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Organizing the biosphere

"Being a UNESCO biosphere is only an intention", explains Valerie Buscaino in the Bédoin tourism office, "but a good one." That of reconciling the conservation of natural resources with its sustainable use. The way how the idea is implemented in the specific regions, however, varies greatly. This is also the case for the French UNESCO biospheres. Some are based on national parks, others on regional natural parks, both of which are official structures with a long tradition in France.

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"In the case of the Mont Ventoux, there is no official structure", explains Ken Reyna, coordinator of the "UNESCO biosphere mission" for the Mont Ventoux. All activities concerning the region of the UNESCO biosphere are assumed by the so-called Syndicat Mixte d'Equipment et d'Amenagement du Mont Ventoux, an organization composed of representatives from the local townships, communes and departments - everybody who is interested in regional development. The Syndicat cares for housing, school and town hall construction, water distribution, promotion of tourism - and environmental issues.

Representatives, elected locals, regional planners, scientists and technical partners - all have their say in the management. "Sustainable development is something to be discussed, not something to be done alone", Ken is certain. His major task is the coordination of research activities in the Mont Ventoux area. For this purpose, a scientific council has been founded, where specialists from natural and social sciences select the priority issues for the region.

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Research activities include the monitoring of the Orsini Viper and amphibians. Furthermore, an important task is the assessment of tourism flows. "We know that there are about a million people that ascend the Mont Ventoux yearly by car or by bike, but we didn't know anything about the number of hikers on the numerous trails leading to the summit". Now, eco-counters (photo) have been buried under the hiking trails and count passers-by. "On only one spot, we measured 3000 people in two months - a quite high number."

The "biosphere mission" makes great demands on Ken Reyna, and there is still a lot of work to do. The awareness of the local population about the label "UNESCO biosphere" is very low. No cooperation exists with the nearby UNESCO biosphere Luberon. "I am the only one working for the biosphere mission", explains Ken, "and the fact that we are not officially recognized makes us weak. We don't have enough resources to effectively implement the UNESCO biosphere concept." But he will continue to work on it. "I like the idea of the biospheres. They are extremely diverse, but the underlying concept is everywhere the same - this is vachement interesting".

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Organizing the biosphere

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