The 29th edition of “Oltre le Vette (Beyond the Peaks) – metaphors, people, places of the mountains,” which began last October and continued with a series of preview events, will reach its peak in Belluno from 9 to 18 January 2026. The event, organized by the Municipality of Belluno, has for several years enjoyed a close collaboration with the UNESCO Dolomites Foundation, which this year will take shape, among others, with the setting up of the “Dolomites: walking through the geology of wonder” exhibition, opening at Palazzo Bembo at 5:30 p.m. on Friday 9 January 2026, and the “Dolomites: geology to be explored and recounted” conference planned for 10:00 a.m. on Saturday 17 January 2026 at Palazzo Crepadona, made possible thanks to the support of the Municipality of Belluno, the Order of Geologists of the Veneto Region, the Dolomiti Bellunesi National Park, and the Province of Belluno.
A CONFERENCE TO EXPLORE AND REOCUNT GEOLOGY
It is also for this reason that the Foundation wanted to bring to Belluno the debate on how enhancing the geological heritage allows even a simple hiker to read the landscape and grasp its deeper values. The program of the conference on 17 January is open to everyone, subject to registration at this link by 13 January, and will begin at 9:30 a.m. with the accreditation of the geologists registered with the Regional Order. After the introduction by Mara Nemela, Director of the UNESCO Dolomites Foundation, speakers will include: Nereo Preto, professor at the University of Padua, Department of Geosciences (Reading the past for a more conscious present); Alberto Riva, professor at the University of Ferrara, Department of Physics and Earth Sciences (The Dolomites you don’t expect); Vittorio Fenti, geologist and mining surveyor, expert on the Agordo territory (The Biois Valley tells its story: a journey through its geological history); Sonia Anelli, Director of the Dolomiti Bellunesi National Park (Living geology in the Belluno Dolomites); Franco Fiamoi, geologist and member of the UNESCO Dolomites Foundation’s Geological Heritage Functional Network (Dolomites World Heritage Geotrail, a window onto the territory).
AN EXHIBITION TO ENHANCE THE VALUE OF WONDER
The exhibition “Dolomites: walking through the geology of wonder,” curated by Biosphaera scs, with scientific review by geologists Alfio Viganò, Riccardo Tomasoni, and Alberto Carton, and created by the Foundation as part of the Geological Heritage Network, allows visitors an insight into the deeper values of the UNESCO recognition: values that transcend and at the same time underpin the aesthetic wonder of valleys, walls, spires, towers, and pinnacles.
The exhibition will take place at Palazzo Bembo from 9 January to 8 February 2026, with opening hours as follows: until 18 January, Tuesday to Friday 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. – Saturday and Sunday 10:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.; from 19 January to 8 February, Thursday and Friday 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. – Saturday and Sunday 10:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.
APPROACHING THE THIRTIETH ANNIVERSARY
“Oltre le Vette” (Beyond the Peaks) is one of the longest-running mountain festivals in Italy, an event that has gained international recognition and which, as the organizers say, brings to Belluno the seven souls of the mountains: Nature, Adventure, Journey, Frontier, Discovery, Introspection, Comparison, Sharing. The program of the 2025 edition runs on several days, with new cultural offerings and a calendar spanning from autumn to winter that will extend into 2026, the year of its thirtieth anniversary. The many events that have already marked the autumn phase, together with those planned for mid-January, help provide a valuable opportunity not only to narrate, in many different ways, mountain culture, the history and the current state of mountaineering, but also to learn about and understand the mountain environment, its fragility, and the responsibilities connected with the interaction of mankind with the environment.
This activity is part of the project “Capacity building. Strengthening the social and regional capital of the Dolomites World Heritage Site (WHS) for lasting and sustainable development of local communities”, established with the support of Fondo Comuni Confinanti.