Elisabeth Rieder, Markus Schermer, Wolfgang Meixner, The impact of farm tourism on the life and labour relations of women farmers in Tyrol
Agro-tourism marks the first broad wave of commercialisation of female work in agriculture. The paper describes the nature of the transformations affecting women farmers as a result of this new economic activity. Our analysis covers the successive periods in the evolution from its beginnings in the 1960s to the present day. The impact of change is observed in the relations between gender and generations, but also in innovation and decisions on investments, and in the value of farm products. Agro-tourism offers women an opportunity for independent activity. They do not only earn their own money, like women in non-farming households, but they can act as self-employed entrepreneurs. This does not only grant them more decision-making power on the farm but makes farm life more attractive for women from a non-agrarian background. Thus agro-tourism contributes to making mountain farming not only economically viable but also socially sustainable.
Gudrun Hausegger, Vnà, Dachstein, Zermatt: Synthesis,
Corporate Identity, Musealisation. Three examples
of new “conserving” presentations in alpine regions
The urbanisation of alpine regions, which occurs cyclically, has always been linked to certain principles. The most recent occupation of land in the Alps from the 1980s onwards reveals (despite numerous examples of continuity) a significant new orientation in certain projects: a responsible handling of the Alps as a natural and cultural landscape paves the way for appropriate, forward- looking developments. By now society’s need for staged experiences calls for designs that are place-related. The response to such demands is provided by presentations that can be described as “conserving”, in the positive sense of the word. Three current projects are used to examine this recourse to the strength of reality: The hotel-village Vnà in Unterengadin (opened in 2008) works with the local population in looking for a new development that takes as its starting point the particular qualities of the place. The initiative envisages interlocking old and new in a number of very different fields. The project “Dachstein Welterbe” (completed in 2008) offers a sensitive presentation of the mountain
