers the foundations for creating intelligent composting networks supported by digital technologies. Six initial design principles are suggested for developing digital twins at a regional level. This study contributes to the deployment of layered digital twins in sustainable regional development. Moreover, our proposal assists the integration of local food producers in regional food supply chains and increases the impact of sustainability brands like GEOfood.