Gap / France
Alpine Town of the Year 2002 (not a member of the association)
Gap
Alpine Town of the year 2002
Facts & Figures
Inhabitants
Highest point above sea level in m
Area in km²
Gap, the prefecture of the Hautes-Alpes department, is located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region. Gap is one of the main towns between Turin, Aix en Provence, Grenoble and the Mediterranean.
The city is the economic, tourist, commercial and cultural metropolis of the sparsely populated Southern Alps. Gap attaches great importance to its independence from the typical development models of recent years that have characterised most Alpine towns to date.
In its application for “Alpine Town of the Year”, the town of Gap hoped to benefit from its “negative points of the past” (remoteness, lack of industry) and use them as “plus points” for sustainable development. The priorities were nature conservation and environmental protection, the quality of life of the inhabitants, the upgrading of the urban area and the development of the university. This development has been carried out in close cooperation with local centres of excellence such as the Conservatoire Botanique National Alpin (National Alpine Botanical Institute) and the Parc National des Ecrins (Ecrins National Park).
The jury said…
The City of Gap sees itself as a laboratory for the future sustainable development of an Alpine town which, together with its surrounding area, strives to optimise the quality of life. It has already pursued urban development goals that are in line with the Alpine Convention and has proven to be a centre that can take responsibility for its regional surroundings. The city's open willingness to cooperate guarantees the involvement of a large number of organisations, institutions and citizens in the project.