Water
Each day, one of every two people on the planet quenches his thirst with water that originates in mountains. And as the world population swells to an estimated 9.6 billion by 2050, the worldwide demand for freshwater will continue to soar.
More than half of humanity relies on mountain freshwater for everyday life. The ten largest rivers originating in the Hindu Kush Himalayas alone supply water to over 1.35 billion people. Some of the world’s largest cities, including New York, Rio de Janeiro, Nairobi, Tokyo and Melbourne, are dependent on freshwater from mountains.
Climate change is already causing more than 600 glaciers to disappear, resulting in springs and rivers drying up. Greater frequency of extreme weather events, droughts and floods, including flash floods and glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs), are also expected to increase in mountains, causing imbalance between current water supply and demand.
Given the importance of mountain water resources worldwide, the careful management of mountain water resources is a global priority. Water management practices need to be adapted to different climatic zones, using locally adapted soil and water management techniques. Most importantly, watershed management must take into account the needs of all those who depend on mountain water, including those who have the greatest stake in preserving healthy mountain ecosystems – people who live in mountain areas themselves, who are often marginalized from the decision-making processes.
IMD and the MP Global Meeting aheadnewsInternational Mountain Day (IMD) is held every year on 11 December and celebrated all over the world. As the lead coordinating agency for the preparation of this United Nations international day, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) works with the decentralized offices, governments and civil society...
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International Congress on Climate Change and its ImpactseventEvidence shows that Earth’s climate is rapidly changing and its impacts are affecting the whole planet. Nonetheless, the mechanisms and processes of such changes, as well as the planet´s future perspectives remain largely elusive. Several questions regarding the climate trends and variability need further debate. For instance, how much of the...
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First West African Mountain Forum held in TogonewsThe first West African Mountain Forum was held in Kpalime, Togo on 5-8 October 2017. Although West African mountains are not the world’s highest, they have a key role for the food security of the area, are rich in biodiversity and are important to the overall sustainable development of the...
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Building a framework for action – COP23newsOrganized within the framework of the Mountain Partnership, the official side event “Implementing the 2030 Agenda & Paris Agreement in mountains: building a Framework for Action” was held on 14 November 2017 at the 23rd Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC COP23)....
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Call for input, sustainable development reportnewsAn opportunity has arisen to propose an inclusion on mountains in the Global Sustainable Development Report (GSDR) 2019, which has been mandated by the United Nations Member States and is being drafted by the Independent Group of Scientists and Experts (IGSE). The GSDR aims to strengthen the science-policy...
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International Symposium on Mountain Science 2017eventThe Mountain Science Center at the University of Tsukuba, Japan will host the International Symposium on Mountain Sciences 2017 on 15 November. The theme of the conference will be “Mountain Science Frontiers: Planning International and Interdisciplinary Studies”. Professors from universities around the world will present during the symposium on topics...
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