Human activities are profoundly affecting the world’s climate, and mountains are a sensitive indicator of that effect. Because of their altitude, slope and orientation to the sun, mountain ecosystems are easily disrupted by variations in climate. Many scientists believe that the changes occurring in mountain ecosystems may provide an early glimpse of what could come to pass in lowland environments.
As the world heats up, mountain glaciers are melting at unprecedented rates, while rare plants and animals struggle to survive over ever diminishing areas, and mountain peoples, already among the world’s poorest citizens, face even greater hardships.
Changes in the volume of mountain glaciers and in their seasonal melting patterns have an impact on water resources in many parts of the world. Changes in water availability due to climate change are taking place at a time when pressure on water resources for irrigation and food production, industrialization and urbanization is increasing.
Understanding how climate change affects mountains is vital as governments and international organizations develop strategies to reverse current global warming trends, elaborating treaties such as the Kyoto Protocol and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. In addition, local community empowerment can be an essential step towards building climate change resilience in mountains.
![]() African Mountains Status ReportpublicationAfrican Mountains Status Report provides an overview of the status, trends and threats facing mountain environments and communities. The 36-page report, produced by Albertine Rift Conservation Society (ARCOS) with financial support from the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), comprises five chapters, infographics, case studies... Download » |
![]() Peru: Mountain Country - Facing the Challenges of Climate ChangepublicationClimate change, especially visible in mountain ecosystems, is causing glaciers to disappear at an alarming rate, threatening millions of lives dependent on freshwater resources originating from the mountains in Peru. A bilingual publication titled Peru: Mountain Country / Facing the Challenges of Climate Change, written in English and Spanish, provides testimonies and... Download » |
![]() Climate Change Innovation and Resilience for Sustainable LivelihoodeventThis international conference will focus on innovative approaches from the physical and social sciences to support economic development in mountain and lowland South Asia, which faces serious climate hazards along with food, water, and soil management and environmental justice challenges. The City University of New York, Colorado State University, The... Read more » |
![]() One Voice for the Mountainspeak to peakIssue 76 – Month 1 – Year 2015 The January issue of Peak to Peak opens with a story about an event that brought attention to the role of mountains as the water towers of the world in a changing climate on the margins of the climate... Download » |
![]() Mountains and Climate Change - A global concernpublicationMountains are among the regions most affected by climate change. The implications of climate change will reach far beyond mountain areas, as the contributions in the present publication prepared for the 20th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Lima,... Download » |
![]() Andean countries prepare for a regional mechanismpeak to peakIssue 73 – Month 10 – Year 2014 Our new issue of Peak to Peak opens with news of the Andean countries preparing for a regional mechanism. This example shows that transboundary cooperation can be centred on mountains. We also look at new MP members and activities,... Download » |
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