Today it's my birthday and it has been a wonderful day which I celebrated with Sabine Ment.
I left Reggio Calabria early in the morning, with the sea behind me and the high mountains of the Park of Aspromonte in front of me, as my destination. The Park covers 65,000 hectares of land, which are currently under pressure due to the high interest in exploiting its local limitless natural resources. To defend the Park, a team of determined, forward-looking people, made of well-informed and very active women and men.
After the challenging but successful radio connection we went hiking with the aim to reach Montalto, the highest peak in the park (1,956 meters above sea level). Yet, because there was too much snow, we had to change our plans and take another trail to the "Pozze delle Fate" (or Pozze dell'Amore), a wonderful setting of waterfalls and pools in the middle of nature!
Sabine told me the story of the "Migrant Mountains" which explains the very unique geological nature of the Aspromonte. The migrant mountains are mountains that were once part of the Alps and a very long time ago separated and migrated, through many small geomorphological changes, closer South, into the Mediterranean. This area of Alps became the Aspromonte park, whose geological origin is so particular that it is being considered by UNESCO to be established as a GeoParco.
The day ended with a wonderful sunset looking at the sea in between Calabria and Sicily from Gambarie, the main local city.
Present in my land, as well as in many other countries I have visited in the past for work, the dilemma of environmental protection is real. When it comes to natural parks the question is always: conservation with people or without? Is it feasible to protect nature and at the same time give local communities all the rights to keep their traditional practices and generate an income out of the same nature?
I think yes .... the conservation of nature that includes people is very possible.
In Aspromonte, pastoralists and hunters gave to the park some of their rights to graze and hunt and are now looking at tourism as an option to create a better living. The beauty(ies) of the park are an immense source of opportunities and the trend of circular and regenerative economy is promising to the balance in the people-nature relationship in this region. But, time is also delicate as a fast change needs to happen to revert the migration trend and make people want to stay in Aspromonte, in Gambarie and in my Calabria.
Go Aspromonte, GO!!!
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