Monday, 1 Sept 2014, among all of the Slovenian, Swiss, Austrian and French alpine towns, Chamonix is the one to be recognised as the "The Alpine Town of the Year" in 2015. An international jury gathered and decided that Chamonix should receive the award due to its Territorial Energy Climate Plan that foresees a reduction in CO2 emissions and energy consumption of 20% by the end of 2015.
After receiving The Flocon Vert in 2013, a distinction that enables visitors select their mountain destination based on its commitment to sustainable development, Chamonix proves once more its commitment to the environmental protection of the alpine region and is awarded the title of "The Alpine Town of the Year" in 2015.
Throughout 2015 the international recognized capital of mountaineering promises to focus its actions on climate issues and culture. Chamonix is the first town in the French Alps to have established a Territorial Energy Climate Plan. The plan calls for reduced CO2 emissions and energy consumption. By applying this set of regulation, the municipality aims to reduce by 20% the energy consumption and to increase by 20% the renewable energies used in Chamonix.
The Alpine Town of the Year Association is an association of alpine towns which have been awarded the title of "Alpine Town of the Year" by an international jury that gathers every year to decide whether a town is suitable or not for this award. The title accredits alpine towns for their commitment to the implementation of the Alpine Convention, based on a set of five main objectives.
The Alpine Convention is a treaty under international law between Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Liechtenstein, Monaco, Slovenia, Switzerland and the European Union signed in 1991. The principal concern of the Alpine Convention is to combine measures for the protection of the alpine region with a sustainable, trend-setting development of the regions themselves.
The urban area represents only around 40% of the total alpine area, but two thirds of the population in the Alps live in urbanized regions. So while the Alps are still clearly rural in terms of surface area, the population and its the economy is predominantly urban.
In the Alps nature and culture, ecology and economy collide head on! The Alpine Town of the Year has the obligation to communicate this idea of unity to the population at large and in 2015 it's Chamonix turn to do it.
