Ladin: Dolomites villages refuse to give up on ancient language

Tourists crammed onto a ridge, hikers stuck on the trails, long queues to reach a mountain hut... This past summer, hundreds of videos posted on social media showed the flip side of the Dolomites, a mountain range in northern Italy. Long favoured by Italians themselves, the Dolomites have become a highly popular destination for foreign visitors in recent years. Today, the mountain range welcomes several million tourists every year, boosted by the 2026 Winter Olympics. This growing influx of visitors worries people in the valleys as much as it contributes to their economy. "This tourism that's settling in almost everywhere in Val Badia scares us a bit, because it risks forcing young people like us to leave for financial reasons," explains Marco, a 29-year-old graphic designer. Marco and his brother Samuel, a 32-year-old pharmacist, both grew up in the Badia Valley, in a small town of less than 4,000 inhabitants. The brothers have watched prices skyrocket, and locals forced to leave their land. "We need to preserve our community, otherwise it will become a bit like a box that’s beautiful, but empty." 'Why do you speak that language? Speak Italian, no?' The community Samuel is talking...