Initial situation
The COST project MARGISTAR was approved in May 2022 (COST Action CA21125) and the networking of partners started with the Management Committee Meeting in November 2022. The COST Action is being carried out in 26 European participating countries with the aim of supporting networking between research institutions and practice partners who intend to overcome the marginalization of mountain areas. As a COST activity, only networking activities are funded, not the research work itself. Innovative actions will be developed through a series of physical and virtual meetings over the project period of 4 years. From this cooperation, innovative implementation strategies for marginalized mountain areas are to be developed, which should enable attractive development paths and environmentally sensitive adaptation processes on the basis of new technological possibilities.
Objective
The project is based on a common understanding that identifies shortcomings in the development and design of mountain region development programs to date.These relate in particular to a defensive or negative view of the development potential of mountain regions and this is referred to as a theoretical "peripherality trap".Through the networking of these COST activities, experiences are to be exchanged between the participating countries, particularly with regard to the practical implementation of relevant initiatives and policy programs in mountain regions.The aim is to ensure that the platform established during the project period is maintained after the end of the project and forms a basis for cooperation between European mountain regions.
Status of the project and work in 2024
In 2023, the compilation of relevant texts and projects was started as part of Working Group 2: Local initiatives and implementations.Analyses to overcome marginalization using concrete regional examples.On the one hand, texts on the context and situation of the Austrian mountain region were formulated for the Country Blog Austria, which will be published online at the beginning of 2024.On the other hand, in coordination with the second Austrian partner, the Institute for Forest, Environmental and Resource Policy at the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, relevant Austrian case studies were selected for the "Case Study Catalogue", in which "peripherality traps" in mountain regions are analyzed. This work will be continued in 2024. In addition, participation in networking meetings (physical and virtual) is planned.
Timetable
Project start: 11/ 2022
Project end: 12/2026
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