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Alpine plants: persistent and endangered

Spiked rue, glacier buttercup, saxifrage: the habitat of such alpine plants is shrinking with the glaciers, as a recent study shows. In addition to climate change, mountain plants are also suffering from nitrogen deposition.

Where pesticides do not belong

On children’s playgrounds, in schoolyards and at the marketplace: researchers from Italy, Austria and Germany detect 32 different agricultural poisons in public places in South Tyrol.

Glacier ice on a stick

Artificial ice cones and “snow ropes”: Swiss glaciologists want to save glacier ice as a water reservoir and make ski resorts more environmentally friendly. The idea comes from the Indian Himalayas.

Swiss Chairmanship of the Alpine Convention

Switzerland has chaired the Alpine Convention since the end of 2020. One of the main topics for the next two years will be climate protection.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Hut transport: mules as an alternative

For centuries, mules and horses have transported goods in mountainous regions. What used to be the only means of transport has nowadays mostly been replaced by helicopter. A nature park in Piedmont, Italy, is now organising the delivery of goods to mountain huts by mule, while environmentally friendly alternatives to helicopters are also being tested elsewhere.

Living mountain forests

Climate protector and habitat, recreational area and timber supplier: forests have many functions, both in the natural ecosystem and for humans. CIPRA Slovenia's “GozdNega / Forest Care” project aims to convince forest owners of the benefits of climate-friendly management.

Climate change: Merano’s strategy for a better quality of life

Trees instead of parking spaces and support for the population during hot spells – with a total of 19 measures like these, the city of Merano/I is countering the effects of climate change. Experts, interest groups and young people have worked together to develop the strategy.

What can we learn from the coronavirus crisis?

In the Alps, too, the question now arises as to what will happen after the corona crisis. As part of its development of new projects, CIPRA conducted a survey to gain an impression of the current mood.

Location policy at the expense of the environment

Slovenia’s government wants to restrict the right of civil society to have a say in controversial construction projects. Other Alpine countries are also pursuing location policies at the expense of the environment.

Vision Velo Alpina: a cycle path through the Alps

The Alpe-Adria cycle path or the Eurovelo routes: in the Alps there already exist cross-border long-distance cycle paths, but there is not yet a route through all the Alpine countries. A project to test the feasibility of a Velo Alpina wants to change this.

Tourism after the ski lift

Milder and milder winters are forcing ski resorts to invest in expensive snowmaking and lift facilities – an arms race in which many are no longer able to compete. Some places in the Alps have already found alternatives to skiing.

Bees: small in size, big in effect

Why we need honey, pollinators and biodiversity: This question is the subject of the themed issue of SzeneAlpen, to be published in March 2020.

Harmful transit traffic

Priority for health and the environment along the Brenner axis: this is what CIPRA Italy and other environmental associations are demanding of the Italian Minister of Transport.

A top combination: From road to rail

It is technically and politically possible to shift freight traffic through the Alps onto rail. The AlpInnoCT project shows how it could work.