Areas of focus: climate, sustainable transport and Alpine towns

Switzerland has chosen to focus on climate, sustainable transport and Alpine towns during its Presidency of the Alpine Convention. Various projects and events related to these areas of focus were held in 2021 and 2022.

Simplon Alliance

Towards net-zero emissions in the transport sector in the Alps by 2050 at the latest.

Climate

The Alpine Convention has aligned itself with the Alpine Climate Target System 2050 and the Climate Action Plan 2.0 to pursue the objective of climate-neutral and climate-resilient Alps by 2050. Switzerland carried out various projects to contribute to achieving this objective, including the Alpine-wide climate day «Climate Hour» and a conference on climate-friendly construction and renovation in the Alps.

Klimastunde 2021

Climate Hour 2022

All of us can take small actions to better protect the climate in the Alps! This is why the Swiss Presidency of the Alpine Convention, in cooperation with the Permanent Secretariat of the Alpine Convention, carried out the second edition of the Alpine-wide «Climate Hour» on World Environment Day on 5 June 2022. 

More information on the website of the Alpine Convention

Sustainable transport

People live, work and spend their free time in the Alps. This has led to a high level of mobility and high capacity demands on the transport network. The Alps are also a highly-sensitive natural environment. To keep the impact on the environment to a minimum, we need to design transport in a resource efficient way and heighten awareness for the unique natural environment of the Alps. During its Presidency, Switzerland promoted activities on cycle tourism, sustainable travel for young people and transalpine freight traffic. 

Tourenvelofahrerin

MoVe the Alps - Conference on cycling tourism in the Alpine region

More and more people are spending their holidays on their bikes. This presents both opportunities and risks for the Alpine region. At the conference «MoVe the Alps», experts discussed how cycling tourism can be promoted in a climate-friendly way.

MoVe INN now

MoVe INN now - Environmental education along the Inn River

Children and young people from the Engadine, Tyrol and Bavaria cycle along the Inn, the Rhine and the Lech. In this way, the participants learn more about the ecological importance of the Alpine rivers.

Alpine towns

The Swiss Presidency aimed to give new impetus in the urban areas of the Alps. In addition to environmental issues, Switzerland intended to address social issues. The Report on the State of the Alps provides new insights into Alpine towns, their significance for the surrounding Alpine area and their development prospects. Switzerland has furthermore joined forces with Alpine towns and other partners to launch the ‘Climate Action in Alpine Towns’ project, which involves residents in promoting climate measures. The contents of the international report "Alpine Towns"; the scientific analysis, the future scenarios and the maps are available for download at alpinetowns.alpconv.org. On the Alpine Towns Blog you will also find further exciting background articles on the topic.

Alpine towns: the Kajzer Park in Idrija (Slovenia)

The Kajzer Park in Idrija (Slovenia) is a former mining site that is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The brownfield site around these landmark buildings suffers from soil contamination caused by the mining activity. Idrija wants to seize the opportunity with the Territorial Agenda 2030 pilot 'Climate action in Alpine towns' to revitalise the area and make it climate-resilient. The lessons learned will then be applied to other parts of the city.

Constructive Alps

Since its inception in 2011, the international architecture prize for sustainable renovation and construction in the Alps «Constructive Alps» has contributed to the implementation of the Alpine Convention and its Climate Action Plan. To mark the tenth anniversary of the architecture competition, Switzerland organised an online conference on sustainable renovation and construction in the Alps last June and took the opportunity to announce the launch of the sixth edition of «Constructive Alps».

As part of its 2021/22 presidency, Switzerland was even more committed to climate protection and the sustainability of Alpine architecture. Climate-friendly building - in harmony with social aspects - is a key to a future with a high quality of life. Pioneering award-winning buildings from the last editions are presented in the Constructive Alps travelling exhibition. Current locations can be found here.

Feld school building in Azmoos (SG)

Constructive Alps - 6th edition

As part of the Swiss Presidency of the Alpine Convention, the sixth edition of the architecture competition «Constructive Alps» will be held in 2022. Architects have submitted 237 projects; the jury will assess them on the basis of various focal points and visit a selection on site.

Contact

Swiss Federal Office for Spatial Development ARE

Section International Affairs

Alpine Convention

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https://www.are.admin.ch/content/are/en/home/international-cooperation/alpine-convention/areas-of-focus.html