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.
![]() High Pamir/Pamir-Alai Mountains: Transborder Legal InstitutionsnewsThe "Sustainable Land Management in the High Pamir and Pamir-Alai Mountains" GEF/UNEP/UNU Project is located in the transboundary mountain ecosystem shared between Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. The project was established to alleviate poverty, control land degradation and develop ways to rehabilitate ecosystems in the Pamirs. The University of New... Read more » |
![]() ICIMOD Working Paper 2012/4: Towards Developing the Brahmaputra-Salween Landscape : Report on the Experts Regional Consultation for Transboundary Biodiversity Management and Climate Change AdaptationpublicationThe International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) new publication, gives a brief overview of the regional consultation facilitated by ICIMOD and the Ministry of Environmental Conservation and Forestry, Myanmar, to improve collaboration between China, India, and Myanmar in the Brahmaputra-Salween Landscape. The paper gives highlights of the consultation and... Download » |
![]() ICIMOD Working Paper 2012/3: Towards Developing the Karakoram-Pamir Landscape : Report of the Regional Consultation to Develop Future Strategic Programme for Biodiversity Management and Climate Change AdaptationpublicationThe International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) new publication, gives a brief overview of the regional consultation facilitated by ICIMOD to improve collaboration between China and Pakistan in the Karakoram-Pamir Landscape. The paper gives highlights of the consultation held in December in Kathmandu, Nepal and lists past efforts made... Download » |
![]() World Environment Day 2012: UNEP calls for actionnewsWorld Environment Day 2012 will be celebrated on 5 June 2012, under the theme "Green Economy: Does it include you?". World Environment Day 2012, hosted by Brazil, will mark the 40th anniversary of the Day. The celebration began in 1972 and has grown to become one of the main vehicles... Read more » |
![]() Mountain Voice for change that mattersnewsOver 200 delegates from Indian eleven mountain States at Gangtok in Sikkim deliberated on mountain issues related to water, livelihoods and Communities & forests of the Indian Himalayan region at the Indian Mountain Initiative summit II, held from 25 to 26 May 2012 at Gangtok, Sikkim in India. In his... Read more » |
![]() Ninth International Banana Forum and First International Congress of Biotechnology and BiodiversityeventThe First International Congress of Biotechnology and Biodiversity will be held from 28 to 31 May 2012, at the Hilton Colon Hotel in Guayaquil, Ecuador. The Congress, organized by the Biotechnology Research Center of Ecuador and the Association of Banana Exporters of Ecuador, will be run in parallel with the... Read more » |
Mountain Partnership
| Our work
| Focus areas
| Follow Us Subscribe to Peak to Peak Newsletter
|