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Strong new voices at CIPRA

Stephan Tischler is the new Chairman of CIPRA Austria, Elias Kindle takes over as Executive Director of CIPRA Liechtenstein. At CIPRA International Wilfried Marxer becomes Treasurer and Sofia Farina is Youth Representative on the Board, while Co-Director Barbara Wülser says goodbye.

Point of view: For a cultural change in transit traffic

Trade has been the driving force behind cultural and social development in the Alpine region. Transit traffic in its current form, on the other hand, mainly benefits regions away from the Alps. To ban noise and exhaust fumes from the Alpine valleys we need more than a watered-down EU directive, says Stephan Tischler, President of CIPRA Austria.

Magazine AlpsInsight

It’s well researched, entertaining and colourful: "Alps insight", the feature magazine addresses current issues relating to the Alps from a wide variety of viewpoints. Background information from the experts is accompanied by concrete examples, whether on the building of second homes, global warming, biodiversity, energy-efficient construction methods, innovations and much, much more. Right across the Alps. It is published at irregular intervals in German, French, Italian and Slovene, and is sent out by post.

Reset Alpine Tourism

[Project completed] "Reset Alpine Tourism" brought together relevant tourism stakeholders to discuss climate protection and sustainable development in tourism.

Young, mobile, sustainable

Travelling through the Alps by train in a climate-friendly way: young adults campaigned for more sustainable mobility at the online workshop “Youth Alpine Interrail” in December 2020 at the “AlpenWoche Intermezzo”. They discussed with representatives from politics how nature experiences can motivate more climate protection and which political measures are necessary.

speciAlps2

[Project completed] More and more people are seeking recreation and balance in the natural surroundings of the Alps. This trend is not only being reinforced by the corona crisis, but also by society’s increasing pressure to perform. This puts increasing pressure on animals and plants, but also on destinations with their infrastructure and inhabitants. It is essential for visitors to be guided: the speciAlps2 project raised awareness of the protection of nature and landscape in the Alps and developed measures to guide visitors.

Green Deals for Municipalities

[Project completed] “Think globally – act locally”: promoting local action requires comprehensive skills and wide-ranging knowledge of the people working locally for climate protection. Partner organisations from Germany, Liechtenstein and Austria are now developing a participatory process under a transnational EU project. The goal is to empower local initiatives to act more effectively on climate protection in a global context.

Kick-off for innovative youth projects

Outdoor lessons, a sustainably organised music festival, workshops on waste prevention: young people from Italy, Liechtenstein and Slovenia presented their ideas for a more sustainable future at the kick-off of the Alps2030 project on 9 December 2020.

Darkness is worth protecting

Insect mortality, fewer pollinated plants, disoriented migratory birds, disturbed sleeping rhythms: the worldwide increase in light pollution has an enormous impact on flora, fauna and humans – including in the Alpine region.

Alpine landscape is not renewable!

Landscape is a key to negotiating social and political issues. CIPRA has taken up these issues as part of its Alpine-wide priority theme “Landscape” 2019-2020. This position paper, which was developed in a broad and participatory process with CIPRA representatives, young Alpine women and experts from all Alpine countries, is the conclusion of this priority theme.

Outdoor tourism as the new mainstream

The corona pandemic, digitisation and health are causing ever more people to spend their leisure time in the mountains. At the online conference “Outdoor tourism with a long-distance perspective” on 16 and 17 November 2020, experts from the fields of science and the industry discussed how sustainable and socially acceptable tourism in the Alpine region can succeed.

Outstanding architecture

Climate awareness meets aesthetics: Switzerland and Liechtenstein are awarded the “Constructive Alps” architecture prize for sustainable renovation and construction in the Alps for the fifth time.

The Alps as Commons

How does ecologically sustainable management in the Alpine region contribute to a better quality of life? Answers and food for thought are provided by the themed booklet SzeneAlpen, published in November 2020.

Eusalp without Swiss cantons?

The Swiss mountain cantons want to leave the Eusalp – but not entirely: this surprise contradiction was dropped into talks about a future Eusalp presidency at the beginning of October 2020.

Young people demand climate-friendly Alpine ticket

High prices, long travel times, complex booking systems: an Alpine-wide survey by CIPRA's Youth Council shows that sustainable travel in the Alps must become more attractive.

Monitoring Alpine biodiversity

Photo traps, audio recorders, soil samples: a unique research project in the Alps documents the effects of the climate crisis on biodiversity in the Berchtesgaden National Park/D. The findings will also benefit other mountain regions.

The “Netzwerkstatt Alpen” is now open

An international competence centre in Liechtenstein that strengthens the idea of sustainable development in the Alps: with the newly renovated “Netzwerkstatt Alpen”, CIPRA has made this vision a reality.

Point of view: A plea for colourful cities

Corona has strikingly shown how important accessible local recreation areas are for our well-being. Over 70 percent of the Alpine population live in cities. There is a great deal of potential for action there in particular, says Magdalena Holzer, Project Manager at CIPRA International.

Strange, but true...

Developing Alpine culinary arts

The first competence centre for regional culinary arts in the Alps opened in autumn 2020 with the “Culinarium Alpinum” in Stans/CH, showing how the cooperation of various players is revitalising and developing Alpine food culture.

Pesticides trial opens

No criticism of pesticides wanted: a South Tyrolean provincial council, along with over 1300 farmers, has accused pesticide critics of libel.

Alpine Changemaker Network

The «Alpine Changemaker Network» is an international team drawn from NGOs, academia, social innovation and regional development organisations. We wish to strengthen Alpine society and we envision the Alps as a thriving ecosystem, one that offers an appealing life both to ourselves and to future generations. We combine regionally developed knowledge, social innovation practices, scientific teaching and researching skills, project management skills and much more besides – and we want to collaborate, share and learn!

Alps2030

[Project completed] Climate change, increasing consumption of resources and waste problems threaten nature and society in the Alps. With their 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), almost all countries worldwide have set themselves the target of making global development socially, ecologically and economically sustainable by 2030.

Freight transport belongs on the rails

EU transport ministers want to reach an agreement on the new Eurovignette Directive for transit traffic by the end of September 2020. CIPRA International and the "iMonitraf!" network are therefore calling for rapid agreement to ease the burden on humans and nature.

Freight transport belongs on the rails

Agreement on the Eurovignette Directive must not be delayed any longer. CIPRA International and the "iMonitraf!" network are therefore calling for rapid agreement to ease the burden on humans and nature. The aim of the directive must be preserved: freight transport needs to be shifted to the railways.

Semaine Alpine Intermezzo: Jeunesse & Climat

Comme sa grande sœur la SemaineAlpine qui se tient tous les quatre ans, l’Intermezzo SemaineAlpine est un événement international organisé conjointement par les plus importantes organisations alpines engagées dans le développement durable et la protection de la montagne. La ville de Nice, située à l’extrémité de l’arc alpin, accueillera cette année cet événement libre d’accès dans une ambiance alpine hors du commun.

Strange, but true...

Youth and climate as the focus of AlpWeek

What do young people think about climate change in the Alps? This is the main theme of the AlpWeek Intermezzo, due to take place in Nice in December 2020.

Quality from the mountains

Cheese, meat and honey – these and other products from the mountains must meet certain EU requirements to be allowed to bear the “mountain product” quality label, introduced by the EU in 2014. A recent study shows whether and how this term has become established.

Knowledge transfer on the co-adaptation of humans and wolves in the Alpine region

[Project completed] The return of large carnivores is increasingly causing the fronts to harden between different groups of stakeholders. Among the large carnivores returning to the Alps, the wolf is the most widespread and therefore the most widely debated animal. Wolves are synanthropic animals and cross boundaries - physical as well as intangible ones – regularly. Thus, they have been accompanying and influencing social and cultural processes since time immemorial. In this project, CIPRA has taken on the task to collect, analyse, make available and disseminate knowledge about the co-adaptation of humans and wolves throughout the Alps.