Michael Gams, CIPRA International
Trail running events in the Alps: how much is too much?
Whether around Mont Blanc, the Zugspitze or the Grossglockner, or through the Dolomites: trail running events are booming across the Alps. At this year’s UTMB alone, around 10,000 runners are expected to take part in various races and categories. However, the sport’s growing popularity also brings with it problems for the natural environment and small mountain communities.
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Lauren Mosdale, CIPRA France
Point of View: What if reaching an agreement isn’t the most important thing?
In the increasingly contested Alpine region, harmonious coexistence does not depend on eliminating conflicts. Rather, we must learn to recognise differing opinions, highlight areas of tension and use dialogue as the basis for a shared future, argues Lauren Mosdale, co-director of CIPRA France.
Laura Haberfellner, CIPRA International Lab
Leaving home, staying connected
Over the course of a year and a half, the OUT4INGOV project focused on the issue of youth migration in the Alps and implemented innovative measures in the three pilot regions of Maribor (Slovenia), Trentino (Italy) and Vesoul (France). The project concluded in mid-July 2026 with a conference in France.
Sofie Terzer, CIPRA International
Combining flood protection and nature-based solutions
In the FLOW-BIOS project, five biosphere reserves are working together with the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, and CIPRA International to explore how nature-based solutions can be successfully implemented on privately owned land.
Alma Hummelsberger, CIPRA International
To the limits and beyond, sustainably: YOALIN kicks off the summer
With its kick-off event in Liechtenstein, YOALIN has launched a new season, with some 40 young people from the Alpine region gathering to learn more about climate-friendly travel, ecological networking, and sustainable mobility. Since 2018, the CIPRA project has been connecting young people who want to explore the Alps sustainably.
Events
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Webinar: Too much water, too little water | online | |
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Symposium 2: Vernacular Buildings in the Anthropocene | Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna (Austria) |
Projects
AfterAlpineIce
What will the Alps look like without ice and glaciers? The climate crisis is accelerating glacier retreat and fundamentally transforming the Alpine region. What may at first appear to be a change in the landscape has far-reaching consequences: ecosystems and water cycles are being disrupted, soil development is changing, local climates are shifting, and natural processes in high mountain areas are being permanently affected.
WISER
The Alps have a rich heritage of using and processing local natural fibres, such as wool, hemp, flax and silk. Yet much of this potential remains untapped today: regional processing infrastructure has largely disappeared, traditional knowledge is being lost, and much of the value creation takes place outside the Alpine region. At the same time, the textile industry is seeing growing demand for sustainable and circular alternatives.
RE-PEAT-it!
Peatlands provide valuable ecosystem functions in the Alps, but drainage, intensive land use and the climate crisis are placing them under growing pressure. The RE-PEAT-it! project strengthens knowledge, cooperation, and the capacity to act on peatland conservation across the Alpine region.