ALPARC is pleased to invite you to present your latest protected areas research at the next international Symposium for Research in Protected Areas, 10-12 June 2013.

This event aims at providing researchers and staff of conservation organizations with an opportunity to exchange valuable information, new ideas as well as common interests and to discuss a variety of current research and management issues in protected areas.

The symposium will take place at the Hohe Tauern National Park Center in Mittersill, Salzburg, Austria.

The Concept

Six of Austria’s most ecologically valuable regions have been designated as national parks. They reflect the great diversity of this central European country: high mountains, forests, water and riparian marshes and steppes. Austria is part of two biogeographic regions: the alpine and the continental, and most of the Austrian national parks are part of two important regional networks: ALPARC (Alpine Network of Protected Areas) and DanubePARKS (The Danube River Network of Protected Areas ). 

In close cooperation with these regional networks for protected areas, and further supported by scientific institutions - ISCAR (International Scientific Committee on Research in the Alps), IGF (Mountain Research: Man and Environment, an Institute of the Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW )) and IAD (International Association for Danube Research) - we are looking for input from researchers or research groups working on issues related to protected areas across the entire geographic region from the Western Alps to the Danube Delta, from the plains to the highest peaks in Europe, from glacier-fed torrents to one of the world’s biggest wetlands.

Guiding Theme

Dynamics and conservation in protected areas - challenges for research and management.

At the 2013 conference itself, we would like to focus attention on:

Dynamics and conservation in protected areas under conditions of global change and the need to protect diversity.

- Do protected areas achieve the objectives defined for the protection of processes, functions and diversity and where are the limits?
- What are currently the most relevant research priorities, research questions, methods and recent results – regional and supra-regional, short and long term?
- Long-term ecosystem research: What do we know from science and practice?
- Where do protected areas, their regions and their networks currently stand regarding research and management?
We invite you to contribute to our Symposium by giving a talk or presenting a poster.

The call is open until 12 October 2012 for any topic that relates to the guiding theme.

Call for Papers

If you are interested in presenting your current research at the symposium, we kindly ask you to bear in mind the following information and timetable:
- Conference language: English only
- 12 October 2012 – Deadline for submitting an application with a short description of your presentation (max. 1.800 characters, incl. spaces) and a short Curriculum Vitae. Please use the attached or the online registration form: www.hohetauern.at/symposium2013 (available from 23. July 2012).
- 14 December 2012 – Announcement of accepted contributions (talk and/or poster/-s) and approved thematic sessions by the Scientific Board.
- January 2013 – Announcement of the full programme set by the Scientific Board.
- 25 February 2013 – Deadline for submitting your abstract for the conference proceedings. Detailled information will follow after acceptance.

Registration / Submission of papers

Secretary of the Conference
Hohe Tauern National Park
Gerlos Straße 18/2
A 5730 Mittersill
e-mail: nationalpark@salzburg.gv.at
phone: +43 (0)6562 40849
Further information, registration form and submission form:
www.hohetauern.at

 The Alpine Week 2012 was held from 5 to 8 September in the Valposchiavo in Switzerland. The theme chosen for this year was “Renewable Alps”. For the first time in the history of the Alpine convention, the Alpine conference, which brings together the Ministers of the signatory states, took place during the Alpine Week.

The Alpine Week is one of the most important events for sustainable development within the Alpine range, bringing together French, Italian, Swiss, German, Austrian, Slovene and Liechtensteiner protagonists of all the major Alpine research networks (ISCAR ), districts (Alliance in the Alps ), NGOs (CIPRA ), protected areas (ALPARC ) and alpine clubs (CAA ). 

 At the centre of the week: the Alps and their protagonists. The aim: to inject new energy into existing initiatives for sustainable development in the Alps and encourage new ones. The idea of having the Alpine protagonists and representatives of the signatory states to the Alpine convention together under one roof proved a fruitful one. This meeting, has made it possible to encourage the emergence of new solutions and dynamics in mountain partnerships.

During the numerous thematic sessions held in parallel (about 30 in all), the participants at the Alpine Week were able to discover a wide range of sustainable initiatives in the Alps and explore themes as varied as the young, schooling, governance, carbon neutrality, mobility, architecture, light pollution, landscape, agriculture, businesses, tourism, immigration and the brown bear. 

A great success, therefore, thanks also to the committed involvement of the Valposchiavo region which, with its numerous assets, succeeded in creating an auspicious and exemplary framework for the theme of renewable Alps. 

 The new International Steering Committee (ISC) was elected during the ALPARC General Assembly held on 7th September 2012 at Poschiavo in Switzerland.

Michael Vogel, director of the Berchtesgaden National Park in Germany was re-elected to the chair of CPI until the next General Assembly which will mark the creation of the new ALPARC association. He will be supported in his work by two deputy chairmen: Alain Brandeis, director of the Mercantour National Park in France, who has already held this post for the past year, and Massimo Bocca, director of the Mont Avic Regional Nature Park . All three were elected unanimously.

The ISC comprises 16 members and an observer representing the protected areas in the 8 Alpine countries. It defines the general outlook underscoring the cooperative work on the basis of the priorities and requirements of the protected areas. Every two years, it draws up the ALPARC works programme, which is subsequently approved by the Permanent Committee of the Alpine convention .

As protected Alpine area, you may contact one of your national representatives directly for any further information or request.

A full list of CPI members is available from this link . 

 Das 1. Roggenfest wird vom Verein Erlebniswelt Roggen organisiert und ist mehr als ein Fest: es ist ein Meilenstein auf dem Weg, Erschmatt als Zentrum des Roggens zu positionieren.

Die Aktivitäten während und rund um das Fest, sowie die Vernetzung mit den Roggen- und backbegeisterten Gästen aus Rauris/ A , ist eine nachhaltige Investition in eine urtümliche Walliser Tradition, die mit neuen Ideen ergänzt und lebendig weiter gegeben wird.

Reservieren Sie sich bereits jetzt dieses Datum. Es lohnt sich.

Ein Fest für alle Sinne! Kulturelles, Kulinarisches, Wissenswertes rund um den Roggen und seine Vielfalt warten am 8. September in Erschmatt auf Sie!

Infos unter: www.erschmatt.ch

La première édition du salon EnergiCîmes est organisée par le Parc du Massif des Bauges,

en collaboration avec l’ASDER, PRIORITERRE, les organisations professionnelles, TENERRDIS et l’INES et la commune de Lescheraines.

Les thèmes sont: les économies d’énergies dans l’habitat et le transport, les énergies renouvelables et l’éco-construction adaptées aux spécificités du PNR du massif des Bauges

 The next General Assembly of the network ALPAR C will take place on September, 6-7th 2012 in Valposchiavo (CH). This day will be a very special one for the network, because on this occasion, the ALPARC Association will be created.

It is one step that allows ALPARC to structure and close cooperation and legally binding to the Alpine Convention and still to maintain a strong self-reliance as a club. This step is the increasing number of projects and requests of protected areas can be coordinated more effectively. The only currently known solution of such a large "community" as the network it represents a legal status is to announce the founding of an association.

The 8th General Assembly of the Alpine Network of Protected Areas (ALPARC) will take place during the AlpWeek 2012. 

“How renewable are the Alps?”

“What are the renewable resources the Alps can build a future on?”

“How can a sustainable future be built on past experiences and know-how?”

These questions will be addressed during the third Alpweek taking place in Valposchiavo, Switzerland, 5-8 September 2012 . All those who are engaged in and for the Alps are invited to contribute to a manifold of discussions and presentations from different perspectives, ranging from nature protection to demographical issues. The key role of future generations will be a main feature of the event. 

 It is still possible to register for the 2nd International Workshop “Mountain Environmental Education in Alpine protected areas” until the 30th of September and within the limit of available places.

This workshop takes place the 17th,18th and 19th of October 2012 in the Hohe Tauern National Park in Mallnitz (Austria). Please find bellow the final program, practical information and news about the inscription.  

The meeting will focus on the topic "Youth in mountain regions": How can we strengthen the connection between young people and the Alpine protected areas?

Other issues will also be discussed, often more technical aspects, in small groups within parallel sessions:

• Management of visitor centres,
• Funding and sponsorship of activities or institutions,
• Common educational values, identity and culture of the Alpine regions

The topics and the program, attached below, were developed in discussions with members of ALPARCs working group "Education and awareness raising" and members of the Reema. This workshop aims to answer to the expectations of the responsible persons for environmental education in the Alpine protected areas.
For further information please look at the attached document or send an email to Marie Stoeckel .

Liens

• Nationalpark Hohe Tauern
• REEMA Alpine Network for Mountain Environmental Education (France)          

 They glide... a few wing beats, they slip between the trees to complete their flight on a hilltop. The birds. What do you think, how do birds feel when they see the Alps, drifting by under their wings during their migration in spring and autumn?

Fly with us on your area and take the opportunity to get the knowledge about the Alpine protected areas with our tool ViViAlp!

The tool ViViAlp, a virtual tour (in 3D) of the alpine protected areas, continues its development.

After 4 years of success in nearly two dozen information centres across the 6 alpine countries and as well online with the Google Earth version, it is now possible to find new Alpine protected areas and new 'points of interest' (POI): The Natural Park Nagelfluhkette (D), ASTERS (Natural Reserves Haute-Savoie) and the National Park Mercantour in France and as well the Natural Park Alpi Marittime (I).

Our partners of the project ALPENCOM, in which project ViViAlp has been created, such as the National Park Triglav and the City of Chambéry , will also incorporate new points of interests.  

For more information please contact Stéphane Morel at the Task Force Protected Areas by email (stephane.morel@alparc.org) or phone : +33(0)4 79 26 55 09 or look at our homepage !

It is with great pride that we announce that eco.mont has just been admitted into the prestigious Thomson Index (Web of Science), with retroactive inclusion of all past issues (back to issue 1 in June 2009).

The periodical was created by common accord between ALPARC , ISCAR (International scientific committee on research in the Alps), the Austrian Academy of Sciences ÖAW and the University of Innsbruck. The ISCAR-P work group covering research in protected spaces constitutes the editorial committee of eco.mont.

Issue 4/2, to be published in December 2012, will include articles on changes in vegetation around the Alpine lakes of Styria, results of research into the districts within Nepalese national parks and displacements in Ethiopia. A portrait of the biosphere of the Swabian Jura will also appear in the summary.

We also invite you to submit your contributions for the next issue (5/1) before December 2012. The main themes discussed by the magazine are: the administration of protected areas and governance, monitoring and climate change, sustainable and ecological regional development, research into the flora and fauna of the protected mountain areas.

eco.mont publishes new scientific articles submitted to a peer review process, reports on administrative matters and other subjects of interest for the protected areas, and in each issue focuses on a protected area as a case in point. The periodical is published in English to reach as wide a public as possible.

Cross-border Protected Areas in Europe

The international specialist conference in the frame of the INTEREG IV A - project “Harmonization and optimization of the management of NATURA 2000 areas in cross-border nature landscapes of the lower Oder valley” will be held from 27th to 29th November 2012 in Schwedt/Oder, Germany.

We would like to present you the first results of the project and simultaneously turn your attention to European experience in cross-border nature conservation. Get inspired by Best Practice examples throughout Europe and contribute to developing of guidelines giving new impulses to cross-border cooperation in protected areas.

The enclosed conference program informs you about contents and schedule. Registrations are welcome by 31st October 2012 latest. Please feel free to circulate the invitation to other interested colleagues.

We look forward to welcome you end of November in the unique lower Oder valley.

Dirk Treichel

Director of the National Park Lower Oder Valley 

 The Massif des Bauges, natural regional park since 1995, covers between 250 and 2217m and an area of 856 km². The park is divided in the two departments Savoy (46 municipalities) and the Haute-Savoie (18 municipalities). The 64 municipalities in the Park hosts 70 000 inhabitants (in 2008) and are part of the department Rhône-Alpes. There are six towns, which are also members of the Parks joint union, and in total 400 000 people are living in the park.

A wide variety of natural habitats

Forest covers 58% of the parks territory and provides the resource wood which is very important for the local economy. Grasslands, which are represented in 30 % in the parks area, are split in hayfields and pastures.  

 A more detailed analysis of the habitats shows a wide variety, which includes dry grassland in the south-west, wetlands in the lower valleys and rock and scree habitats in the highlands. An exemplar of this diversity is maintained through the Parks’ NATURA 2000 network (7 areas cover 17 000 ha).

Thanks to the landscape diversity, there is also a rich flora diversity to find in the park. 1600 species were identified in the Parks territory, which means a 1/5 of the French flora. Some of them are strictly protected like the lady’s-slipper orchid (Cypripedium calceolus) and the Alpine Sea Holly (Eryngium alpinu). Next to the flora, the fauna is also very varied. The Park observed 117 species nesting in the territory, including many endangered species: golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos), Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus) and the Black Grouse (Tetrao tetrix). A study of the National Office for Hunting and Wildlife (ONCFS) found out that the chamois is the most symbolic large mammals of the park. In the core area of the natural regional park, the reserve of national hunting and wildlife of the Bauges, the chamois, mountain sheep, grouse and many other animals are protected in a territory of 5200 ha forest and alpine meadows. Since 2003 the park is managing this part of the region in collaboration with the National Forest and National Office for Hunting and Wildlife.  

The missions of the Park

For a better way to accommodate the public and the same moment to preserve and reveal the heritage and landscapes while contributing to a sustainable development of this exceptional area, which is surrounded by six cities, the Park developed a charter. The charta includes the following main axes and the working program:

• sustainable urban planning – the park ensures the compatibility of urban planning documents with the plan of the park
• support of local economy activities with especially local products (agriculture and forest in particular)
• the knowledge, protection and management of the natural and cultural heritage

• support of all forms of sustainable tourism, which are developed in respect of the resources
• environmental education: the park is an active member of the Reema and the Alparc working group « environmental alpin education », which means concretly having exchanges on an international level. The park has also participated at the ViViAlp project , an educative tool (a 3dimensional flight over the Alpine protected areas on a big screen) for understanding, discovering and learning something about the Alps.
• An experimentation like the agri-environmental measure to accountability for results "prairie flowers " (it is the Regional Park Bauges, who, inspired by Swiss and German initiatives, has initiated this program in France, now extended to the entire country.)

GEOPARK, a label given by the UNESCO

In September 2011, the natural regional park Massif des Bauges got the label Geopark . The global network of Geoparks aims to promote the Earth heritage, especially the geological one, to the public, and to support the local sustainable development of territories in form of geotourism. Nowadays there are 50 Geoparks in Europe – 4 of them in France.
On international level the park develops partnerships with the Luberon Geopark (France) and the Geopark d’Arouca (Portugal) concerning a sustainable resource tourism , which is financed by the European LEADER program. Another convention was signed with the Geopark de Leye Fengshan (as well for tourism projects) and the Altai Mountains in Russia.  

Park's identity card