The AlpWeek 2024 was held 20 years after the first edition of the event in Kranjska Gora (SI) in 2004. The eighth edition of this international conference took place from 23-25 September in Nova Gorica, again in Slovenia, and offered a chance to reflect on developments in the Alps over the past two decades. It was also an opportunity to look ahead and explore the future sustainable development of the Alpine region for the coming 20 years.
Under the slogan “Alps in our hands”, more than 200 participants gathered to exchange on the challenges and possible solutions for the future of the Alps. Formats included interactive workshops, keynote speeches, a medley of Alpine cuisine, and excursions to the surrounding areas.
The AlpWeek began with a guided cycling excursion between the two neighbouring cities of Nova Gorica (SI) and Gorizia (IT), which together are the European Capital of Culture 2025. They are organising a broad cultural programme this year and next around the theme ‘Borderless’. Following the excursion, one of the highlights was a round table discussion on the art of memory and contemporary fronts. This was followed by a culinary taster of the (thematic) diversity of the following days with an Alpine buffet presenting local products from the whole Alpine region.
The intense programme of events also featured three insightful keynote speeches on the topics in focus: climate action, biodiversity and ecosystems and quality of life. The entire AlpWeek programme was based on the three thematic priority areas of the Multi-Annual Work Programme 2023-2030 of the Alpine Conference.
The AlpWeek was also framed by several well-attended side events addressing various topics. The Slovenian Presidency of the Alpine Convention organised a side event on the topic “Quality of life”, hosted by the ESPON national contact point for Slovenia. On this occasion, practical experiences were presented on using the ‘Territorial Quality of Life Living Labs’ instrument in the Alpine region. The Living Labs were organised in the framework of the ESPON territorial study ‘Quality of Life in the Alpine Convention space’ and the Erasmus+ project ‘Alpine Compass: Youth for quality of life in the Alps’, which also fed into the 10th Report on the State of the Alps on Quality of Life to be published in January. At the event, experts and participants shared practical experiences gained during the Living Labs implementation into ongoing planning activities and processes. They emphasised the potential of this method to act as an interface between residents and politicians or decision-makers to help identify community needs supporting the co-creation of public policies and actions.
The Italian Delegation of the Alpine Convention, as incoming Presidency, organised a discussion on “Alpine cultures – in continuous search of a balance between conservation and innovation” in Gorizia in cooperation with the Municipality of Gorizia, the EGTC GO, the University of Trieste’s seat in Gorizia, and the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region. Insights into different areas of Alpine culture came from several experts, while an interactive part saw participants answer survey questions that resulted in a set of recommendations: involving local communities in planning projects, focusing on preserving multilingualism and better protecting local languages and dialects in the Alpine region, safeguarding the Alpine region’s diverse cultural and artistic heritages at the local level, providing essential services to mountain populations as a way to counter depopulation, and increasing support for and innovation in agriculture and forestry to strengthen local economic interests and tourism.
The Alpine Convention’s Alpine Climate Board organised a training course on how to reach a diverse range of stakeholders and win them over for climate action.
“The AlpWeek is an excellent example of the value of bringing together different perspectives and working across borders to find solutions – which is also the foundation of the Alpine Convention. Thank you to the organisers who made this special event happen and to all the participants who are helping shape the future of the Alps!”, said Alenka Smerkolj, Secretary General of the Alpine Convention, who, together with Emil Ferjančič, President of the Permanent Committee of the Alpine Conference, welcomed participants at the opening plenary of the conference.
