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What The Mountain Learns from Aging and What Aging Learns from the Mountain

Marion Repetti et Thibauld Moulaert
Cet article est une traduction de :
Ce que la montagne apprend du vieillissement et ce que le vieillissement apprend de la montagne [fr]

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1As demographic aging constitutes one of the most significant social transformations of the 21st century (UN, 2024), the living conditions and well-being of older adults are a priority for maintaining social cohesion. As distinct rural environments (Gucher, 2018; Walsh et al., 2020), mountain territories are key to addressing these major challenges, as they are affected by socio-economic configurations directly linked to the fact that demographic aging is more pronounced there than in lowland regions (Glasgow and Brown, 2012). This phenomenon results from multiple factors, and research on the subject remains relatively scarce.

2First, demographic aging in many mountain territories is accompanied by a depopulation phenomenon linked to the weakening of local economies (notably small-scale farming) in the face of globalized markets (see, for example, Jackson et al., 2015). Young people from certain mountainous regions tend to leave in search of places offering greater professional opportunities (Russell, 2024; Walsh et al., 2020). Those who remain (Coquart, 2019) are often the youngest who have not found jobs elsewhere, as well as older adults. Other regions undergo gentrification or experience seasonal population influxes in winter and summer, attracting new financial and social investments and bringing together an increasingly mixed and globalized population (locals, tourists, expatriates, nomads, etc.) (Friedli, 2020).

3Second, while some older adults continue to live in mountain regions, others “return” there upon retirement after a professional life spent elsewhere, and still others settle there later in life (Gucher, 2020), finding a higher quality of life and lower costs of living (Bender and Kanitscheider, 2012). These movements shape not only the demographics of mountain territories but also their local economies.

4Aging in a mountain region can provide the feeling of living in a particularly beautiful place or one that has preserved traditions lost elsewhere. It can also offer space for various cultural and sports activities, which some older adults find appealing as a way to engage in new hobbies after retirement or to continue activities they took up earlier in life. Additionally, the social environment of older adults—such as neighborhood networks and social spaces—can be reshaped beyond family ties, fostering a sense of social integration and reducing isolation (Mallon, 2013).

5However, aging in the mountains also presents significant challenges. Some particularly remote areas may be far from social and healthcare services as well as shops (Cholat, 2016; Roberto et al., 2022). Mountain living often requires access to a car or the use of public transportation when regions are well served, which demands a level of physical mobility that may decline with age. This sometimes necessitates “reverse mobility” strategies, meaning that rather than people traveling to services, services must come to them (Cholat and Daconto, 2021). Yet, personal assistance services remain essential for residents to be aware of and exercise their rights. This is especially true for adults with limited access to digital tools, including some older individuals (Vatron-Steiner et al., 2022). As a result, mountain territories can become places of digital, social, and economic exclusion with minimal access to benefits and services (Fischl et al., 2020; Russell, 2024; Walsh et al., 2020).

International Perspectives

6Three main themes structure the various articles in this issue. The first is focused on the transformations that population aging imposes on mountain territories; the second involves exploring the interactions between aging and life in the mountains; and the third opens the door to experiential dimensions, highlighting the inherently subjective nature of mountain social practices.

7In Olivier Chavanon’s article, he examines the role of older inhabitants in mountain regions of France—the Alps and the Massif Central—in managing common resources, that is, in the collective organization of essential resources for social cohesion in these territories. Chavanon sheds light on an often invisible and unaddressed characteristic of common resource representatives: the fact that they are mostly aged 60 and over. The author thus underscores the importance of examining mountain studies through the lens of age. Here, the mountain as a resource is central to the analysis in terms of space and territorial management.

8The mountain as a collectively mobilized resource is also at the heart of the article by Roberta Clara Zanini, Amalia Campagna, and Matteo Volta, who focus on forms of care as a resource for residents of the Piedmont Alps in Italy. While older adults appear to be the primary recipients of care, this article highlights the extent to which elder care relies on the support of families, communities, and volunteers, enabling older individuals to experience aging and vulnerability in a mountain territory where services, particularly healthcare, are distant. Although family and volunteer involvement in care has been widely studied from both a comparative European perspective (Martin, 2003) and a historical one (Capuano, 2018), the unique intersection of aging and mountain life reveals vulnerabilities shaped by strong local or even community-based collective dynamics. Paradoxically, these dynamics often contribute to a deep attachment to these regions, fostering a desire to live, age, and, if possible, die there.

9These first two articles highlight the specificities of the mountain as a social space shaped by demographic aging and demonstrate the value of incorporating this perspective into Alpine studies. Conversely, the work of Clothilde Palazzo-Crettol, Bénédicte Seifert, Audrey Rosset, Lorry Bruttin, and Pauline Mesnard underscores the importance of situating aging studies within spatial and territorial contexts. While gender inequalities and male hegemony have been well-documented and integrated into the field of aging studies (Fassa et al., 2022), the strength of Palazzo-Crettol and colleagues’ article lies in anchoring these structural inequalities within a specific territory, namely a mountainous region in the Swiss Alps. By extension, their article invites reflection on aging not only through the lens of gendered life-course effects but also in connection with social, cultural, economic, and political configurations specific to certain territories.

10Finally, in an article focused on Central Appalachia in the United States, Renee McCann demonstrates how intersecting perspectives on a stigmatized mountain region (the Appalachians) and a specific population—older residents who “stay”—can open up new avenues for reflection and action. She proposes a role for older adults as key actors in cultural renewal and intergenerational resilience. Beyond viewing them merely as “care recipients,” as in Zanini’s study or in the limited literature connecting mountains and aging (Cholat, 2016), McCann emphasizes that aging is not solely about dependency (or, conversely, the promotion of autonomy) and deficits. Instead, older individuals can serve as reservoirs of experience and knowledge that enrich local cultural revitalization.

11This issue is also present in Mathilde Morin’s article, though in a slightly different way. Focusing on the Soule Valley in the Basque Pyrenees, her ethnographic work highlights narratives filled with nostalgia among older individuals—nostalgia that stands in contrast to a world accelerating under the forces of modernity. However, Morin’s work places these discourses in dialogue with younger generations searching for a place to “land” in the sense proposed by Bruno Latour (2017). This leads to the transformation of “a humid, isolated mountain valley, with gentler reliefs compared to its Béarnaise neighbors, into the only haven where a happy future can be imagined.”

The Mountain: A Geography Both Beautiful and Constraining

12This issue thus highlights that, whether more rural or urbanized, mountain territories can be perceived as desirable places to live, thanks to the opportunities they offer in terms of activities but also, more simply, due to the beauty of their landscapes (Cretton, 2018). Just as retiring by the sea allows for scenic coastal walks (Bigo and Depeau, 2014), retiring in the mountains can provide certain benefits or even represent a form of luxury. At the same time, mountain geography can be demanding, particularly for individuals experiencing reduced physical mobility. Some high-altitude villages are characterized by steep slopes, uneven stone or cobblestone paths and roads that hinder mobility, heavy snowfall and ice in winter, and long distances to urban centers—factors that can become increasingly challenging with age (Palazzo-Crettol et al., 2024).

13Two aspects were not addressed in this issue, but they deserve particular attention. On one hand, in connection with the need to consider the diversity of aging experiences beyond the lens of gender, social class remains a crucial factor—one that was extensively discussed in a recent issue of this journal (Hummel and Burnay, 2017; Gilleard and Higgs, 2000; Varacca and Sallenave, 2024). One could hypothesize, for example, that the environment effect (Gucher, 2020), which may be particularly pronounced in rural mountain areas, relies in part on socio-economic resources that are unequally distributed.

14"On the other hand, recognizing the unique characteristics of mountain regions as specific territorial contexts could provide the field of Aging Studies with an opportunity to engage more deeply with research on the impacts of climate change which disproportionately affect these areas. Integrating the perspectives of ‘aging and climate change’1 would help underscore not only the increased vulnerability of older adults to climate-related risks, but also their potential role as valuable contributors in addressing these pressing global challenges."

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Marion Repetti et Thibauld Moulaert, « What The Mountain Learns from Aging and What Aging Learns from the Mountain »Journal of Alpine Research | Revue de géographie alpine [En ligne], 113-1 | 2025, mis en ligne le 30 avril 2025, consulté le 14 juin 2025. URL : http://journals.openedition.org/rga/14480 ; DOI : https://doi.org/10.4000/13wou

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