Exploring Marginalised Portuguese Mountainous Regions: A Multidisciplinary Perspective
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.
Exploring Italy’s Backbone: The Remarkable Resilience of Mountain Forests
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.
Nurturing forests and mountain landscapes in Italy: a story of threats, loss, and resilience
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.
The Sweet Chestnut Tree as a Source for Socio-Economic Recovery in Italian Marginalised Mountain Areas
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.
Making the Management of Mountain Commons Fit-for-Future through Community Engagement and Knowledge Co-Creation
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.
