Mobility and Tourism Geography in Mountain Areas. The Role of LAGs in Territory Development

This article explores the need to reconsider mobility and tourism in mountain territories, particularly in Italy, through a sustainable and collaborative lens. The Manifesto di Camaldoli has been instrumental in redirecting attention to Italian mountains, outlining five key themes for a renewed vision. The manifesto advocates for integrated, self-sustainable, agro-ecological, bioregional, inclusive, and community-oriented local development. Italian mountains, once marginalized, are gaining momentum as a focus of multidisciplinary studies, addressing challenges such as depopulation and aging. The research group MIND (Mountains INside the Mountain) aligns with the Manifesto di Camaldoli's perspective, aiming to investigate and propose new visions for sustainable mountain development. This article reports reflections from the “Laboratorio Montagna,” part of the MIND project, held in collaboration with different Italian LAGs. The initiative involved various stakeholders, addressing depopulation and marginalization by exploring economic policies related to personal services and local development. The researchers participated in discussions on “mobility” and “tourism”, using the quadruple helix methodology and combining the view of public, private, academic and civil society sectors. The aim of this work is to capture the complexity of demands and visions from those involved in revitalizing middle mountain areas. The broader objective is to contribute a problematic, interpretative, and constructive key to the current situation of Italian mountains, offering insights for innovative approaches to mountain development.