No. 11 June 2013 Research Partnerships for Sustainable Development Contents Focus on the Swiss Alps Focus on the SWISS ALPS Editorial 2 Research World Heritage Sites – protection or promotion? 2 Outdoor activities in sensitive areas: assessing the impact of recreation on Alpine landscapes 3 Alpine pastures: when a common-pool resource Researchers from Kyrgyzstan, Cameroon, and Switzerland discussing becomes public 4 local farmers’ land use practices. Photo: Karina Liechti How farmers adapt to Research for sustainable development changing conditions in the Swiss Alps 4 in the Swiss Alps Can domestic fair-trade NCCR North-South research in the Swiss Alps has fo- initiatives improve conditions cused primarily on regional development. Protected for agricultural labourers in areas and World Heritage Sites have been key research Switzerland? 5 topics. Researchers analysed, for example, the effects Implementing One Health of being designated an official World Heritage Site by in Switzerland 5 UNESCO. Does the label truly enhance the conservation In a nutshell: of “outstanding and universal values”? Or does it func- NCCR North-South Swiss Alps 6 tion more as an international seal of quality that attracts tourists? The impacts of tourism and outdoor recrea- Features tion on the Swiss Alps Jungfrau-Aletsch UNESCO World Alumni Interview 7 Heritage Site were another important research topic. Alpine pastures in Switzerland serve many purposes. NCCR North-South News 8 They provide farmers a place to graze their animals, of course, but they are also places for recreation and valuable habitats for biodiversity. The multifunctional use of Swiss alpine pastures bears interesting insights for researchers from countries in the global South. An NCCR North-South study was launched between the Swiss Alps and West Africa to enable knowledge ex- change about livestock farming and management of NCCR North-South shared pastures. Centre for Development and Environment (CDE) Swiss farm owners continually work to improve their University of Bern farms’ efficiency while fulfilling high environmental and Hallerstrasse 10 social standards. Researchers examined one aspect of 3012 Bern these social standards: the working conditions of farm Switzerland labourers. They analysed how Swiss agricultural policy www.north-south.unibe.ch addresses this vulnerable group. Editorial Research partnerships enable us to examine complex problems from differ- ent perspectives. Joint projects conducted in the Swiss Alps by northern and southern researchers, exchange between researchers and practitioners, and application of new approaches facilitated a rich learning environment and many new findings over the course of the NCCR North-South programme. The Swiss Alps partnership region has been the only site of NCCR North- South case studies located in the “North”. However, the topics of our research in the region have been very similar to those examined in devel- Karina Liechti oping countries. We have conducted research on regional development in general and sustainable development in mountain areas in particular. Centre for These emphases grew out of long-standing research in the region and Development and were enhanced by international exchange. Recent programme research Environment (CDE), included studies of “governance of natural resources under changing con- University of Bern ditions”, in which researchers sought to identify pathways of institutional change regarding use and management of common-property pastures. NCCR North-South Other studies looked at “monitoring of protected areas” in an effort to Regional Coordinator improve methods for observing changes in the landscape due to changing Swiss Alps patterns of human use. Certain Swiss projects profited from expertise gained through testing in other development contexts, including a project to elaborate a participatory management plan for a Swiss UNESCO World Heritage Site as well as a project to apply the One Health approach in Switzerland. This newsletter presents selected projects conducted by northern and southern researchers in the Swiss Alps. Thanks to their emphasis on application, many of the projects have already begun to influence local policy and practice. We hope they will continue to contribute to the region’s sustainable development also in the future. I wish you enjoyable reading. Focus on the Swiss Alps World Heritage Sites – protection or promotion? To date, 936 places worldwide have been designated UNESCO World Heritage Sites. But what does this mean? Does the designation truly enhance the conservation of “outstand- ing and universal values”? Or is it much more an international seal of quality that attracts tourists? The Aletsch Glacier in the Swiss Alps Jungfrau-Aletsch UNESCO Despite the popularity of World Heritage World Heritage Site. Photo: Katharina Conradin (2009) status, there have been few comparative stud- ies of the site-specific effects of the UNESCO PhD thesis, reveals changing motivations for label. A 2012 global survey of all Natural seeking a spot on “the list”. In the 1970s and World Heritage Sites, carried out within my 1980s, applicants mainly saw the UNESCO 2 Focus on the Swiss Alps Main motivation for World heritage status application, natural and mixed sites activities might appear in harmony with nature, 100% 200 they can endanger delicate features of the nat- 90% 175 ural environment. So far, there are scarcely any 80% 150 precise data on the extent of recreation in land- 70% 125 scapes belonging to the World Heritage Site. 60% 50% 100 Clues to such information are provided by the 40% 75 number of overnight stays recorded at Swiss 30% 50 Alpine Club huts and elsewhere, tourism trans- 20% 25 portation statistics, and the concentration of 10% mobile phone signals. But these indicators say 0% 0 1978 1998 1999 2010 little about the spatial dynamics of outdoor Other Conservation activities and their environmental effects. To Regional development Total inscribed WHS (natural and mixed) n=126 Marketing / tourism learn more about the unknown spatial vari- Motivations for World Heritage status application over time. ables, researchers pinpointed the known routes Source: Katharina Conradin and locations of recreational activities. They also spatially recorded sensitive environments designation as a means to protect a site. But in and protected areas. In a follow-up step, the the 1990s, many applicants began viewing disruptive effects of outdoor activities and the World Heritage status as a means of promotion. sensitivity of protected areas were assessed and thematically displayed on maps. The veg- According to the global survey, applicants’ etation in wetland areas, for example, is sensi- initial motivations may influence the later tive to being trodden upon, while wildlife ref- impact of World Heritage status on broader uge areas are mainly affected by disturbances regional development. Among those who during winter periods when animals need qui- utilise it promotionally, the World Heritage et. The compiled maps represent a starting designation was more frequently seen as point for negotiations over measures to man- positively influencing regional development. age visitors and limit harm to the sensitive nat- Yet these same respondents also more fre- ural environment of this UNESCO World Herit- quently reported that protection of the site age Site. itself had improved. These results show the promise of combining conservation goals with regional development, sustainably benefiting people and the environment. Contact: Katharina Conradin Centre for Development and Environment (CDE), University of Bern [email protected] Outdoor activities in sensitive areas: assessing the impact of recreation on This map illustrates the use of areas for outdoor activities Alpine landscapes during the summer: the size of the green circles is propor- tional to the area being used. This includes hiking trails, “The exploitation of landscapes for recreation alpine routes, mountain huts of the Swiss Alpine Club, moun- is intensifying and becoming more diverse,” tain bike routes, climbing areas, take-off and landing sites for hang-gliders, and picnic areas. Source of basic map: aptly observed the Swiss Federal Office for the Swiss Federal Office of Topography (5701190204) Environment recently. This is especially true of alpine areas, where features of the natural The researchers involved in developing this landscape enable a wide variety of outdoor key focus area include Maria Paulsson, Bern- activities. In collaboration with the manage- hard Stöckli, Karina Liechti, and Urs Wiesmann. ment centre of the Swiss Alps Jungfrau-Aletsch UNESCO World Heritage Site, researchers are Contact: Maria Paulsson studying the impact of activities such as snow- Centre for Development and shoeing, skiing, hiking, and biking on the re- Environment (CDE), University of Bern gion’s natural environment. Indeed, while these [email protected] 3 Focus on the Swiss Alps How farmers adapt to changing conditions in the Swiss Alps Rapidly changing economic, political, and so- cial conditions are contributing considerably to transforming the use and function of Swiss alpine farming. Alpine agriculture is increas- ingly multifunctional, shifting from the produc- tion of commercial goods to the provision of environmental services. This was made pos- sible through a series of policies that were im- Day trippers on the Alp Nagens, municipality of Laax, canton of Graubünden. Photo: Gabriela Landolt plemented in the Swiss Alps