Optimal layout of tourist toilets using resilience theory: An empirical study on Dunhua City in ethnic region of China

The provision of adequate and equitable sanitation services is one of the world’s urgent challenges. Optimizing the layout of tourist toilets is key to both meeting the sanitation demand of the visiting public and building an inclusive and civilised society. Nevertheless, the need for a consistent optimization of tourist toilets is overlooked in developing countries, especially in ethnic regions that are highly dependent on tourism. Taking Dunhua, a city in an ethnic region renowned for tourism on China’s border with North Korea as an example, this study enables an optimization framework of a comprehensive tourist toilet layout based on Holling’s concept of resilience by constructing an AHP index, obtaining Point of Interest (POI) data through Python, and aided by GIS visual analysis and Location-allocation (LA) modelling, aiming to support scientific planning and decision making of public facilities in tourist destinations like Dunhua. It also serves as a reference for places of tourism in other countries dedicated to promoting ecotourism and public health.