Articles

[3 questions to … ] Francesca Pasetti Bombardella
[3 questions to … ] Francesca Pasetti Bombardella
2026 is the International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists (IYRP 2026) aimed at raising global awareness of the critical importance of rangelands and pastoralist communities, managed by FAO during the whole 2026. Francesca Pasetti Bombardella is co-chair of the Regional IYRP Support Group Europe.
Shoes from a 3D printer
Shoes from a 3D printer
Creative, young, motivated: around 30 young people from all the Alpine countries have spent a year implementing their ideas for a good life in the Alps. At the beginning of July they concluded their year-long journey as “Alpine Changemakers” and presented their projects.
Innovations and aberrations
Innovations and aberrations
Helicopter flights and Australian white wine on the one hand, an eco-museum and recycled smartphones on the other: positive and negative awards from environmental organisations point the way to a more sustainable future.
Climate protection: from plan to action
Climate protection: from plan to action
The Alps as a climate-neutral, climate-resistant region by 2050: this is the objective of the newly launched “Climate Action Plan 2.0” of the Alpine Convention. Concrete steps will now follow in such areas as mountain farming, spatial planning and biodiversity.
Fit for work
Fit for work
Change to bus, train, bike or e-bike: pilot companies in the Alpenrhein-Bodensee-Hochrhein region are testing healthy ways to work in the three-year Interreg project Amigo.
Building – a bottomless pit?
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.
Economic activity in mountain areas
Economic activity in mountain areas
What can – and cannot – mountain areas do? Two new studies from Germany and Switzerland show the opportunities and weaknesses of regional economies and demonstrate that mountain areas can help in determining their own economic future.
Olympic Games: no benefit to the national economy
Olympic Games: no benefit to the national economy
Switzerland is once again discussing its candidacy for the 2022 Winter Olympics. Environmental organisations are warning against the ecological and economic repercussions. Even Marco Blatter, former CEO of Swiss Olympic, has been quoted on Swiss radio, saying that he was glad the 2006 Games were not held in the Valais. He added that in Turin/I the Games had grown out of all proportion. "With all the infrastructure investments Turin cost around CHF 4.5 bn; Vancouver is costing around CHF 6 bn; and Sochi 2014 is officially budgeting for CHF 13 bn," reports Switzerland's SonntagsZeitung.
climalp video: living in a plus-energy house
climalp video: living in a plus-energy house
CIPRA's climalp project demonstrates that energy-efficient houses built using regionally sourced timber are highly beneficial when it comes to living comfort, the climate, and the regional economy. A recent video featuring the single-family home of the Götz family built in Switzerland's Rhine valley in 2004 illustrates what sustainable, climate-friendly building can look like in practice.
The Alps are becoming more and more of a theme park
On 29 November Coca-Cola AG inaugurated its Alpen Club Micky Maus in the ski resort of Arosa/CH.