Established in 1995 following an extensive collective effort, the Chartreuse Regional Nature Park celebrates its 30th anniversary in 2025. For three decades, it has worked alongside local authorities, associations, residents, and professionals to combine environmental preservation, quality of life, and sustainable development.

Located in the heart of the French Alps, between Isère and Savoie, the Park is guided by a charter renewed every 15 years, which defines the main directions of its territorial project. The current charter (2023–2038) is built around three core pillars: preserving the many facets of the massif, balancing human activity with environmental protection, and supporting ecological and social transitions. 

 Since its creation, the Park has initiated or supported numerous key initiatives: environmental education programs (raising awareness among 85,000 children), management of the Hauts de Chartreuse Nature Reserve, creation of the Cave Bear Museum, support for the local economy (dairy cooperative, local producers’ shop, Chartreuse Wood AOC), biodiversity conservation (reintroduction of Alpine ibex, black grouse protection), forest promotion (Exceptional Forest label), soft mobility, light pollution reduction, and the maintenance of 1,500 km of hiking trails. 

Through these efforts, the Park aims to nurture the unique identity of Chartreuse, highlight its landscapes, know-how, and living heritage, while carefully maintaining the balance between attractiveness and conservation. It is also committed to future challenges: becoming a positive-energy territory, encouraging alternative mobility solutions, and fostering local innovation.

Over the years, the Park has become a genuine catalyst for local initiatives—a space for collective experimentation where sustainable, concrete responses to today’s challenges are imagined and implemented. In essence, it seeks to create connection, meaning, and a viable future.

Since the beginning in 2015, the Chartreuse Regional Nature Park also participates in the international event Youth at the Top, coordinated by ALPARC. This initiative brings together young people from across the Alpine arc for a shared mountain experience centered around a common environmental theme. Guided by professionals, participants take part in hiking, artistic workshops, nature observation, and intercultural exchange - an opportunity to explore ecological issues and engage with the natural and cultural heritage of their territory.

© photo: Bruno Lavit