People have for decades been striving to find sustainable ways of shaping the habitat and economic area formed by the Alps. The Alpine Convention is proof: it is a unique instrument for transnational co-operation and can provide the basis for the macro-regional strategy for the Alps as currently being discussed. It is up to those in positions of responsibility, both within and outside the Alps, to identify this potential.
In its position paper CIPRA formulates how and under which conditions a macro-region Alps is likely to succeed.
As a set of rules recognised under international law, the Alpine Convention sets out certain ecological, economic and social standards. Areas both within and outside the Alps thus receive incentives to solve their problems. Those responsible for the Alpine Convention must however credibly show that these standards are of benefit to both people and nature.
The implementation protocols of the Alpine Convention are the result of negotiations conducted as equals between the Alpine countries. Stakeholders in the Alps and in the Alpine Convention must now also demand a level playing field as regards their negotiating partners within the Alpine macro-region. They can learn from past errors: the Alpine Convention would be more attractive today if local and regional stakeholders had previously been involved to a greater degree. The discussion of the macro-regional strategy for the Alps offers an opportunity to do this: and making good the situation is also an opportunity to breathe new life into the Alpine Convention.
CIPRA Positions: www.cipra.org/de/CIPRA/cipra-international