From Geoheritage Assessment to Place-Based Innovation: An Exploratory M-GAM/Smart Specialisation Crosswalk for Selected Geosites in the Vranje Basin and Pčinja River Valley, Southern Serbia

This paper examines how geoheritage assessment and landscape interpretation can inform geotourism planning and the exploratory identification of place-based innovation opportunities. The study area centres on the Vranje Basin and includes geosite Vražji Kamen in the Pčinja River Valley as a complementary case. Five purposively selected geosites, Vranjska Banja, Markovo Kale, Kazandjol Canyon, Vražji Kamen, and Pržar Viewpoint, were evaluated and compared using a Modified Geosite Assessment Model (M-GAM). The results show generally high scientific, scenic, and educational values, but considerable differences in tourism-related support, particularly in organised visits, on-site interpretation, visitor facilities, and guiding. Geosites Vražji Kamen and Vranjska Banja have nearly identical leading Main Values, whereas Vranjska Banja has the most balanced overall profile. An equal-weight comparison yielded similar site profiles and the same Additional Values ranking, although the adopted visitor-importance factor has not been locally validated. In a separate analytical step, the M-GAM results and documented contextual evidence were compared with the official Serbian 4S priorities: Food for the Future, Information and Communication Technologies, Future Machines and Manufacturing Systems, and Creative Industries. Since tourism is not an official 4S priority, it was considered a cross-sectoral activity that may connect geosite interpretation and visitor-service activities. Under the stated inclusion criteria, candidate linkages between individual geosites and official 4S domains were formulated for subsequent stakeholder assessment. The M-GAM/4S crosswalk distinguishes direct assessment results, contextual evidence, and author-derived development hypotheses. The proposed activities include digital hydrothermal interpretation at Vranjska Banja, digital storytelling at Markovo Kale, field-based geoscience education at Kazandjol Canyon, conservation-sensitive interpretation at Vražji Kamen, and GIS-based landscape interpretation at Pržar. Their feasibility should be examined through stakeholder consultation, the Entrepreneurial Discovery Process, and site-specific conservation assessment.