Alpine Network of Protected Areas

ALPARC – the Alpine Network of Protected Areas (Réseau Alpin des Espaces Protégés / Netzwerk Alpiner Schutzgebiete) – is an international cooperation network that brings together hundreds of protected areas of all kinds across the Alpine arc, from France to Slovenia. It was founded in 1995 to support the implementation of the Alpine Convention, in particular its Protocol on Nature Protection and Landscape Conservation. Its activities cover a large territory spanning the French, Swiss, Italian, German, Austrian and Slovenian Alps, and it operates as a mediator between institutions, local actors and Alpine communities. The network's main goal is to promote the exchange of expertise, techniques and methods among the managers of major Alpine protected areas: national parks, regional nature parks, nature reserves, biosphere reserves, quiet areas, UNESCO World Heritage sites, geological protected areas and other areas with special protection status. This exchange allows protected areas to take part in projects they could not carry out alone. ALPARC works across three thematic fields: biodiversity and ecological connectivity; regional development and quality of life; and education for sustainable development in the Alps. These three fields allow ALPARC to pursue a regional approach to global issues such as climate change, nature conservation and sustainable development. ALPARC also aims to raise awareness among the public, and especially Alpine youth, about ecological challenges. It does so by organising thematic events and workshops, disseminating information on common topics and issuing publications, cooperating with other international bodies, organisations and networks, and developing and coordinating international projects. Its flagship youth event, Youth at the Top, has become a recurring international gathering; the 12th edition took place on 16 and 17 August 2026. Recent INTERREG Alpine Space Programme projects such as AfterAlpineIce and RE-PEAT-it! officially started on 1 September 2026. ALPARC is closely tied to the Permanent Secretariat of the Alpine Convention. Its main office is in Chambéry, France. In April 2019 it created a regional platform, ALPARC CENTR'ALPS, legally linked to ALPARC and registered as an association under German law, with its seat at the Berchtesgaden National Park administration in Germany. This decentralised structure serves the north-eastern part of the Alpine arc, complements the Chambéry headquarters, and allows activities to be adapted to local needs, to guarantee concrete on-the-ground implementation, to promote local initiatives and to be closer to protected-area managers. A second regional platform was set up in the south-eastern Alps. ALPARC CENTR'ALPS is currently led by Peter Oggier, ALPARC President and Director of the Pfyn-Finges Nature Park in Switzerland.

ALPARC, the Alpine Network of Protected Areas, was founded in 1995 to support the implementation of the Alpine Convention, in particular its Protocol on Nature Protection and Landscape Conservation. The network was created as a cooperation platform for the managers of large protected areas across the Alps, at a time when the Alpine Convention was beginning to translate its framework into concrete action. Its activities cover a large area from the French Alps to the Slovenian Alps. From the outset, ALPARC's mission has been to promote the exchange of expertise, techniques and methods among the responsible bodies of Alpine protected areas: national parks, regional nature parks, nature reserves, biosphere reserves, quiet areas, UNESCO World Heritage sites, geological protected areas and other areas with special protection status. This exchange enables protected areas to participate in projects that they could not implement alone. Through international cooperation, ALPARC acts as a mediator between institutions, local actors and Alpine communities in the implementation of the Alpine Convention. The network works in three thematic fields: biodiversity and ecological connectivity; regional development and quality of life; and education for sustainable development in the Alps. These three fields allow ALPARC to pursue a regional approach to global issues such as climate change, nature conservation and sustainable development. In addition, ALPARC aims to raise awareness among the public, and especially Alpine youth, about ecological challenges. It achieves its goals by organising thematic events and workshops, disseminating information on common topics and issuing publications, cooperating with other international bodies, organisations and networks, and developing and coordinating international and especially cross-border projects. A significant institutional development came in April 2019, when ALPARC founded the regional platform ALPARC CENTR'ALPS. Closely linked to ALPARC by contract and registered as an association under German law, it has its seat at the Berchtesgaden National Park administration in Germany. It serves as a regional point of contact for the north-eastern part of the Alpine arc, complementing the main office in Chambéry, France. ALPARC CENTR'ALPS pursues the same goals and fields of work as the parent organisation, but its decentralised structure allows activities to be adapted to local needs, guarantees concrete on-the-ground implementation, promotes local initiatives and brings the network closer to protected-area managers. The platform also offers smaller protected areas and other biodiversity managers in the region the opportunity to engage in the ALPARC network. It is currently led by Peter Oggier, ALPARC President and Director of the Pfyn-Finges Nature Park in Switzerland. To ensure geographical proximity to protected areas, ALPARC has established a second regional platform in the south-eastern Alps. ALPARC's recurring international youth event, Youth at the Top, has become one of its best-known activities. The 12th edition took place on 16 and 17 August 2026, focused on discovering the diversity of mountain ecosystems. In September 2026, two new INTERREG Alpine Space Programme projects, AfterAlpineIce and RE-PEAT-it!, officially started, continuing ALPARC's involvement in transnational cooperation. The network also holds regular council meetings, such as the one in Resia from 24 to 26 June 2026, and publishes news and publications on Alpine protected areas, including anniversaries such as the 50th anniversary of the Texel Group Nature Park in South Tyrol, designated on 15 March 1976.

• 2026

  The 12th edition of Youth at the Top takes place on 16 and 17 August 2026, focused on discovering the diversity of mountain ecosystems.

• 2026

  Two new INTERREG Alpine Space Programme projects, AfterAlpineIce and RE-PEAT-it!, officially start on 1 September 2026.

• 2019

  ALPARC founds the regional platform ALPARC CENTR'ALPS, registered as an association under German law with its seat at the Berchtesgaden National Park administration in Germany.

• 1995

  ALPARC, the Alpine Network of Protected Areas, is founded to support the implementation of the Alpine Convention, in particular its Protocol on Nature Protection and Landscape Conservation.

An international cooperation and knowledge-exchange network for Alpine protected areas, acting as a mediator between institutions, local actors and Alpine communities in support of the Alpine Convention.

• Youth at the Top

  International youth event organised by ALPARC; the 12th edition took place on 16 and 17 August 2026.

• ALPARC CENTR'ALPS

  Regional platform founded in April 2019, registered as an association under German law, based at Berchtesgaden National Park, Germany.

• AfterAlpineIce

  INTERREG Alpine Space Programme project that officially started on 1 September 2026.

• RE-PEAT-it!

  INTERREG Alpine Space Programme project that officially started on 1 September 2026.

1. 1Alparcalparc.org
2. 2Über unsalparc.org
3. 3Über CENTR’ALPSalparc.org
4. 4Secrétariat permanent de la Convention alpine (ALPARC) - Alpine Network of Protected Areaswikidata.org