Task 1: To raise the awareness of how protected areas contribute towards regional development

By collecting and analysing examples of good practice Future in the Alps is to highlight the conditions under which protected areas can contribute towards regional value added, and make this knowledge available throughout the Alps. At the focal point are cross-sector co-operation projects by the protected area management with tourism, agriculture, commercial enterprises, and other regional value-added sources. Future in the Alps differentiates the examples it collects according to the type of region and the category of protection. The examples of good practice are used to identify and compile successful development strategies for protected areas. What economic and ecological changes can be brought about and controlled by protected areas? The answers to these questions are designed to help align promotion regulations in politics and administration with the sustainable development of protected areas.

Task 2: To showcase the benefits of large-scale protected areas and their networking in preserving biodiversity

By collating and processing projects and examples Future in the Alps is to determine the contribution which protected areas and large-scale protected areas in particular – and their networking through ecological channels – can make towards preserving biodiversity. In a concerted action the WWF, the Network of Alpine Protected Areas, the International Commission for the Protection of the Alps and the International Scientific Community for Alpine Research identified those regions which are to be protected as a matter of priority due to their outstanding biological diversity. How do these priority nature conservation regions overlap with existing protected areas, and how can they be better included in the planning of future protected areas? The results obtained from addressing these issues will be published throughout the Alps, enabling the assessment and development of large-scale protected areas aimed at successfully promoting biodiversity.

A team of experts addressed these tasks. The results include an analysis report as well as databases of examples of best/good practice and the relevant publications. These results, which are available in English only, provide the "raw material" used for mediating the know-how. The experts themselves are responsible for the contents of the results.

Report Protected Areas – Best Practice – Publications – Links

Here you can search projects and publications about each of the six topics