Austria

How do drones detect illegal campfires? How do settlements protect themselves from the next flood? What do forest fires have in common with avalanches? At the end of November 2024, an excursion to the Vienna Woods Biosphere Reserve by participants in the MultiBios project looked for answers.

In France, snowmobile tours are now officially banned in the Chamrousse ski resort; other areas could soon follow suit. In Austria, environmental organisations are calling for an end to heliskiing.

Water shortages, disintegrating mountains and renovation needs: managing Alpine huts has always been difficult, but the climate crisis is making the situation even worse. The Austrian Alpine Association has already issued an “Emergency call from the Alps”.

CIPRA representatives along the transport axis over the Brenner Pass are calling for sustainable traffic management instead of populist grievances. Now Switzerland is facing a renewed increase in traffic.

The majority of EU environment ministers voted in favour of the Nature Restoration Law on 17 June 2024. The decisive factor was the courageous and foresighted last-minute approval by Austria's Environment Minister.

What role could biosphere reserves play in dealing with climate risks? This was the subject of an international workshop organised by the MultiBios project in Bad Kleinkirchheim/A at the beginning of April 2024, which included a site visit to the Gegendtal valley that was affected by heavy rainfall and flooding two years ago.

Simply do it is the motto of the EmpowerLIFE project launched in 2023. It supports people in realising their do-it-yourself ideas and plans in relation to climate protection. The climate crisis and the energy crisis that emerged in 2022 are motivating many people to take action: they simultaneously want to live more sustainably, help shape the future and reduce costs.

At the end of November, a new Alpine-wide research centre presented itself to the public at the Schneefernerhaus, the German environmental research station below the Zugspitze peak: the “TUM Alpha – Centre for Alpine Hazards and Risks” will coordinate, on an international basis, the prediction of extreme climate events in the mountains.

Six stages through three Alpine countries: this year’s international campaign by the Italian environmental organisation Legambiente, with the participation of CIPRA, condemned the retreat of the glaciers and thus raised awareness of climate change.

Exactly how mountaineering and climate protection can be combined was shown by a group of cyclists who biked from Lindau/D to the Ochsental Glacier/A at the start of September 2023. Topics along the way ranged from sustainable tourism to hydropower and nature conservation to glacier loss.