Country Focus

Nestled in the remote mountains of Central Portugal, lie three small villages: Pena, Aigra Nova, and Aigra Velha, better known as the Serra de Lousa, Góis Schist villages. Social isolation and depopulation are acutely visible in this area; each one of these mountainous and remote villages is home to only 1-8 elderly inhabitants. In rural areas, however, small-scale festivals can play a significant role as a tool for tourism development and local sustainable development.

Despite being relatively small in size, Portugal has a large variety of landscapes. While Portuguese beaches and coastal cities tend to attract the most tourists, the country also boasts vast mountainous regions. Geographically, mountains occupy 18% of Portugal’s territory. These regions are home to mountains such as Serra de Estrela, Serra do Geres, Serra da Lousa, and Serra de Sao Mamede. One defining factor of these mountain regions is their classification of being marginalised. 

Italy's Alpine and Apennine mountain chains are adorned with sprawling forests that act as vital sources of natural resources for the entire nation. From remote mountain villages to urban centres in the country’s plains, these mountain forests play a vital role in supporting Italy's ecosystem. They provide a home for endangered species, offer resources for local communities, mitigate the impacts of climate change, and safeguard people against natural disasters like landslides, floods, and avalanches.

Mountain forests have long stood as sentinels of traditional customs and providers of essential resources, but they now face unprecedented threats due to climate change, nature loss, and land degradation. Recent data reveals a chilling statistic: over the past two decades, more than 7% of all mountain forests worldwide have been decimated, an area equivalent to the size of Turkey. The loss of these forests has reached an alarming pace, with rates nearly doubling after 2010.

Italy is home to a variety of mountainous regions, including the Italian Alps, the Apennines, the Sardinian Highlands, and the Sicilian mountains. While many boast beautiful and diverse landscapes, a handful of these regions are considered marginalised, meaning that they face socio-economic disadvantages in comparison to other mountain areas. Although the degree of marginalisation can vary over time, affected mountainous regions largely include those located in Southern Italy, central parts of Sardinia, the Northern Alpine valleys, and the Apennine mountains.

Since the turn of the last century, there has been little doubt that to survive in fragile mountain territories, things had to be done together. But how has this way of managing goods and resources changed in recent times? The story of five young people and two mountain villages in Italy invites us to reflect on the role that the collective management of goods and resources can play today.