Current demographic changes in the Alps - effects on autochthonous minorities

Since the 1990`s more and more communities in the Italian Alps which suffered traditionally from depopulation have suddenly become in-migration areas. Indications of similar transformations can also be observed in other parts of the Alps. This new process of demographic reversal and the impacts of the newcomers on cultural and socio-economic issues as well as landscape changes in remote high-mountain communities have not been noticed so far. Thus, the proposed research for the first time seeks to analyze, evaluate, and explain it for the entire Alpine space. This phenomenon shows marked similarities with the process of amenity migration which constitutes a relatively new area of research and forms the basis of the project`s conception. Notably, the proposed project can build on important research results to this issue presented by the applicant in the last decade (among others in the framework of three FWF-projects). The research area encompasses demographically marginal areas as well as regions with ethno-linguistic minorities in the entire Alpine space. Considering the current status of research this application is based on two major theses which represent the core issues that the project seeks to address: In many communities of the Alps newcomers have not only stimulated essential population gains, but also a remarkable revitalization of settlements and land use, as well as the local economy (Thesis 1). The research intends to focus on the newcomers` involvement in local activities and effects in the target area: on the one hand, their arrival will change the ethnic structure, on the other hand, the newcomers` socio-cultural influence is pivotal for the safeguarding of cultural heritage, even for the preservation of autochthonous ethno-linguistic minorities (Thesis 2). Since many of the "new highlanders" have more residences it is not appropriate to distinguish them only by their length of stay or their status of residence: the research perspective has to be shifted to the newcomers` participation in local activities and their effects in the target destination. According to location and structure of a community these impacts emerge in different spatial patterns whereby diverse phases of in-migration are evalua-ble, too. Besides academic purposes it is essential for the communities, regions, and states to be aware of the current demographic trend. The proposed project therefore promises to provide highly valuable results for the understanding of the ongoing processes and their consequences. The evaluation and interpretation of the current status of research, the scientific interpretation of official statistics, and extensive field studies with a variety of data acquisition methods as well as the building of networks using new techniques like social media, will be key tools to achieve the project goals.

The current project builds on our previous project with the Austrian Science Fund (P 20954-G03) in which we could explore that most municipalities of the Italian Alps now show remarkable influx and thereby population gains. Consequently, it is obvious to focus on the new immigration in the Alpine region as a whole, giving initially particular consideration to the previously insignificant amenity migration east of the European region Tyrol-South Tyrol-Trentino. Originating from the French Western Alps at the end of the 1960s, the new immigration, after spreading first into the western Italian Alps, currently also encompasses their eastern part (Montagna friulana) and, furthermore, albeit with some time delay the adjacent section of the Julian Alps in Slovenia. As a result of occupational and qualification related relocation, the eastern Italian and Slovenian study areas experience a juxtaposition of simultaneous in-migration and out-migration patterns, characterized by a currently prevailing negative migration balance and declining population numbers. We attempted to illustrate the distribution of the newcomers in various distinctiveness such as retired re-migrants, second-home owners with their center of life in the destination area, former local inhabitants who resettle because of family ties, or new (counterurban) residents who live in the mountain villages year-round. The cultural effect of this latest demographic trend is illustrated by case studies. For example, the German speaking language pocket Sauris/Zahre in Friuli is appropriate to observe the influence of especially Italian newcomers on the autochthonous population and its culture: there is no doubt, the newcomers will change the ethnic structure, on the other hand, their socio-cultural influence is pivotal for the safeguarding of cultural heritage, even for the preservation of autochthonous ethno-linguistic minorities. Furthermore, the ongoing revitalization of ghost towns was examined. This mainly takes place in eastern Friuli, which represents an extreme case of repopulation and hence the preservation of Alpine settlement areas. With our case studies we could demonstrate that now also eastern Alpine regions with an overall declining population must be counted as newcomer areas in the Alps.The Alpine peripheral areas of eastern Austria, however, are an exception. The persistent absence of amenity migration, combined with continuing population losses, have now effectively turned this region into the largest demographic problem area in the Alps. An analysis of the causes of the insignificant immigration volume in the eastern part of the Austrian Alps reveals several factors that are interrelated to varying degrees, such as low scenic attractiveness, development deficits, forestry, large-scale landholding, and an overall negative image. These influences are responsible for the fact that in Alpine eastern Austria there is no potential for amenity migration on a larger scale. On the other hand, our research activities in the "innovation space" French Alps show that in-migration still continues and currently also reflects in the bio-demographical development of many communities. Unlike in most other Alpine countries, measures have already been initiated by politicians, supporting the settling of new mountain dwellers. In the final project phase the research team presented models that were derived inductively from a variety of case studies from peripheral parts of the Alps. These models are capable of explaining motivations and effects of amenity migration also in other mountain regions.