Articles
BergBuchBrig
Montagnalibri, the international mountain-book fair, is to be held for the second time in Brig in the Valais/CH from 25 to 28 October 2007. BergBuchBrig presents over 1,000 new books from 30 countries in a variety of languages. All the specialist books, literary works, picture books, guides, etc., relate to the world of the mountains.
Tackling climate change with bare facts
Switzerland's Aletsch Glacier was recently the scene of an unusual protest action. Around 600 people gathered on the Alps's largest glacier to draw attention to the impact of climate change - by stripping off completely. The participants, who had travelled from all over Europe, were positioned on the Glacier in a variety of ways by photographers and five camera crews, and photographed from all sorts of angles.
International workshop series "Disseminating Knowledge - Networking People" New technologies give a boost to local culture and tradition
CIPRA successfully pursued its international workshop series on "Disseminating Knowledge - Networking People" with numerous events in May and June.
What's new on www.cipra.org/zukunft
Brig, Klagenfurt and Chiavenna: Workshop documentation is now online The workshop on "The Forestry Sector in Regional Policy - Options for Sustainable Development in the Alpine Region" organised by the Further Education in Forestry and Landscape jointly with CIPRA was held in Brig/CH on March 28 and 29.
The Alps' longest railway tunnel
Last weekend saw the official inauguration ceremony of the Lötschberg base tunnel in Switzerland after a construction period of eight years. At 34.6 km it is the third longest railway tunnel in the world. The new link between the Bernese Oberland and the Valais drastically reduces the journey time.
The forestry sector in regional policy
Around 50 experts, mostly from the forestry sector, took part in the two-day workshop on regional policy held in Brig/CH on 29 and 30 March. The event, which was held in French and German as part of the series of workshops entitled "Getting Knowledge Across - Networking People", was attended by participants from France, Germany and Switzerland.
Centre for high-altitude medicine in Lausanne
A new medical consultation centre for high-altitude medicine is to be set up at the University Hospital Lausanne/CH.
Unconventional co-operation in Switzerland's mountain regions
The Swiss Working Group on Mountain Regions has struck up a co-operation venture with eBay International AG, the world's largest internet auction house. Private individuals as well as small and medium-sized businesses are to be trained in buying and selling products and services via eBay.
Indoor ski venues closing in on the Alps
It's not just in the desert state of Dubai that indoor ski runs are proving increasingly popular, but also in Europe. No snow means no revenue, and the mild weather is giving Europe's ski resorts a serious headache, one which the ski industry is hoping to relieve with artificial snow and indoor venues, regardless of global warming issues.
Swiss Mountain Water Award 2007
This year again, the Swiss Mountain Water Award initiated by the Government Conference of the Mountain Cantons is to be held for the third year running since 2005, with prize money worth CHF 50,000.
1.5 tonnes of artificial fertilizer for skiing competitions?
The impact of climate change on skiing areas is the subject of the OECD study published on 13 December 2006. It concludes that if a region's average annual temperature increases by one degree, only around 500 of the 666 skiing areas in the Alps could be assured of snow.
Davos on the road to Kyoto
Davos, Switzerland's highest town, is working towards a more climate-friendly local policy.
Tests underway on the world's highest solar power station
The Swiss utility BKW FMB Energie AG is currently conducting trials scheduled to last until this summer on a high-alpine solar power station.
Synthesis report: Utilising the value of Alpine landscapes
The Swiss National Fund Programme on "Landscapes and Habitats of the Alps" recently published its synthesis report (de/fr) on the research focus entitled "Land Use and Adding Values".
Trends in the mountain regions of Switzerland - the view of the locals on DVD
Two new ethnographic films have been released as part of the Swiss National Fund Programme on "Landscapes and Habitats in the Alps".
Climate-neutral winter holidays in Arosa
In co-operation with the company ClimatePartner the holiday region of Arosa/CH is the first resort in the Alps to offer climate-neutral winter holidays.
Fertilizer use causes long-term disruption to alpine eco-systems
A study by the Swiss national research programme on "Landscapes and Habitats of the Alp" supports the assumption that alpine eco-systems do not react particularly flexibly to human intervention.
Conference proceedings on "Exploring the Nature of Management"
The conference proceedings for the 3rd International Conference on the Monitoring and Management of Visitors Flows in Recreational and Protected Areas have just been published.
Ecological wood-welding technology with a future
Scientists from Switzerland and France have now developed a new joinery method called wood welding.
King Albert Mountain Award an Werner Bätzing
Last week the King Albert I Memorial Foundation honoured seven mountain experts with golden awards. One of the Awards went to Germany's Werner Bätzing as a "leading expert on problems of the Alps as a whole".
Switzerland: NEAT costs have doubled
More than 600 participants from all over Europe recently convened in Lucerne/CH for this year's Swiss Tunnel Congress to find out more about the state of progress with the New Alps Transversal Route, or Neat.
Wengen Workshop 2006 on global climate change
An international workshop on global climate change research will take place also this year on 4 - 6 October in Wengen/CH.
Is mountain milk more valuable?
For the first time in Switzerland, the price that consumers are ready to pay for milk from mountain areas was determined based on customer surveys.
ALPRO - an analysis tool for projects in the Alpine region
ALPRO is a planning tool to be used by local authorities, organisations, promoters and investors to evaluate comprehensively the impact of landscape-altering projects in the Alpine region.
International event on the management of protected areas
The Third International Conference on Monitoring and Management of Visitor Flows in Recreational and Protected Areas is to be held in Rapperswil/CH from September 13th to 17th.
Ländergender - cross-border gender mainstreaming
As part of the Interreg IIIA Ländergender Project the governments of Vorarlberg/A, St. Gallen/CH and Liechtenstein plan to pool their efforts aimed at equal opportunities for men and women. The aim is to co-ordinate - and assist with - the implementation of gender mainstreaming in the regional administrations of the Lake Constance Region.
Swiss FSC wood for Harry Potter
(12.01.2006) The latest volume of Harry Potter (in English) was printed largely on eco-friendly FSC-certified paper from the Swiss Alps. The FSC abbreviation stands for Forest Stewardship Council and is a guarantee of ecologically sound and socially and economically sustainable forestry activities. The use of FSC paper was one of the demands made by J.K. Rowling, the star author of the Harry Potter series.
International Master of Landscape Architecture
(12.01.2006) The Master of Landscape Architecture (IMLA) at the University of Applied Sciences Rapperswil/CH is to be expanded in 2006, and will now also be available jointly at the Universities of Nürtingen-Geislingen/D and Weihenstephan/D.
Alpine landscape too bright at night
Swiss researchers have conducted a study to examine the extent to which man-made lighting has penetrated mountain regions since the 1970s. The comparison of satellite imagery shows that areas which previously were lit only in isolated spots - if at all - are now increasingly exposed to night time lighting.
New issue of the Journal of Alpine Research series
The latest issue of the Revue de Géographie Alpine series comprises five specialist articles on a variety of topics. One article examines the causes of flooding and the measures that are necessary to prevent it based on the example of the Isère/F region while another article focuses on sustainable water management in general.