Geoheritage of the Western Alps: emergence of a territorial resource

Résumé 0

Among the new categories of heritage identified over the last decades, geoheritage is defined as the array of geological features, dynamics, sites and landscapes that are not only key-indicators of the Earth’s history and functional processes, but that also reflect the interactions between abiotic and biotic systems, including the anthroposystem. This article shows, through the example of the Western Alps as geoheritage landmark, how, in some contexts and conditions, geoheritage becomes a “territorial resource” contributing significantly to local development strategies. Several ways of territorial appropriation and activation of these geoheritage resources are presented and compared, especially through the UNESCO labels (World Heritage and Geoparks), as well as a growing activity: geotourism. Such activation sometimes underlies genuine territorial projects, the analysis of which shows how turning geoheritage into resource produces territorialization. These processes, especially via labelling, are also motivated by a concern for territorial singularization. The success of the Geopark approach, in the Western Alps as well as in Europe and Asia, leads us to question the strategies of positioning and networking of mountain territories based on their geoheritage as a support for development and singularization. Furthermore, the shift from heritage to resource status has implications for the qualification of values attributed to Alpine geoheritage features and sites. These consequences are dual and interrelated: they tend both towards a hierarchical reversal of the so-called central and additional values between geoscientific experts and socio-economic actors, and to a shift from heritage values to the field of resource-based values.