Teaching travellers the ways of the Alps
Switzerland is taking part in a new programme that aims to inform people about the history and formation of the Alps and the secrets of planet Earth.
It's part of a project called Via GeoAlpina that was initiated by the International Union for Geological Sciences and Unesco for the International Year of Planet Earth, which finishes at the end of this year.
The idea is to run the project alongside the Via Alpina, a journey crossing all the countries of the alpine chain from Trieste to Monaco by footpaths that take people to some of the places of natural and cultural beauty.
Via GeoAlpina brings a scientific perspective in that tourists and hikers will learn about sciences such as geology, geomorphology, hydrology, natural dangers and the uses of stone.
Switzerland's participation is being handled the Federal Topography Office and the Swiss Academy of Sciences.
Organisations from six alpine countries - Switzerland, Germany, Austria, France, Italy and Slovenia - are associated with the project.
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