The high mountainous regions of Türkiye face intense pressures from sociospatial transformations, youth outmigration, and climate change. This study explored the lived experiences of older adults aging in place in high-elevation Hemsşin Municipality, Eastern Black Sea Mountains, focusing on the interplay among demographic decline, infrastructural constraints, and climate exposure. Semistructured interviews with 15 older adults were analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis, generating 4 themes: moral commitment and identity in later life, community under demographic pressure, health and infrastructure vulnerability in a vertical landscape, and climate change as a disruption of seasonal order and livelihood continuity. The study provides situated qualitative insights into how older adults perceive and navigate these pressures within a specific mountain municipality. Findings reveal a critical duality: The community maintains socioecological resilience rooted in place attachment, social solidarity, and independent living, yet this resilience is severely compromised by infrastructural voids in health care and transportation, as well as unfavorable centrally determined policies. The study recommends climate-sensitive adaptation strategies that prioritize filling these voids and reforming policies to formally recognize and support older adults' resilience in vulnerable mountain settings.
Mountain regions in Europe increasingly face compound runoff-related hazards under a changing climate. This article compares postfire surface runoff (PFSR) and frozen-soil surface runoff (FSSR), 2 processes typically studied separately but sharing key meteorological triggers, as well as initiation and propagation mechanisms. Both are triggered by short, high-intensity rainfall acting on infiltration barriers: hydrophobic layers in burned soil and pore ice in frozen soil. Despite distinct thermal and seasonal contexts, PFSR and FSSR exhibit convergent process chains characterized by reduced interception, limited infiltration, surface ponding, and efficient sediment entrainment. Their occurrence increasingly transcends expected seasonal regimes, reflecting climate-driven shifts in fire activity, snow dynamics, and freeze–thaw cycles. Building on these parallels, this study proposes a research framework and outlines a future research agenda that links mapping, monitoring, experimentation, modeling, and governance. It advocates integrated observation networks combining remote sensing and in situ techniques, controlled experiments to quantify thermohydraulic and erosional processes and changes in vegetation cover, and physical models capturing preferential flow and transient infiltration barriers. For risk management, the article stresses predictive early warning systems that provide sufficient lead time to manage evacuations and infrastructure protection. By identifying shared mechanisms and converging research needs, this contribution supports a future research agenda and cross-disciplinary strategies for mitigating emerging compound hazards in alpine environments.
Mountain communities in Nepal's Himalayan region face growing pressures from hazards and large-scale infrastructure development, yet access to information for decision-making remains limited. This article takes Namase village as a case study to examine a locally adapted participatory digital mapping intervention. It examines villagers' participation and learning during the mapping process, as well as how the mapping tool and mapped outputs spread within the community. Observations of mapping sessions and interviews were used to analyze knowledge engagement and outcomes. Eight individual participants took part in the intervention and used the tool to visualize hazard exposure and discuss decisions on potentially affected farmland and settlements. The tool and mapping results were also disseminated to a small number of nonparticipants through villagers' personal connections. However, broader adoption was constrained by seasonal labor migration, gendered and generational digital divides, privacy concerns around land information, and technical limitations such as language and image resolution. Key lessons highlight the need to tailor digital tools to local contexts and to work through community leaders so that shared community challenges can be connected with individual interests and both can be addressed together. Overall, this single-location study suggests that participatory digital mapping can make modest, context-sensitive contributions to knowledge engagement and localized learning in resource-constrained mountain settings.
Transboundary landscape (TBL) conservation frameworks, such as those pioneered by the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development across the Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH), represent a significant institutional achievement in managing wide-ranging species and cross-border ecosystem services. However, this response to Kotru et al (2020) identifies a structural blind spot within the TBL model: the region's micro-endemic species—narrow-range taxa whose entire distribution falls within a single elevation band, valley, or subregion—remain entirely invisible to landscape-scale governance. Drawing on recent syntheses of Himalayan plant endemism, protected area assessments, and climate-driven range shift studies, this article argues that 3 compounding gaps undermine current conservation efforts: the absence of species-level monitoring protocols for nonflagship taxa, critical underrepresentation of HKH biodiversity in global data repositories, and accelerating upslope range compression under climate warming that leaves summit-restricted endemics with no viable refuge. We propose a complementary, fine-resolution monitoring tier—embedded within, but operationally independent of, the TBL framework—to make this invisible biodiversity layer visible before irreversible loss occurs.
Review of: A Scientific Bibliography of the Far Northern Drakensberg. By Rodney Moffett. Johannesburg, South Africa: UJ Press, 2023. xii + 312 pp. Softcover: US$ 21.00, ISBN 978-1-776434-12-1. E-book (PDF): US$ 12.67, ISBN 978-1-776434-13-8. E-book (Kindle): US$ 16.00, ISBN 978-1-776434-14-5. A Scientific Bibliography of the Waterberg, Makgabeng Plateau, Blouberg and Soutpansberg. By Rodney Moffett. Johannesburg, South Africa: UJ Press, 2025. vi + 120 pp. Softcover: US$ 22.00, ISBN 978-0-906785-86-7. E-book (Kindle): US$ 8.60, ISBN 978-0-906785-87-4.
Rural outmigration drives political, economic, and environmental change. Educational, socioeconomic, and cultural factors foster youth outmigration, influencing changes in land use patterns through either intensification or deintensification of agriculture. This study describes demographic changes and migration patterns at regional and local scales in the High Monte of northwest Argentina and the associated changes in socioeconomic dynamics. Based on data from the National Population Census and National Agricultural Census, we analyzed (1) migratory movements within and outside of the High Monte of northwest Argentina, (2) changes in heads of livestock and crop production area, and (3) by evaluating population, changes at a more local scale, including whether these changes differ between areas of high and those of low population density and with different extents of cultivated area. We found that people tend to remain within northwest Argentina but are moving toward emerging cities in valleys, departments, and province capitals. At a local scale, people are abandoning mountainous land that is unsuitable for agricultural production, whereas populated centers and valley areas with suitable land for agriculture are growing. Heads of livestock decreased in most departments, and cultivated areas decreased in half of the departments and increased in the other half. Our study suggests that emerging cities are becoming new hotspots, retaining population at the regional level while promoting the abandonment of marginal, mountainous areas at the local level, in the context of a general reduction in livestock activity in most departments. This could potentially be expressed through differential patterns of land use deintensification and intensification that are linked to demographic changes.
Review of: The Voices of Glaciers: Stories of Grief and Hope Amidst Shrinking Glaciers in the Tropics. By Ignacio Palomo, Sofía Lana, Antoine Rabatel, and Oliver Dangles. Marseille and Paris, France: IRD Éditions and UNESCO, 2025. 201 pp. Softcover: € 30.00, ISBN 978-2-7099-3073-4. E-book (PDF): free download at https://www.editions.ird.fr/produit/735/9782709930734/the-voices-of-glaciers, ISBN: 978-2-7099-3074-1.
The implementation of locally acceptable improved land management practices is crucial to improve the livelihoods of local communities and reduce the degradation of ecosystem services (ESs). This study was conducted in Tara Gedam watershed, northwestern Ethiopia, to identify suitable land management options from four ecosystem service-based scenarios: business as usual (BAU), transition agriculture (TAG), intensified agriculture (INA), and optimized ecosystem services (OPE) using the Analytic Hierarchy Process method of Multi-criteria Decision Analysis tools. A stakeholder workshop and group discussions with farmers and agricultural experts were conducted to set criteria for selecting the best management option. Livelihood benefits and environmental improvements were rated highest and are therefore the most influential factors for the selection of land management options. These two criteria were responsible for the best performance of the OPE and INA. INA and/or TAG were also the preferred options from the perspective of farmers. This is attributed to the fact that these options provide benefits within a shorter period of time compared to OPE. Smallholder farmers should be provided with financial and technical support to implement improved management options such as OPE. The results of this study will contribute to the knowledge base of agricultural experts for future implementation of Ethiopian rural land use planning.
This article explores how small mountain tourism destinations (MTDs) in the European Alps are beginning to translate climate change adaptation strategies into concrete, context-specific measures. Drawing on the strategies of 5 Pilot Working Areas (PWAs)—Ala di Stura and Balme (Italy), Werfenweng (Austria), Bohinj (Slovenia), Sattel-Hochstuckli (Switzerland), and Balderschwang (Germany)—of the Interreg Alpine Space project “BeyondSnow,” the study includes one of the first structural analyses of adaptation measures of MTDs. By applying the framework method for applied policy research, a matrix for the structural assessment of these measures was developed, including 3 analytic dimensions: overarching objectives, structural categories, and the distinction between implementation instruments (means) and the destination elements addressed (targets). Regarding overarching objectives, Year-round tourism emerged as the primary objective, followed by Destination cooperation and Sustainable development. Regarding structural categories, Product/concept development predominated as the implementation means, followed by Communication & marketing and Intradestination cooperation, with targets concentrated on Activity infrastructure and Activities & entertainment and complemented by Accommodation & gastronomy, Mobility & accessibility, and Destination community. Reading across the PWAs, means, and targets revealed 3 recurring implementation pathways: offer-led diversification, cooperation-led system alignment and portfolio extension, and distributed activation centered on specific audiences, placing low-barrier actions ahead of selective capital-intensive steps. The article concludes that, due to tourism's multidimensional, cross-sectoral nature, effective adaptation in small MTDs requires systemic approaches spanning products, community participation, and enabling infrastructure. Sequencing feasible, scalable measures, aligned with challenges identified, local governance, and sustainability visions, lays the groundwork for the broader systemic changes that are necessary for the creation of robust adaptation pathways, aimed at safeguarding both the competitiveness and viability of MTDs.
Mountain natural capital supports local and lowland populations while maintaining global social-ecological balance. However, mountains face increasing ecological, economic, and social pressures, leading to natural capital depletion. Winter tourism is particularly vulnerable in this shifting context, with climate change as the primary driver of impacts on this industry. In response, ski and mountain resorts are diversifying activities, adopting innovative solutions, and implementing sustainable practices to enhance their long-term outlook, with a growing recognition that valuing and improving natural capital can strengthen both reputation and viability. Despite these efforts, the relationship between natural capital and mountain tourism remains poorly understood. Here, we integrate the Natural Capital Protocol and the System of Environmental-Economic Accounting to assess the natural capital of La Molina and Vall de Nuria, 2 public ski and mountain resorts in the Catalan Pyrenees. First, by integrating insights from literature, geographic information systems, and field surveys, we outline key dependencies, impacts, impact drivers, risks, and opportunities associated with natural capital at these resorts. We show that forests, pastures, reservoirs, and mountain streams supply critical ecosystem services while being impacted by business activities, with climate change and land use change as major risk drivers. Based on these findings, we argue that the assessed resorts could improve sustainability by addressing these aspects. Second, drawing on workshops, validated through questionnaires, we construct materiality matrices capturing business and stakeholder perspectives on natural capital, highlighting the critical role of water, rural land use, and cultural ecosystem services for the resorts' viability and benefits to local communities. Finally, we recommend protecting, restoring, sustainably managing, and enhancing natural capital to strengthen social-ecological resilience and address global change. This study emphasizes the value of natural capital assessments for ski and mountain resorts, providing a holistic perspective to promote sustainability and responsible management of nature in touristic mountain regions.
This article explores the nexus between tourism, dilapidated development, and climate change in Western Himalaya through an ethnographic study of Kinnaur District in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. Kinnaur is undergoing a profound rural transformation due to tourism, border area development, and intensifying climate disruptions. Drawing on 15 years of longitudinal research, this study examines how the intersection of these events is reshaping the Kinnauri economy, ecology, and social structures. National and state government schemes promoting tourism aim to develop the Indo-China border region, which is leading to environmental deterioration on highly sensitive and precarious mountain slopes. The article concludes that a sustainable approach to regulation and planning may prevent further erosion of the socioecological fabric and enhance resilience of the Kinnauri tribal mountain community.
Forests are important providers of ecosystem services (ESs) for mountain tourism; however, they are also vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. We explore tourists' perceptions and valuation of mountain forest ESs and climate change and analyze the findings within the Drivers-Pressures-States-Impacts-Response framework. Using the Stubai valley in the Austrian Alps as a case study, we surveyed 349 summer tourists on how they value mountain forest ESs and perceive changes in them. We found that forests and high-mountain landscapes are important for visitors and almost all participants (>90%) would be willing to pay an extra environmental tourism tax. Additionally, we identified thresholds for behavioral change at 50% forest-area loss and >30 degrees C temperature for most respondents. Within forest ESs, aesthetic services were the most frequently perceived role, followed by cooling effects. Our work highlights the need to understand tourists' ES demands in order to manage ESs accordingly and adapt to tourist demands under climate change.
Recent revisions by Parks Canada to the National Park Guided Business Licence (NPGBL) program were, in part, a response to challenges that threatened the organization's Charter and Mandate (eg high visitation and congestion). However, findings from this study demonstrate that the revisions have also yielded unintended consequences for mountain guides, including those working in the rapidly changing Canadian Rockies. Using a mixed-methods approach that combines semistructured interviews (n = 30), policy analysis, and key informant interviews (n = 7), we analyzed the origins of revisions to the NPGBL that impact adaptive capacity, their effects on mountain guides' adaptation actions, and potential strategies to overcome these institutional barriers. Findings revealed that two thirds of guides interviewed (67%, n = 20) believe the NPGBL's revised regulatory framework, application process, and implementation mechanisms have inadvertently reduced guides' adaptability while increasing the administrative burden of operating in national parks. Our results suggest that this has reduced the efficacy, efficiency, and equity of adaptation efforts among guides. We found that these barriers can be addressed by fostering horizontal and vertical social capital, which can facilitate the inclusion of local knowledge holders, such as mountain guides, in decision-making processes to yield mutually beneficial outcomes. These findings offer relevant insights for land managers and guiding organizations in Canada and other mountain regions globally where guiding professions are increasingly impacted by the dual pressures of climatic and institutional changes.
Climate change significantly affects alpine huts and surrounding recreational activity infrastructure, making these structures highly vulnerable. In response, stakeholders have implemented various adaptation strategies to enhance the resilience of these huts and support local recreational and professional practices. This article examines the diverse adaptation strategies employed by key actors. Moving beyond binary typologies (eg adaptation versus maladaptation or incremental versus transformative adaptation), we explore the barriers and limitations affecting these efforts by focusing on adaptive governance. Our goal is to identify effective practices and provide recommendations for adapting alpine huts to the challenges posed by climate change. This study is based on an action research program conducted in the Franco-Swiss Alps in collaboration with mountain hut stakeholders to better understand and address the ongoing tourism transition in the European Alps. To investigate adaptation strategies, we employed a qualitative and participatory approach, integrating field observations, semistructured interviews, stakeholder workshops, and a survey of 45 huts. This multimethod framework allowed us to capture diverse perspectives, assess implemented strategies, and identify both constraints and opportunities for adaptation.
Mountain regions are increasingly vulnerable to the converging global crises of climate change, biodiversity loss, and land degradation. These socioecological challenges demand not only incremental adaptation but also broader societal transformation processes, including in knowledge production. Science-society interactions (SSIs) are increasingly recognized as a promising pathway toward the coproduction of context-specific, actionable knowledge that can support such transformations. In recent years, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization's (UNESCO's) Man and the Biosphere (MAB) program has positioned its biosphere reserves (BRs), most of which are in mountain regions, as model sites for sustainability transformations and for advancing SSIs. However, despite a strong emphasis on SSIs in MAB policy directives, little is known about whether and how these have been implemented in practice. This paper investigates the policy implementation gaps between the aims of the MAB program and reality on the ground, based on qualitative content analysis of periodic review reports from 18 mountain BRs across Africa, Australia, Europe, and North America and 14 semistructured interviews with BR representatives. Findings reveal that SSIs in mountain BRs remain predominantly ecology-focused, characterized by oneway, short-term information transfer, with limited involvement of local actors or incorporation of nonacademic knowledge. Main challenges to the international policy goals include resource and capacity constraints, weak institutional anchoring, fragmented governance, and sociopolitical resistance. Although participatory approaches are widely valued, their practical execution remains challenging. The results underscore the need for context-sensitive policy frameworks, increased resources, and capacity-building to strengthen mountain BRs as model regions for SSIs and sustainability transformations.
Although it may seem intuitive that mountain topography influences socioeconomic development, the reality is far more complex, as the example of the European Alps shows. Some areas experience economic decline, whereas others nearby show clear growth trends. This must be viewed against the background of current spatial development paradigms, which emphasize the need for place-based strategies and consideration of territorial specificities. This article addresses the relationship between topography and socioeconomic dynamics. Mountain topography means higher elevations and a greater proportion of steep relief, implying limited scope for development. In this study, we capture this scope by means of the Topographic Potential Area, ie the area theoretically suitable for construction. The statistical analysis does not show a correlation between topography and actual development patterns. The cluster analysis reveals complexities, especially when comparing different combinations of characteristics (eg areas with medium topographic potential and above-average development versus areas with low topographic potential and negative development). This suggests that other factors-particularly the influence of accessibility, policy, and path dependencies-are crucial in shaping socioeconomic patterns. We conclude that the relevance of relief for socioeconomic development matters to a certain extent, but the interplay of multiple factors is more decisive.
Review of: Anima: A Wild Pastoral. By Kapka Kassabova. London, United Kingdom: Jonathan Cape/Vintage, 2024. 384 pp. Hardcover: US$ 19.18, ISBN 978-1787333277. Softcover: US$ 13.48, ISBN 978-1529933413. E-book: US$ 6.65, ISBN 978-1529926835.
In Mozambique, mountain ecosystems are largely rare, unprotected sites of high biodiversity value and yet provide essential ecosystem services to the local and national economy. At the 2nd Southern African Mountain Conference (SAMC2025) in March 2025, a multidisciplinary team of Mozambican conservation practitioners initiated a program to place Mozambican mountains more prominently on the national agenda, as well as to position the country for stronger mountain transboundary collaboration and partnerships. The Mozambique Mountain Initiative seeks to drive a national research policy and practice program that will see the sustainable use and conservation of Mozambique's unique mountain ecosystems.
In nature, everything is born, grows, and dies in continuous cycles. Everything, even after death, becomes a resource for new life. In this context, human activities based solely on a linear economy model seem unsustainable: a new economic paradigm is needed. The present work explores a new approach to sustainable development in high mountain regions, focusing on the transition toward a circular economy model in Valle d'Aosta, Italy. We analyze its strengths and weaknesses, as well as the strategies and policies needed to support it. The work is based on a qualitative methodological approach, ie a Policy Delphi investigation, among stakeholders. The results show that a mountainous region, such as Valle d'Aosta, has specific natural, economic, and social characteristics that are well suited to a circular economy. However, our findings also indicate that before a circular economy can be realized, a cultural change must take place, driven by the implementation of specific actions. (c) 2025 Tassone and Musolino. This open access article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons. org/licenses/by/4.0/). Please credit the authors and the full source.
