Published 2024-12-30
Keywords
- mountain repopulation,
- immigration flows,
- 1930s vs. 2000s,
- social innovation,
- territorial restoration
How to Cite
Copyright (c) 2024 Paolo Baldeschi
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Abstract
The article explores the chances of a problematic return to the mountains through a comparison of data from the 1930s and surveys on recent immigration flows in the Italian Alps. Already in the 1930s, the INEA survey on “Mountain depopulation in Italy” (1932-1938) bore witness to a process of emigration intensified since WWI, identified its causes, dimensions, features and some possible remedies. A focus was placed on the qualitative aspects of an apparent repopulation process. Quite different appear the recent processes of “return to the mountains” in terms of selective characteristics, geography and nature of immigrants. The article comparatively discusses the depth and quality of the process, as regards the social aspect, innovation in the agrarian economy and its impacts on territorial maintenance and restoration. Finally, it suggests some policies to support re-immigration processes, comparing 1930s proposals with the more recent ones.