On the 27th of January, the Slovenian minister for Natural Resources and Spatial Planning, Uroš Brežan, invited all Slovenian mayors from the Alpine Convention perimeter and interested stakeholders to the Alpine Convention Day in Bohinjska Bistrica.
Each year, Slovenia prepares a day in honour of the Alpine Convention to promote its activities to inhabitants. The aim of the day is to inform locals about the possibilities of joining different Alpine Convention activities. Alpine Convention Day therefore strongly involves Slovenian media to support its outreach.
This year’s event launched the promotional activities of the Slovenian presidency. More than half of the invited mayors attended the event, which aimed to inspire the guests to join one of the many projects the Alpine Convention supports.
In the first part of the event, mayors who participate in existing initiatives in the Alps shared their insights into, for example, the Alpine Town of the Year Association, Mountaineering Villages, Alliance in the Alps, or the Alpine Pearls network.
During the second part of the event, the focus was on young people who are active in the Alps. Representatives of different youth Alpine initiatives shared their views on quality of life in the Alps and ended the segment with a debate on what local policymakers can do to involve youth in decision-making.
The day ended with a lively debate among the participants on ways to foster Alpine cooperation and the active involvement of Alpine municipalities.
“Today's debate gives me hope and pride. I have received confirmation that the Alpine Convention is truly alive and breathing in Slovenia. There is a lot going on and there are many good practices you can join. Of course, there is still the opportunity to improve in many areas, and I would like to see at least some of them addressed already during our Presidency of the Alpine Convention,” concluded Minister Uroš Brežan.