Alps / Europe

At the UN Conference on Biological Diversity in Kuala Lumpur the WWF presented a study identifying 23 priority areas of the Alps. The alpine study in five languages was drawn up by the WWF, the International Commission for the Protection of the Alps (CIPRA), the Network of Alpine Protected Areas and the International Scientific Committee for Alpine Research (ISCAR) with the help of a hundred experts from 90 institutions and bodies.

From this summer several Dutch tour operators, including the TUI subsidiary Holland International and the hiking and cycling holiday specialists SNP, are offering "Green Package Tours" to Switzerland and Austria.

The first European network for nanobiotechnology, Nano2life, is being co-ordinated in Grenoble/F since February 2. So after Paris Grenoble is now the second largest research centre in France, with 18,200 people working in 200 laboratories.

The conference book of the 2002 Yearly Symposium of the International Commission for the Protection of the Alps (CIPRA) in Schaan/Liechtenstein has just been published. Marking the occasion of CIPRA's 50th anniversary the Symposium focused on the role of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in mountain regions.

In the past learning the Romansh language nearly always meant having to go through German. But since the end of last year Lia Rumantscha, the umbrella organisation for all Romansh associations, has posted an online English-Romansh dictionary called "myPledari" on the internet for free use.

Mountain air has a beneficial effect also on patients with cardiovascular problems. The optimum effect is achieved at altitudes of 2000 metres above sea level and after a minimum stay of three weeks.

The list of Natura 2000 protected areas in mountain regions of the EU was approved by the European Commission at the end of 2003. It covers 959 nature sites in the Alps, the Pyrenees, the Apennines and the Fennoscandian mountains, which under the Council Directive on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna are considered to be of European importance.

The Arbeitsgemeinschaft Alpenländer (Arge Alp) Working Group is to present its book award for the third time at the Arge Alp Book Festival on June 5, to be held in Trento/I, the Alpine Town of the Year 2004.

Experts and people working in protected areas are invited to take part in a questionnaire on best practice in protected area management.

Young scientists now have an opportunity to take part in the second international conference on interdisciplinary research into mountain areas. The conference is to be held at the National Park Centre Stilfserjoch in Stilfs/Trafoi (I) from 29 September to 2 October 2004 and is organised jointly by the Stilfserjoch National Park, the European Academy in Bolzano and Innsbruck University.