Cortina Inverno

Leaping from an abyss and aiming high,
looking for something beyond
Looking at your boots and saying «I will make it». Reaching the top of a
mountain is about the limit to overcome, the eternal self vs self that makes our
experiences more mature. The thought of the limit to overcome, the eternal self
vs self that makes our experiences more mature. This is the spirit that has accompanied
the Club Alpino Italiano in its hikes among the clouds in these 150
years of history, with its volunteers, armed with a relentless passion.
Since its beginnings, active practice and culture have been the fundamental
principles that promoted the understanding of the land — meant as identity
awareness and civil growth — which shows the close relationship between the
Club Alpino and Italy. We still feel pioneers, we discover cultures and heritage
and are able to connect the dots of the stories. The question is always the same:
what is further on?
Tourism,
a sustainabile heritage
The Fondazione Dolomiti is the official partner
of UNESCO for the variety areas concerning the
“emblematic” Heritage of the Dolomites. Its scope
is to promote awareness, preserve, and enhance
the value of the Heritage both through focussed actions,
and above all by coordinating of tasks for the
study and management of individual provinces. We
must try to harmonize tourist policies by promoting
and proposing sustainable mobility plans; we
must try to strengthen the awareness in the population
and encourage their active participation in the
decisions concerning their territory; we must study
and disseminate the geological and geomorphological
characteristics of the Heritage, learn about the
environment and the landscape so as to enhance
its value through activities of protected parks and
areas.
The reference to the UNESCO Heritage and
the activities of the Fondazione focus the attention
on a series of problems, namely: the abandonment
of the mountain; the anachronism of the typical
activities of the land; the intensive tourism, often
environmentally aggressive; irresponsible land use
decisions by town planning schemes; the mountain
villages, abandoned and sad. All this taking due
consideration of the great differences between the
different areas. It seems obvious that inclusion as a
World Heritage site enhances the value of the Dolomites,
because it cannot but help the mountains to
regain their place of honour, strong in the knowledge
of their social and environmental attraction.
However, we must point out that in order to pursue
the objectives related to the promotion of Heritage
we must raise awareness, overcome differences, and
promote special features. On the one side, we must
draw on the synergies between the areas, develop focussed
plans to inspire the commitment of younger
generations and additionally, rediscover and promote
the traditions and the values of the places. Is it
a dream? No, it’s a passion!
Paola Matonti
Director of the coordination Unit of Fondazione
Dolomiti UNESCO
Italy-Germany:
a Match for Europe
I wish that both in Bavaria and Italy, particularly
in the regions that are connected to this
great Land in South Germany, people would reconsider
the idea of Europe, as they have stopped
doing for a long time now. The Euro is Europe, but
Europe is much more than the Euro. If we miss the
ultimate goal, all the sacrifices and reforms, justified
in the name of Europe, would become ends in
themselves, awakening national selfishness and dislikes
thus backfiring the very idea of Europe. The
problem is the same whether it is seen from Bavaria
or from Italy: we must come out from the vicious
circle of real, but limited, debates and give people
the perspective of long term projects and challenges
that Europe alone can accept; we must defend its
values, its conception of human rights and environmental
and social sustainability; we must support
the economical and political system centered
on the individual rather than on profit. The dream
is not only about European citizens looking at
Europe as a “common good”, but also as a space
within which national competences are exercised
with responsibility and respect for the “common
European home”. The dream would come true if the
new encounter of Europe with its citizens and the
responsible use of independent governments would
generate a widespread confidence. This confidence
could favour the real circulation of ideas and cultures
all over Europe, mainly at a regional level. After
all, that would not be new, we have already experienced
the Renaissance, the Enlightenment of the
late Eighteenth century or some cultural symbiosis
like Mitteleuropa. Today, the only difference is the
speed of transmission of ideas and the extremely
wide spread of ideas which are not limited to specific
social or territorial environments. We could
therefore pave the way towards a wealthier world,
more vital and dynamic. The dream stops here, yet
it might come true.
Filippo Scammacca del Murgo
Italian General Consul in Munich (Bavaria)
I wish the humus of our roots were grown with more and more attention,
staking bravely on our young generations, trusting them with the future of the
mountains and of the Mountain. The great future challenges will be testing the
education we have passed on. I hope our work has stimulated, intrigued, and
excited. I hope we will still be moved by a panorama and will set off enthusiastically
on a scientific exploration. I hope in a world without borders; I hope
that this year of celebrations will promote the culture of the summits: Italian
heritage and resource. Finally, I hope to draw the attention on the themes of the
mountain areas, no longer felt as a barrier but as the hinge of Europe in order
to encourage the economical, cultural, and ethical rebirth of these areas.
Umberto Martini, General President of Club Alpino Italiano
Give us school
and fathers back!
Though I have been involved in many different
activities, I remain a teacher. I have never
stopped believing in this job and devoting all my
energies to it, consequently my hope is of a school
worth its name. The recipes to reach this result are
well known, but administrative confusion and corporative
resistance prevent their application
Today “Merit” is everyone’s battle cry. The
problem is who is to evaluate merit and how. The
principle of responsibility must be decisively founded
on ethical commitment, but rather I see the prevailing
principle of opportunism, mostly justified
by socio-political reasons. It would be important to
adjust the wages of the teachers to the upper standards
and select them rigorously to restore dignity
and social consideration to their extremely delicate
work.
Beside the school, however, there is another important
institution: the family, which is currently
massacred by a shortsighted and ideologic culture.
Not even politics have helped consolidating the
family structure and the public sentiment does not
recognize its fundamental role in education. Then,
within the family, tantrums, individualism, selfishness
have prevailed and destroyed what should have
been defended.
Furthermore, I would like that the role of the father
were given its correct meaning. Over the years
we have passed from the tyrant father to the total
idiot father. Even in this case a vulgar culture has
theorized the regressive character of the father in
the family education. Thus his figure has been lost
and with it also the roots have been forgotten because
the father is history.
Stefano Zecchi
Writer and Professor of Aesthetics
at Università degli Studi in Milan
21