Regional development in mountain areas and the impact of development on landscapes have been focuses of economic and regional policies in Austria for many decades due to the country's very mountainous topography. Meanwhile, measures designed in accordance with agricultural and regional policies have become an important component of Austria's mountain policy, with significant implications for sustainable regional development. At the core of mountain policy is the valuation of nonmarketable goods, which are increasingly referred to as "rural amenities" in international discourse. Such valuation must be included in comprehensive policy assessments of sustainable development. Sustainable resource use in peripheral mountain regions largely depends on the possible development potential of amenities in regional concepts, on nurturing the endogenous potential of the local population, and on inducing appropriate initiatives for balanced development of cultural landscapes and rural society.