WOMEN AND THE ALPINE SEASON

“For 17 summers, I tended the cows on the Brischeru alp, milking them myself every day and making cheese and butter, while my husband took care of the lower farms. The men had to mow and water the pastures down in the valley (...)”.

Olga Jeitziner, Mund

The alpine grazing season has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2023 and has a long tradition in large parts of Switzerland as well as in the Valais. In the Upper Valais, women traditionally played a central role in alpine farming. During the summer months, it was often women and children who drove the livestock up to the alpine pastures, milked the cows there, and processed the milk into cheese and butter, while the men were busy further down in the valley mowing and watering the hay meadows. The alpine season was thus largely in the hands of women.

The exhibition “Women and the Alpine Season” provides insight into traditional alpine farming in the Naters region and highlights the role of women in this cultural heritage—a role that remains little known to this day.

Opening Reception

Thursday, May 28, 2026

Auditorium at the World Nature Forum Naters

10.00 – 17.00

Exhibition:

When: May through October 21, 2026

Location: World Nature Forum in Naters

For more information, visit www.lebendige-geschichten.ch/alpsaison