“The forests are dirty”: Effects of climate and social change on landscape and well-being in the Italian Alps

Abstract

Over the course of the last several decades, climate and social changes have fundamentally altered Alpine environments, landscapes, and weather patterns. While environmental changes are well-documented by natural science studies, the human dimensions of change remain understudied. Existing in-depth studies of the impact of climate and environmental changes on emotional well-being have revealed cross-cultural similarities in responses to change, but studies of the impact of such changes on the well-being of residents of the European Alps are needed. Through interviews, participant observation, and a questionnaire, the study identified two pathways through which changes to Alpine environments are affecting the well-being of mountain residents in the Lombardy region of the Italian Alps. The landscape and ecosystem changes caused by social changes are affecting well-being through disrupting connections to place and affecting people's sense of identity as tied to an agricultural past. The weather changes caused by climate change are increasing anxiety and worry linked to feelings of unpredictability, uncertainty, and loss of control. There is also overlap. Both the changes caused by climate change and by social changes are affecting well-being by disrupting the reliability of place-based knowledge.