Abstract

Wilderness is an important concept in the discourses and policies concerning contemporary European protected areas, inherently challenging in terms of sustainability. Since its designation in 1992, the Val Grande National Park, located in northwest Italy, has been portrayed and promoted as a wilderness area, thereby enhancing tourism, whilst disregarding the historical signs of human activity. In this paper we explore the wilderness concept, focusing on the narratives developed in the area, that changed from a strict conservationist approach to a more utilitarian one, influencing the National Park’s policy-making. The research is based mainly on the content analysis of several literary texts. We conclude that wildernessneeds to be reconceptualized so that contemporary European protection policies might become more effective, and we may use our knowledge of nature to promote sustainable development.

摘要

荒野是当代欧洲保护区的话语和政策中的一个重要概念，在可持续性方面具有内在的挑战。自 1992 年指定以来，位于意大利西北部的 Val Grande 国家公园一直被描绘和宣传为荒野地区，从而增强了旅游业，同时忽视了人类活动的历史迹象。在本文中，我们探讨了荒野概念，重点关注该地区发展的叙述，从严格的保护主义方法转变为更实用的方法，影响国家公园的政策制定。研究主要基于对几个文学文本的内容分析。我们得出结论，荒野需要重新概念化，以便当代欧洲保护政策可能变得更加有效，我们可以利用我们对自然的了解来促进可持续发展。