President Tüttő in Valle d'Aosta to step up joint work on cohesion, water management and autonomy

“We are working with Councillor Caveri and other European local leaders to strengthen European mountain and climate change adaptation policies. The experience developed here, including through cross-border cooperation, is now of strategic value for the EU as a whole"

Meetings with the Regional Council and the European session of the Regional Assembly concluded today the visit of President Kata Tüttő to Valle d'Aosta, dedicated to verifying the impact of the effectiveness of European support for mountain regions and deepening the regional strategy for the management of glaciers and water resources.

The two days of the President in Valle d'Aosta opened yesterday with visits and meetings with regional leaders, mayors and experts of the Fondazione Montagna Sicura, ARPA and mountain guides, aimed at taking stock of water resources management and glacier monitoring, sectors in which the region represents an innovation laboratory of international importance, also thanks to various research and cooperation projects supported by the European Union.

"I accepted with great pleasure and conviction the invitation of the President of the Region Renzo Testolin, the President of the Council, Alberto Bertin, and the Councillor for European Affairs Luciano Caveri, to carry out the first institutional visit of my mandate in Valle d'Aosta. This region and its mountains have today a great symbolic value for a European Union committed to defending the values of cohesion, linguistic and cultural diversity, cross-border collaboration, sustainability. At the same time, important experiences and skills have been developed here in addressing decisive challenges for all European territories, from the sustainability of natural resource management to connectivity with national and European networks, from protecting biodiversity to energy security, combating depopulation and adapting to climate change. For this reason we are working with great harmony with the Councillor Caveri, to ensure that an open discussion on European policies for the mountains helps us to maintain an adequate financial envelope for inclusive governance capable of responding to the needs of our communities.  This will be on the agenda of the next plenary session of the European Committee of the Regions on 15 May in Brussels", commented President Tüttő.

"It was not just an official visit, but a two-day event full of business meetings to understand the Aosta Valley. We are an Alpine region with special autonomy and a special language regime, and the President has clearly understood - as was seen in her speech in the Regional Council - the pro-European spirit that animates us, while respecting subsidiarity. The various insights, linked to what the mountain of tomorrow will look like, have seen not only the interest of the President, but also the demonstration of concrete commitments on essential issues, such as climate change, which poses the challenge of adaptation with the need to maintain a human presence and a thriving economy", said Councillor Luciano Caveri (IT/Renew E), who is also a member of the European Committee of the Regions, at the end of the visit.

Press contacts

Matteo Miglietta - CoR
Tel. +32 (0) 470 89 53 82
matteo.miglietta@cor.europa.eu

Benoit Girod – Regional Council of Valle D’Aosta
Tel. +39 333 49 15 700
b.girod@regione.vda.it – u-stampa@regione.vda.it