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Three workshops for sustainable mobility

Ideas for cross-border co-operation, the future of the Veynes railway and a toolbox for sustainable commuting: three projects from the Alps that serve as an inspiration for more sustainable mobility.

Good service for rural areas

A success story: December 2018 saw the opening of the 100th «Maison de services au public» in the French Alps.

Venturing into the unknown

In her report Christine Eben would write: ‘Once again we formed mixed groups, in terms of both age and nationality, just as we had in our previous workshops that had proved so successful. As it’s all about future developments, exchanging ideas with young people is all the more important.’

Sustainable lifestyles in the Alps

[Project completed] What we eat, what we throw away, how we live and move around - in short, our lifestyle - affects our environment, our fellow human beings and the climate. The project promoted sustainable lifestyles and identifies good examples in the Alps.

What the landscape tells us

How do we perceive changes in the landscape? Why do we feel more closely connected to some places than others? These questions are raised by CIPRA with «Re-Imagine Alps», its new interactive map of the region.

Researching the Alps

They are probably among the most thoroughly researched mountain areas on Earth, yet the spirit of research in the Alps remains undiminished: November 2018 saw the opening of a new Centre for Mountain Research in the Swiss city of Sion.

Ecosystems out of balance

Storms, drought, floods, mudslides and avalanches: many Alpine regions were affected by extreme natural events in 2018. The first measures are already in place to ensure better management.

Tour des villes

[Project completed] Contribution of Alpine towns to the Alpine Week and subsequent consolidation: sustainable settlement development with a focus on village/city centre revitalisation and use of open spaces

Youth participation is a must, not a nice extra

More youth participation in the Alps! This appeal went to the politicians of the Alpine countries at the conference on the GaYA project in Chambéry/F. The extent to which the topic moves was shown by the participation of numerous young people and representatives from politics and society throughout the Alps.

Youth participation is a must-have – not a nice-to-have

More youth participation in the Alps! This was the plea made by the GaYA Conference in Chambéry, France, to politicians and policymakers in the Alpine countries. The strength of feeling involved was illustrated by the participation of numerous young people and representatives from the spheres of politics and society.

Sustainable Tourism: Who will do the job?

There is no shortage of ideas when it comes to sustainable tourism in the Alps. But who will take charge of networking these ideas? In early November CIPRA International invited experts from all the Alpine countries to attend a workshop in Innsbruck, Austria in order to jointly develop a job profile.

Recognising the importance of Alpine ecosystems

While one group has highlighted ecosystem performances, another has tested participatory approaches to river management: a total of 19 partners from six Alpine countries have for three years now been co-operating on two projects. They presented their findings on 21 and 22 November 2018 in Innsbruck, Austria.

Audible Alps - CIPRA Podcast

Podcast

Re-Imagine Alps

[Project completed] Relations between humans, and between humans and nature, are the focus of the “Re-Imagine Alps” project. People take responsibility for their environment when they feel concerned and involved. Landscape here serves as a frame of reference and focal point for the perception and communication of sustainability issues: various relationships, memories and visions are illuminated in respect of, by, and for landscape in the overall Alpine context. Responsibilities and obligations grow out of ideas and relationships.

The Alps as a climate laboratory

Without climate protection measures the average temperature in the Alps will increase by up to 4.5 degrees by 2050. New initiatives give rise to hope, with the latest United Nations climate report drawing further attention to the topic.

What nature provides

The international project AlpES is strengthening the importance of ecosystems and their services for the population of the Alps. The project team will be presenting its results on 21-22 November 2018 in Innsbruck, Austria.

A cultural heritage to savour

How a cross-border project combines culinary delights with the Alpine heritage.

Morbegno recognised for its commitment

Morbegno, in the Italian region of Lombardy, has been chosen as the 2019 «Alpine Town of the Year». It thus joins an international network that advocates future-proof urban development in the Alps.

Oh!

Mountain Research and Development Vol 38, No 3 available online and open access

Topics are: the foresight process as a means of effective conservation in a national reserve in Peru, local perception of a dam project in Darjeeling, regeneration patterns of key tree species in Garhwal, water-holding of forest litter in China, the role of Acacia decurrens in Ethiopia, a high-resolution map of the world’s mountains and open access tool to compare mountain extents, and immigration of refugees to the European Alps as social innovation.

Young ideas for the Alps!

How can young people actively shape the future of the Alps? The GaYA Conference on 30 November 2018 in Chambéry/F focuses on youth participation and governance.

Ample space for castles in the air

Toni seeks out sources of friction between himself and his surroundings. That includes meeting up with people who have contrasting views to his own and his own living environment. ‘It’s the only way for something new to materialise,’ he explains.

The whale jumper

Hanging inside Gregor Novak’s flat is a whale. Made from an old pullover. That old woolly jumper had become seriously irritating as it had lost its shape and was unwearable. So Gregor scratched his head looking for an idea and then came up with two – in the drawers marked ‘Fabrics’ and ‘Animals’ respectively. He then handcrafted the old jumper into a whale, which now adorns his flat in Liechtenstein.

A place of encounter

Living here is a life choice. It’s not a choice Maria Schneider from Germany made herself; rather, she followed her husband Andreas Schneider to Italy some thirty-five years ago. In actual fact, it all began by mistake.

Nature providing services in the Alps

Whether mountain forests that protect us from avalanches and clean our air, or rivers and alpine pastures that provide us drinking water, energy or nourishment: in the AlpES Project ten partner organisations from six alpine countries have evaluated and documented ecosystem services for the past three years. They will present their results on 21st and 22nd November 2018 at a Final Event in Innsbruck/A. Press representatives are kindly invited to attend.

Inspiration with heart and mind

Sometimes inspiration comes to Franziska Kunze right in the middle of her day. As it did recently when she was at the market and spotted a pig’s heart in the butcher’s window. She knew there and then she’d buy the heart, even though she didn’t yet know how she was going to prepare it.

‘And… and… and’

Jean Horgues-Debat reserves the right to get it wrong. ‘There is no norm,’ says the 60-year-old engineer. ‘We’re allowed to give it a go, develop, and reject.’

Ideas like apple trees

Whenever Cristina Dalla Torre gets excited about an idea, she feels she has to tell the whole world about it. She knows how important it is for ideas to get out there and enthuse others. And yet, occasionally, she can be lost for words: ‘This is a good idea, a really good idea. It’s like, you know, …’

Building – a bottomless pit?

Whether it is a question of major projects or infrastructure developments in protected areas – Alpine countries such as Austria and Switzerland cannot build quickly or easily enough.