Challenges for mountain regions – tackling complexity

This volume shows that Austrian mountain research is taking up the challenge of global change for mountain regions. One of the specific themes includes: living in the mountains is living with risk. Natural hazards such as earthquakes, mass movements, avalanches or floods endanger humans and infrastructures as do globalization processes. Johann Stötter and Matthias Monreal reflect on risk and adaptation strategies. Clemens Pfurtscheller and Klaus Kleewein analyse one particular event, the floods of 25 August 2005 in Tyrol. Rafael Sánchez takes the case of Santiago de Chile to investigate Andean mountain areas as danger zones and shows how much awareness of risk and coping strategies have changed over the centuries.