Mountain biodiversity
Mountains loom large in some of the world’s most spectacular landscapes. Their unique topography, compressed climatic zones and isolation have created the conditions for a wide spectrum of life forms.
Half of the world’s biodiversity hotspots are concentrated in mountains and mountains support approximately one-quarter of terrestrial biological diversity. Mountains are home to rare species of plants and animals. These include increasingly rare animals such as gorillas, mountain lions, and the majestic tahr or strikingly beautiful plants such as orchids and lobelias.
A large portion of the world's most precious gene pools (for agriculture and medicine) are preserved in mountains. Crops that are important for food security, such as maize, potatoes, barley, sorghum, tomatoes and apples, have been diversified in mountains and an array of domestic animals - sheep, goats, yaks, llamas and alpacas - have originated or been diversified in mountains. Other crops, such as wheat, rye, rice, oats and grapes, have found new homes in the mountains and evolved into many varieties. Coffee and tea, with their roots in Ethiopia and the Himalayan region, are mountain crops as well. Medicinal plants are one of the most valuable resources from high altitudes. This rich biodiversity holds cultural, ecological and economic value. In the Andes, for example, farmers know of as many as 200 different varieties of Indigenous Peoples' potatoes and, in Nepal, they farm approximately 2 000 varieties of rice.
Climate change, poverty, commercial mining, logging and poaching all exact a heavy toll on mountain biodiversity. The sustainable management of mountain biodiversity has increasingly been recognized as a global priority. The Convention on Biological Diversity adopted a Programme of Work on Mountain Biological Diversity in 2004, which includes a set of actions and targets addressing characteristics and problems that are specific to mountain ecosystems.
Climate change impacts in mountains – COP22newsAs the implementation of the Paris Agreement was being discussed in Marrakech, Morocco, mountain governments, institutions and NGOs reviewed the needs and mechanisms for addressing the impacts of climate change in mountains globally. Organized within the framework of the Mountain Partnership, the official side event “The impact of climate change...
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Mountains and the 2030 Agenda – COP22newsOrganized within the framework of the Mountain Partnership, the official side event “Mapping and understanding mountains to achieve the 2030 Agenda” was held on 11 November 2016 at the 22nd Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC COP22). The session focused on assessing...
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Survey shows positive impacts of IPROMO coursenewsIn July 2017, the International Programme on Research and Training on Sustainable Management of Mountain Areas (IPROMO) will celebrate its tenth anniversary. In order to assess the impact IPROMO has had on its participants’ career development and networking and to improve the programme for the next courses, the Mountain Partnership...
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A network and declaration from Mountains 2016newsThe event Mountains 2016 held in Bragança, Portugal aimed at promoting sustainable development in mountains. It included two conferences: the tenth European Mountain Convention (EMC) on 3-4 October and the first International Conference on Research for Sustainable Development in Mountain Regions (ICRSDMR) on 6-7 October. Mountains 2016 brought together the European...
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Winner of the 2016 Mountain Protection AwardnewsMountain Wilderness, a France-based project dedicated principally to the removal of obsolete manmade facilities in the European Alps, was announced as winner of the 2016 International Mountaineering and Climbing Federation (UIAA) Mountain Protection Award during a ceremony held at the UIAA General Assembly in Brixen (Bressanone),...
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Fifth Global Meeting of the Mountain PartnershipeventThe Fifth Global Meeting of the Mountain Partnership (MP) was to take place 21-22 October 2016 in Mbale, Uganda, but has been postponed to 2017. The new date and venue are to be determined. This Global Meeting will provide members with an opportunity to discuss delivering on the Sustainable Development Goals,...
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