The Alps: Timeless and changing - Landscape

Join native Alpiner Johannes Pleschberger on his journey through this incredible mountain range at the heart of Europe. In this 30 minute podcast Johannes investigates some of the extreme changes facing the Alpine landscape. One of the most noticeable effects of climate change is the shrinking of the glaciers. Researchers says that since 1850, alpine glaciers have lost over half their volume. At the Mer de Glace in the western Alps they’re trying to protect the glacier and educate people about the changing landscape. We visit a restaurant which has shifted from one country to another because of a melting border. Pastureland in the alpine foothills is shrinking too, as spring arrives three to four weeks earlier than it did sixty years ago. Farmers are learning new methods about how best to graze their cattle as the pastures move higher up the mountains, keeping alpine traditions alive. As storms increase in intensity we find out how fallen timber in the Italian Alps has been saved to help produce 30,000 pianos, violins and harps in the style of Stradivari.