Media releases
Winter Olympics on shaky ground
Use as much concrete and steel as possible: that seems to be the sustainability strategy for the Winter Olympics in the Italian Alps. Mountain communities are particularly affected. The icing on the cake is the construction of a new cable car on a slippery slope in Cortina.
The Alps: More than just a playground
After two decades of being staged on other continents, the Olympic Games are returning to the Alps in 2026 with a commitment to “sustainable games” – a promise that has already been broken several times in the run-up to the event. In its new position paper, CIPRA calls for comprehensive reforms from both the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the host countries.
International training on inclusion and sustainability in mountain regions
Between May 27th and 31st, over 30 people from the Alpine region gathered in Wildhaus/CH to attend the training within the project »Via Alpina Youth«. The aim was to explore and discuss the potential of mountain and nature experiences within the work with young people. The workshop was organised by CIPRA Switzerland and CIPRA International.
Flexible and eco-friendly through the Alps
The right decision for their wallet and for the environment: 150 young participants in CIPRA’s Youth Alpine Interrail project celebrated the end of their climate-friendly journey of discovery through the Alps by train and bus in Bern at the beginning of October 2022.
Ideas for Jelovica from Pinzgau
Preserving the region’s natural and cultural heritage: this is the aim of the project on the Slovenian karst plateau of Jelovica. In mid-September 2022, the Slovenian partners of the “JeloviZA” project travelled to the Austrian Pinzgau region to gain inspiration from the Hohe Tauern National Park region.
Via Alpina Explorer on the trail
Get your boots on, get set, go! Until the end of September 2022, nine “explorers” will be hiking along the redesigned Via Alpina route. They tell stories about alpine biodiversity, the magic of long-distance hiking, regional specialities and encounters along the way – in a series of short videos, reports, film and art projects.
Alps in transition
The ecological transition is already happening in the Alps – and we are in the middle of it. The AlpWeek 2022 from 5 to 7 September 2022 in Brig-Glis/CH will bring together citizens and decision-makers to discuss the many aspects of transformation in the Alps. CIPRA is co-organiser of the international event.
A voyage of discovery along the Via Alpina
On with your hiking boots, get set, go! To mark the 20th anniversary of the Via Alpina, the long-distance hiking trail across the Alps, CIPRA International is awarding eight hiking scholarships with the support of the VAUDE Sport Albrecht von Dewitz Foundation. Applications will be accepted up until 6 February.
New alliance for European mountain regions
Global warming, excessive tourism and landscape degradation require the very highest degree of multifaceted solutions. Three umbrella organizations committed to mountaineering and sustainability in European mountain regions therefore decided, at the end of November 2021, to join forces: the Club Arc Alpin (CAA), the European Union of Mountaineering Associations (EUMA) and the International Commission for the Protection of the Alps (CIPRA).
For visitors and for locals
What is a good life in the Alps? How can tourism be reshaped? CIPRA International has dedicated its 2018 Annual Report to both local residents and visitors to the Alps and, under the motto “Visitors and residents”, has illustrated how tourism and quality of life can be compatible.
Alpine crossing “whatsalp” successfully completed
Starting 3rd of June 2017, a group of Alpine experts were hiking through Austria, Switzerland, France and Italy from Vienna to Nice in the course of the project “whatsalp”. They documented the current state of the Alps and exchanged experiences with different people on-site and on the way. Another objective was to draw a comparison with the results of the "TransALPedes”crossing of the Alps in 1992 and to take a look into the future. The main partners of the project were the International Commission for the Protection of the Alps (CIPRA) and the Swiss Alpine Initiative, in addition to numerous other partners such as the Alpine Convention, for instance. On the 29th of September 2017, the whatsalp group arrived in Nice and reported on the results.
Living simply - with fewer resources
(08.04.2014) The Alps are coming under increasing pressure with developments such as the energy transition, the growth of tourism and urban sprawl. But we can offset the limited nature of their natural resources with the help of cultural resources – changing our values to focus more closely on an environmentally-friendly way of life. What this entails is the subject of CIPRA’s 2013 Annual Report.
Our demand: Olympics-free Alps!
After the celebrations, the hangover of the morning after the Olympics: the reckoning of the consequential damage and the follow-up costs in Sochi. And just as it has been for all the venues around the world that have hosted the Winter Olympics, the reckoning will be severe. In an open letter, CIPRA is calling on IOC President Thomas Bach to initiate a fundamental reform of the IOC. In fact CIPRA has upped the ante with a policy document demanding that no more Winter Olympics be planned or staged in their current form.
CIPRA embarks on a long-distance walk
On 1 January 2014, CIPRA International took over the secretariat of the long-distance trail Via Alpina. Together both alpine-wide networks are working for more sustainable development in the Alps. Passionate hikers shall not be the only ones to benefit.
Why Sochi is not in the Alps
The 2014 Winter Olympics could have been held in the Alps except that, at the time, Salzburg’s candidacy fell through with the IOC. Nowadays, the Winter Olympics have virtually no chance of success among the people who actually live in the Alps. CIPRA looks back at the experiences gained in recent years.
CIPRA receives the Dutch Sustainability Award
In an on-line ballot, Dutch mountaineers voted CIPRA the 2012 Sustainability Organisation of the Year. This is the first time the Sustainability Award has been made by the Royal Dutch Mountaineering and Climbing Club.