The featured image of this post was kindly provided by the Abruzzo Smart Ambassador Giulio Mattiozzi – @hiking_abruzzo
Abruzzo as a sustainable destination
Now more than ever we must have a positive social and ecological impact in everything we do, and tourism it’s not an exception to this.
We have shared several posts about Abruzzo’s endless options to practice sustainable and slow tourism. The Project Nexum Equum which aims to recover the longest Ippovia in Italy, the Emblematic Project, an eco journey that goes from Tirino to Gran Sasso to discover with all senses the best of Abruzzo and infinite options of environmentally friendly activities such as canoeing, kayak, cycling, trekking, forest bathing, blue prescribing and
What is the UNESCO Global Geopark (UGGp)?
Within Abruzzo’s territory, it’s possible to find 3 National Parks. One of them, The Maiella National Park, has been granted in April 2021, the title of UNESCO Global Geopark (UGGp). This title is an important recognition to what is considered by the Abruzzese people the “Mother Mountain”.
There are 169 UNESCO Global Geoparks across 44 countries, 11 of these parks are in Italy and one of them is in Abruzzo.
According to the UNESCO a Global Geopark can be defined as:
“A single, unified geographical area where sites and landscapes of international geological significance are managed with a holistic concept of protection, education and sustainable development. Their bottom-up approach of combining conservation with sustainable development while involving local communities is becoming increasingly popular.”
The aim of the UNESCO Global Geopark is:
“To develop and celebrate the links between that geological heritage and all other aspects of the area’s natural, cultural and intangible heritages. It is about reconnecting human society at all levels to the planet…”
It’s important to mention the UNESCO Global Geopark recognition is granted for four years. After these four years, each of the parks will be re-examined again through a revalidation process, which implies that each park must prepare a report stating all the progress achieved. This report will be evaluated by two commissioners to revalidate or not the park as a UNESCO Global Geopark.
Camoscio d'Abruzzo - @passantemoreno
Bosque de Sant'antonio - @alilanico
The Maiella Global Geopark
There are enough elements to consider the Maiella National Park a perfect combination of geodiversity, biodiversity and cultural heritage.
The flora of the park it’s characterized by its remarkable richness. Over 2,300 species correspond with approximately 70% of the flora of the whole Abruzzo and 25% of the flora of the whole country, making it the richest flora In Europe. The park also hosts a rich and diversified vertebrate fauna made up of important populations of many of the main and rarest species of mammal, birds, reptiles and amphibians. The Apennine wolf is the symbol of the park.
In addition, some of the most iconic places to visit in Abruzzo are in this park. Clear examples are gli “eremi”, places of secular culture and ideal spots to connect with yourself and nature, connected to each other by Sentiero dello Spirito (Path of the Spirit), a 70 kilometres long itinerary, the town of Guardiagrele, listed as one of the most beautiful towns in Italy by @borghitaly and the Valle dell’Avello, a free contamination valley located in Balzolo.
39 villages can be found within the territory of the park, well known are Caramanico Terme, Guardiagrele, Bolognano, Sulmona, Rivisondoli and Roccaraso (important to mention the Ski Resort Alto Sangro Roccaraso-Rivisondoli, the biggest in Abruzzo with approximately 90 km of slopes).
The Orfento Valley - @hiking_abruzzo - Abruzzo Smart Ambassador
Caramanico Terme - @presoingiro
Abruzzo towards a sustainable development
No matter the season of the year (don’t forget to check our post about why you should add Abruzzo to your bucket list), anytime is the perfect time to visit this park! There are infinity options to discover the best of la Maiella, to mention some: e-bike tour through the town of Caramanico Terme, wildlife observations for families, guided tours through the Area Faunistica dell’Orso Bruno, trekking through the Valle dell’Orfento and much more!
The Maiella National Park, now also known as UNESCO Global Geopark, it’s a magnificent and stunning treasure that needs to be cared for and valued properly by all of us, residents and visitors. It represents an important opportunity to promote slow and eco-friendly tourism in Abruzzo, and at the same time, it constitutes another huge step towards the sustainable development of the region.