The contested environmental futures of the Dolomites: a political ecology of mountains

Abstract

Abstract. In recent years, the eco-climate crisis has intensified the institutional debate on sustainable environmental futures and the need to boost green transition policies. Scholars in critical geography and political ecology have discussed the controversial nature of these policies and argued that structural transformation is needed, focused specifically on environmental conservation. However, little attention has been paid to mountain environments, which today are significantly affected by the eco-climate crisis and characterized by controversial trajectories of development, conservation and valorization. Therefore, by bringing together the political ecology of conservation and mountain geographies, this contribution reflects on the environmental futures of the Dolomites, in the eastern Alps, through an analysis of governance processes, conservation visions and rising environmental struggles. The Dolomites show the contested nature of environmental futures and their politicization, between ideas of accumulation by sustainability and radical environmental visions. Moreover, they encompass experiences and practices that envision a convivial conservation perspective with the potential to advance the political ecology of the mountain, with specific reference to the Global North.

Geografie della crisi eco-climatica in montagna: produzione sociale dell'ambiente e futuri contesi nelle Dolomiti

“…Se da un lato il pensiero geografico italiano è fondamentale per comprendere l'evoluzione del rapporto urbano-montagna, e relativi immaginari, e le dinamiche socio-economiche e turistiche delle Alpi e degli Appennini, d'altro canto l'analisi dei processi politici di governance e trasformazione dell'ambiente montano attraverso la prospettiva dell'ecologia politica e l'uso dei metodi di ricerca etnografici può fornire un importante contributo alla riflessione (Zinzani, 2023). In primo luogo, al fine di analizzare le relazioni di potere nei processi decisionali a varie scale, nonché le visioni dei vari attori; in secondo luogo, al fine di comprendere come…”