History

Founded on November 11th 2000 in Belluno, upon the initiative of the G. Angelini Foundation, “Rete Montagna” is an international association bringing together institutes, organisations and research centres focused to mountain issues, and which are engaged in the collection, coordination and promotion of cultural heritage so to promote debate and mutual updates on programs and activities. The main goal of the “Rete Montagna” is to gather (and compare) the different ways of living and ways of doing in the Alps, and in other mountain areas.

The main goals are:

• the collaboration proposals and research activities among members, such as meetings, training courses, publications, research on mountain areas, particularly on the Alps and other European mountains;
• to set up a common catalogue bringing together library sections and other documents that can be used by each member;
• the coordination of programs and projects in order to avoid overlaps and keep updated the results already achieved elsewhere;
• to elaborate motion texts and propose solutions for promotion and conservation strategies of mountain heritage and life-styles, to be reviewed and discussed by members and then submitted to relevant agencies and administration bodies.

Main activities

• Research on issues connected with population and depopulation of mountains; grants for graduate students interested in this subject; the winners have presented their results during the congress “Depopulation of mountains, reasons and effects” on 14th – 16th November 2002, in Innsbruck;
• proceedings of the Rete Montagna meetings of Belluno (2001) and Innsbruck (2002) “Spopolamento montano, cause ed effetti / Entvölkerung im Berggebiete: Ursachen und Auswirkungen” edited by M. Varotto in collaboration with E. Cason, E. Gaertner and Ch. Smekal (2003);
• congress in la Thuile (Aosta) about “Great events in the Alps and their impacts on tourism, culture and environment” on 16th and 17th December 2004;
• congress about “Changing Alps, new people, cultures and landscapes” in Tolmezzo (Udine) on 16th -17th November 2006. The message coming from the 32 lecturers is that mountains have an additional value, can combine tradition with innovation, differently from the plain and the town, and are able to cope with the risks of global change. The proceedings have been edited by M. Pascolini (2008);
• the 5th congress of the Rete Montagna in Chiavenna (I) and Castasegna (CH), in collaboration with the University of Milan, Department of human Geography and Sciences of the environment, and the Permanent Secretary of the Alpine Convention, on 29th – 30th May 2009, is focused to the subject “Changing Alps, between risks and chances”; the themes are: climate change in the Alps; traditional resources and new economy; cultural varieties in the Alps; the management of the alpine region, with a round table about the future of the Alps. The proceedings have been edited by G. Scaramellini and A. Dal Borgo (2011);
• 6th Conference on September 22nd-24th 2011 in Agordo (BL) about “Whose Alps are these? Governance, ownerships and belongings in contemporary alpine regions” organised by the Department of Geography of the University of Padua, in collaboration with: Fondazione G. Angelini-Centro Studi sulla Montagna, Innsbruck Universität, Fondazione Dolomiti UNESCO, Permanent Secretariat of the Alpine Convention. The final session was about “Whose are the Dolomites? Threats and opportunities between local needs and global uses”, with a school competion about “Your look on the Dolomites”. The proceedings are editing by B. Castiglioni and M. Varotto (Padova University Press). The proceedings have been edited by M. Varotto & B. Castiglioni, Padua Univ. Press and Rete Montagna (2012).
• 7th Congress in Bolzano – EURAC convention Center, 6th-8th Nov. 2014 about “The Alps in movement: People, Nature and Ideas” (Alpine economies/ Landscape Changes, Ecosystem Services Adaptation/ Cultural Resources and Lifestyle Changes). The proceedings will be edited by Th. Streifeneder and A. Omizzolo (EURAC research) by 2016.
• 8th Congress in L’Aquila at Palazzo Fibbioni ,26^th-28^th May 2016 about “Mountains after extreme events: decline or new development paths?”, organized with C.I.S.S.G.A., the Municipality of L’Aquila and other institutes. We are printing the proceedings