Issue 27
July-August 2007
The Mountain Partnership Newsletter
'Peak to Peak' is an opportunity to keep you up-to-date with the latest news, activities and events related to the Mountain Partnership. This monthly newsletter, prepared by the Mountain Partnership Secretariat, is sent by e-mail to all members and other interested partners and can be read on-line at www.mountainpartnership.org. Help us share news, information and features with members by sending a message to: info@mountainpartnership.org.
Membership
As of July 2007, there are 142 members of the Mountain Partnership: 47 countries, 15 IGOs and 80 major group organizations (e.g. civil society, NGOs and the private sector).For information on their activities and contact details, visit the Members section of the Mountain Partnership Web site.
Update on Partnership Activities
Andes Initiative
Building a strong regional alliance to protect and promote the Andes -- this is the core aim of the forthcoming meeting of the Andean Initiativeof the Mountain Partnership (Tucumán, Argentina, 5-8 September). Hosted by the Government of Argentina, and organized in collaboration with the Mountain Partnership Secretariat and the Consortium for Sustainable Development of the Andean Ecoregion (CONDESAN), the three-day meeting will bring together Initiative members (representatives of governments, IGOs and major groups from the region), as well as interested stakeholders, to highlight good practices and lessons learnt in sustainable mountain development in the Andes, to identify major areas for joint collaboration based on these experiences, and to prepare project proposals for collaborative regional initiatives in priority areas. The Tucumán meeting marks a milestone in the evolution of the Andean Initiative, whose members first met face-to-face to discuss cooperation for mountain development during breakaway sessions at the Second Global Meeting of the Mountain Partnership (Cusco, Peru, October 2004).An important preparatory meeting took place in July 2006 in Lima which set the basis for the organization of the upcoming event. For further information on the meeting, contact Rosalaura Romeo: rosalaura.romeo@fao.org and Miguel Saravia: m.saravia@cgiar.org.
Decentralized cooperation
Decentralized cooperation -- the joint action between local authorities in developed and developing countries through the sharing of skills and traditional practices -- has potential benefits for all. It can benefit the local authorities from the South by providing access to governance models, institutional mechanisms and resources as well as training, goods and services. It can also benefit wealthier partners by opening up new markets and establishing new international relationships, through new product development (such as speciality coffees, medicinal and aromatic plants) and as a means of protecting valuable natural repositories of freshwater and biodiversity.
Many Mountain Partnership members have expressed a strong interest in knowing more about existing models of local or territorial governance which they might adapt to the specific conditions in their own countries. In response, the Mountain Partnership Secretariat in FAO initiated a process in late 2006 to establish closer relations with mountain local authorities and promote twinning efforts between mountain communities in the North and South.
On 20 June 2007, a side event on ‘Decentralized Cooperation and Sustainable Mountain Development’ was organized during FAO’s Council in Rome and at the request of the Group of Latin America and Caribbean Countries (GRULAC). The event, which attracted representatives of FAO member countries from four continents, highlighted the importance of promoting the territorial or local dimension for sustainable mountain development and the key role that local authorities from developed countries can play in this context. This focus on decentralized cooperation was given a boost two days later with the signing of a Statement of Intent between FAO and Italy’s Valle d’Aosta Region -- a mountain region with a strong international vocation and commitment to partnership. The agreement aims to promote food security, eradicate poverty and social marginalization, and foster economic development and specific policies and laws in relation to mountains. It will allow partners to jointly identify, design, implement and monitor decentralized cooperation programmes that can help improve the living conditions of the most disadvantaged populations, particularly in mountain areas. For further information about decentralized cooperation activities within the framework of the Mountain Partnership, contact Rosalaura Romeo at rosalaura.romeo@fao.org.
Mountain Products
Mediterranean countries can draw on a rich common food heritage, from olive oil to feta cheese, dates, raisons and saffron. Exploring how best to improve the information exchange and promotion of these quality products from North Africa and the Middle East, in particular, is the topic of the forthcoming seminar, ‘Quality Food Products linked to Geographical Origin and Traditions in the Mediterranean’ (8-9 November, Rabat, Morocco). The event is being organized by the Government of Morocco, in collaboration with FAO (the Mountain Products Programme and the the Policies on Quality Products Project), as a forum in which to share information and knowledge on current approaches and practices related to quality products at the institutional and local level, encourage cooperation between countries of the northern and southern shores of the Mediterranean, and facilitate partnerships between the private and the development sectors. It is set to attract representatives of government and local authorities, civil society, private sector and development organizations, as well as experts on quality products. Among the expected outcomes of the seminar are an identification of the advantages and disadvantages of product labelling mechanisms linked to geographical origin, a better knowledge of the approaches used in different countries and the identification of specific collaborative projects between participating countries and organizations. Further information on the seminar will be available in coming weeks. In the meantime, please contact Alexia Baldascini, Mountain Products Programme Manager, at alexia.baldascini@fao.org.
Policy
Mountain populations are amongst the most vulnerable in the world: they are physically isolated, as well as socially and politically marginalized. Specific policies, legislation and institutions could play a vital role in improving lifes and livelihoods in mountain regions. Yet few countries to date have developed such mechanisms to address the specific needs of mountain people. The Project for Sustainable Agriculture and Rural Development in Mountain Regions (SARD-M project) aims to facilitate the formulation, implementation and evaluation of sustainable agriculture and rural development policies for mountains. The Project’s first priority in achieving this aim is to assess the strengths and weaknesses of existing mountain policies (including their social, economic, institutional and environmental aspects) in relation to sustainable agriculture and rural development principles. The main outputs of these policy assessments include identifying problematic areas and priority issues facing a region, evaluating the overall strengths and weaknesses of SARD-M policies, recommending the improvements necessary in policies, processes and institutions involved in policy-making and implementation, and proposing concrete follow-up activities. The Project has now made available assessments for countries of the Hindu Kush-Himalaya (Bhutan, China, Nepal) and the Andes (Colombia, Ecuador, Peru). Download these documents on the SARD-M project Web site here
Funding support
Tebtebba. Travel grants for indigenous peoples’ organizations
Mountain Partnership member, Tebtebba (Indigenous Peoples’ International Centre for Policy Research and Education) -- a Philippines-based NGO in Special Consultative Status with the UN -- recently received a grant from Ford Foundation for a project called ‘Strengthening the Local-Global-Local Nexus of Indigenous Peoples’ Actions.’ The overarching aim of this two-year project is to strengthen indigenous peoples' capacities to effectively influence and engage in key international processes that will advance their rights at all levels. Travel grants are now available within the framework of the project to support the participation of representatives of indigenous peoples’ organizations at relevant global processes and discussions. Priority will be given to indigenous peoples from Asia, Latin America and Africa. Visit the Tebtebba Web site for further information and application guidelines.
Global Environment Facility (GEF). Small Grants Programme (SGP)
The Global Environment Facility's Small Grants Programme (SGP) supports the activities of
non-governmental and community-based organizations in developing countries in biodiversity conservation, climate change mitigation, protection of international waters, prevention of land degradation (primarily desertification and deforestation), and elimination of persistent organic pollutants through community-based approaches. To cite one example, the SGP has funded a number of projects in rural mountain communities across northern Thailand: in Baan Mae Korn a holistic project combines renewable energy, organic farming and reforestation. Read more here. Find out if you are eligible for a SGP by doing the quiz.
News highlights from around the world
Romania creates a national agency for mountains
Romania is now moving ahead in its drive to develop and implement a broad-ranging mountain policy and sustainable mountain development programme that will address the urgent issues of land degradation, depopulation and the decline in mountain agriculture. In June, the Government of Romania passed a law to establish the Romanian National Agency for Mountain Areas. The Agency has been created as a public institution under the Ministry of Agriculture, Forests and Rural Development, and is financed from the state budget. It will have a President (equivalent in position to a State Secretary), who will report directly to the Minister of Agriculture. Special offices devoted to mountain issues will now be set up in the local departments of agriculture and rural development in the 28 counties with mountain areas in Romania. In this new structure, professional training centres will also support the establishment and functioning of professional mountain farmers’ organizations.
The adoption of the law to set up the Romanian National Agency for Mountain Areas followed an intensive lobbying process by parliamentarians from various political parties, as well as civil society. We offer our congratulations to the Romanian Mountain Forum (RMF), a Mountain Partnership member, whose organizational members played a very significant role in the conceptualization and advocacy for the creation of the Romanian National Agency for Mountain Areas. Professor Radu Rey, President of RMF, states that the new national agency, ‘gives hope to people living in the mountains, especially mountain farmers, for a sustainable development with mountain specificity’. For further information, contact Professor Radu Rey at: romontana@rdslink.ro.
Carpathian forests join the World Heritage list
Primeval beech forests in the Carpathian Mountains have been inscribed on the UNESCO’s World Heritage List, underlining the global importance of this rare forest habitat -- the most extensive in Europe. The forests, covering ten sites over 185km of mountain area straddling the border of Slovakia and Ukraine, represent an outstanding example of undisturbed temperate forests and exhibit the most comprehensive ecological patterns and processes of pure stands of European beech. They also represent an outstanding example of the re-colonization and development of terrestrial ecosystems after the last ice age, a process which is still ongoing. “We are thrilled to see these ancient forests added to the list,” said Michael Baltzer, director of the WWF Danube-Carpathian Programme. “Now that they are listed, however, it is imperative that the governments of Ukraine and Slovakia, as well as the European Union, take forceful measures to preserve these extraordinary treasures rather than exploit and destroy them.”
The primeval beech forests of Ukraine and Slovakia, like many other forests in the Carpathian Mountains, face a number of serious threats, including unsustainable forestry and development. The privatization of state lands that began this year in Ukraine pose a particular threat to many of the country’s natural areas, including those already under formal protection. In Slovakia, recent moves by the government, such as the restructuring of the country’s protected area network, has effectively weakened protection of many areas. WWF has been working for more than a decade to protect the Carpathian Mountains, playing an important role in the region in promoting sustainable forestry practices, as well as sustainable business and development activities. Source: WWF. Find out more about the Carpathians, by visiting the Carpathian Convention Web site.
Mapping cultural heritage in Kenya
The isolation of mountains has encouraged the development of hundreds of diverse cultures that are rich in traditions, knowledge and languages. But rapid changes related to globalization and enhanced transportation and communications can be devastating to formerly isolated, indigenous cultures, adding additional stress to people who are already dealing with political marginalization and poverty. One such example is the Ogiek Indigineous Community in the montane Mau Forest Complex in Kenya. The community in the eastern reaches of the forest complex -- threatened by the erosion of their territories by surrounding tribes and government policies -- has recently embarked on mapping their ancestral territories in an attempt to preserve their cultural heritage, secure ancestral land, and manage their commonly shared natural resources. They are doing this by integrating their traditional knowledge with modern participatory geographic information system (PGIS) technologies and approaches to delineate, inventorize, analyze, document, and present their ancestral entitlements. The community plans to develop territorial maps for each of the 21 clans. The mapping approach and process is supported by Environmental Research, Mapping and Information Systems in Africa (ERMIS Africa) and the African Conservation Foundation, a Mountain Partnership member. For further information, contact Arend de Haas, President of the African Conservation Foundation at: arend@africanconservation.org.
WFP launches international appeal to support Nepal’s peace process
The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) in Nepal is launching a US$49 million recovery programme to assist over 1.2 million people who continue to struggle daily with the effects of the recently ended eleven-year conflict between the Maoists and the Government. According to WFP’s Country Representative in Nepal, Richard Ragan, this represents one of the largest UN initiatives to support the people of Nepal during the transition to a new democracy. “Despite the political, social and security progress of the last six months, over one million people in Nepal are still struggling with the effects of the conflict -- damage to critical infrastructure, and unequal access to basic services. This is on top of food insecurity exacerbated by three years of drought, conflict related market disruptions and the ongoing tensions in the Terai,” said Ragan. Under the year-long programme, WFP will provide food aid to some of the most conflict-affected communities in 28 districts across Nepal. Programme activities will focus on three areas: critical infrastructure, return and reintegration, and non-formal education. For further information, visit the WFP Web site.
Putting gender issues on agendas
We congratulate Women Organising for Change in Agriculture and NRM (WOCAN), a Mountain Partnership member, for being chosen as leading co-facilitator for the next two sessions of the UN Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD). CSD is a high-level forum that not only reviews progress on international commitments and develops policy guidance on sustainable development, but also promotes dialogue and partnerships between governments, the international community and major groups. WOCAN, a network of women engaged in the agriculture and natural resource management professions, has been selected as a leading co-facilitator of women's caucus and the Women's Major Group at the CSD for 2008-2009.
WOCAN, together with the Women's Environment and Development Organization (WEDO) and the World Conservation Union (IUCN) have agreed to build an Alliance in the run-up to CSD-16 (5-16 May 2008). The three umbrella networks will capitalize on their distinct and comparative advantages in the agriculture and environment sectors and will work with members and partners in all phases of the preparations leading up to CSD-16, which will focus on thematic issues of agriculture, rural development, land, drought, desertification, and Africa. The Alliance also hopes to invite other major international and regional NGO networks and research institutes with whom they work closely to join the Alliance and contribute to the proposed activities. To find out more, visit the WOCAN Web site.
Partnerships create the Central Karakorum National Park
A national park is to be created in the Central Karakorum -- an area of spectacular natural beauty in Pakistan which boasts some of the world’s highest mountains. The creation of the Central Karakorum National Park represents the strong historical ties between Italy and Pakistan: the Italian Karakorum Trust project, coordinated by Mountain Partnership member the Ev-K2-Cnr Committee, is partnering with the Government of Pakistan, WWF Pakistan and the Hindu-Kush-Karakorum-Himalaya (HKKH) Partnership to set up and manage the Park.
A plan has been drafted to ensure the sustainable development of the Park over the coming years. The general management will be entrusted to local administration, while many of the activities for developing the Park will be carried out by Ev-K²-CNR through the Karakorum Trust project. This development process will also involve other organizations such as the World Conservation Union (IUCN) and the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD). These large international organizations, together with the Italian NGO CESVI and the Ev-K²-CNR Committee, make up the team of the HKKH- Partnership for Ecosystem Management, an important international partnership project. It aims to consolidate the capacity to plan and manage natural resources in an integrated way and has already been recognized for its cutting edge methodologies applied in fragile mountain socio-ecosystems. Read more about the creation of the Central Karakorum National Park on the Ev-K2-Cnr Committee Web site.
Radio Salus strengthens coffee industry in Rwanda
Coffee and radio seem like an unlikely couple. Yet the two are off to a honeymoon start in Rwanda, a country with a huge community of coffee growers and a deep-rooted suspicion of radio. Radio Salus, a UNESCO-sponsored radio station at the National University of Rwanda (NUR), has recently launched a programming initiative that focuses on the community of coffee growers in Rwanda. The 30-minute radio programmes seek to provide information not only about the use of coffee as a consumer beverage, but also about growing and marketing techniques, as well as the health of the coffee farming community. Aldo Havugimana, Director of Radio Salus, states “farmers have been growing coffee for over one hundred years in Rwanda with no understanding of where the coffee goes.” The programme is the result of a partnership between Coffee Lifeline and SPREAD, a USAID-funded programme that seeks to enhance agriculture production in Rwanda for development. In a country where radio is often stigmatized for its role in promoting the genocide in 1994, Aldo Havugimana hopes that the Radio Salus programmes will boost public confidence in the positive role media can play for societal development. Source: UNESCO . Listen to Radio Salus by visiting the Web site here: www.nur.ac.rw/rubrique.php3 .
Environmental groups ask UN to take stand against Appalachian coal mining
Mining can bring large benefits to mountain communities, but it can also be devastating to fragile mountain ecosystems, mountain cultures and the environments and communities both above and below. The challenge is to balance mining opportunities with environmental and social responsibility, and to ensure the protection of traditional mountain cultures. A coalition of environmental groups has recently called on the United Nations to take a stand against ecologically destructive coal mining practices in the Appalachians region of the United States. The groups from Tennessee, West Virginia and Kentucky have asked the UN Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) to shun coal in favour of policies promoting renewable energy and cuts in fossil fuel consumption. The delegation states that coal extraction has destroyed more than a million acres (400,000 hectares) of forests, 500 mountains and 1,000 miles (1,600 kilometers) of streams in recent years in the Appalachians. “We need the help of the UN to expose and bring an end to coal mining abuses,” said Larry Gibson, a board member of the Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition in Huntington, West Virginia. Learn more by visiting the Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition Web site.
Lesotho faces worsening food crisis
The mountainous kingdom of Lesotho is amongst the world’s poorest. It now needs urgent international assistance to avert a major food crisis because of high cereal prices after this year’s main cereal harvest was ravaged by one of the worst droughts in 30 years, says a recent report by FAO and the World Food Programme (WFP). According to the report, serious food shortages will start to set in as early as the third quarter of this year, when about 140 000 people will require food assistance, particularly because of soaring cereal prices and few opportunities for casual labour in the aftermath of the failed season. Many farmers harvested little or nothing. “It is crucial that enough seeds, fertilizer, and credit facilities be available in time for the next cropping season to give Lesotho a chance to improve production in 2008, weather conditions permitting,” said Henri Josserand, Chief of FAO’s Global Information and Early Warning System. The report also recommends that crop diversification and increased reliance on drought-tolerant crops be promoted. Read more here: http://www.fao.org/countryprofiles/lifdc.asp?lang=en
Read more about Lesotho in the country member section of the Mountain Partnership Web site.
Past Events
Central Asia: International Symposium “The Challenge of Mountains”(Tokyo, Japan, 27 June 2007), and the Central Asia Roundtable on “Economic Development and the Environment in Central Asia” (Tokyo, Japan, 29 June 2007)
United Nations University (UNU) is an international community of scholars that acts as a bridge between the UN and the international academic community, a think-tank for the UN system and a builder of capacities, particularly in developing countries. In particular, UNU has continued to raise public awareness and promote the mountain development agenda in Asia and worldwide by providing a forum for public discussions on emerging mountain development challenges. In June 2007, UNU together with the Japanese Ministry of Environment and a consortium of Japanese universities organized an International Symposium on “The Challenge of Mountains” to review progress in implementation of the commitments made during the UN International Year of Mountains (IYM) and the Bishkek Global Mountain Summit, both of which took place in 2002. Particular attention was given to promising approaches for engaging in the challenge of mountains in Central Asia, both at the symposium and at a subsequent roundtable discussion on “Economic Development and Environmental in Central Asia,” organized by UNU and the Institute for International Studies and Training (IIST) in Japan. For further details of the programme and outcomes, contact Libor Jansky or visit the UNU Web site.
http://www.unu.edu/events/.
Future Events
“Web2forDev - Participatory Web for Development” Conference (FAO, Rome, Italy, 25-27 September 2007)
Web 2.0 has become a buzz word in the last two years when talking, writing, and exchanging about Internet innovation. Free or low-cost interactive Web services designed to enhance online collaboration and sharing information are increasingly available to the public. This new dimension of innovative online services, where people collaborate and share information, and where the consumer becomes the producer, has been termed Web 2.0. The forthcoming “Web2ForDev 2007” Conference will explore the ways in which international development stakeholders can take advantage of the technical and organizational opportunities provided by Web 2.0 methods, approaches and applications. Three main topics will shape the Conference programme -- shared virtual spaces, remote collaboration and knowledge sharing, appropriate technologies for online publishing, and on-line information retrieval and access. The programme will consist of plenary presentations, panel discussions, open spaces and a ‘market place’ featuring exhibitions, distribution of demos and information materials, skills exchange and learning opportunities. Registration for the Web2forDev Conference is free but by invitation only. You may request an invitation if you are in the position to financially support your participation in terms of travel, accommodation and subsistence. Visit the Web2for Dev Website for further details. Watch a popular YouTube video on Web evolution: The Machine is Us/ing Us.
The Alps beyond Kyoto (Saint-Vincent, Aosta, Italy, 20-22 September 2007)
The International Commission for the Protection of the Alps (CIPRA) is organizing ‘The Alps beyond Kyoto’ -- an international conference on energy efficiency and renewable energies in the Alpine region. CIPRA firmly believes that the Alps have the potential to become a model region in climate terms. Indeed, with a cost-conscious approach to energy and the intelligent use of existing renewable energies (wood, water, sun, wind and geothermal energy), the Alpine regions could easily improve on the CO2 reduction targets set as part of the Kyoto Protocol. The Conference is structured in three parts: discussion on each individual source of renewable energy, their significance today in the Alpine region, and their potential; debate on policy instruments for reducing energy consumption, for example incentives and legislation in the area of energy-efficient construction and renovation; and identification of examples of good practice. For more details on this event, visit the CIPRA Web site.
Publications
PANOS. “Tales of Resettlement”
Every year millions of people -- including those in mountain areas -- are displaced by large-scale development projects such as roads, dams, and coalmines. Many of these people never regain their former quality of life, and pay the price of personal, social and cultural disruption as well as economic upheaval. In Lesotho, for example, the billion-dollar Highlands Water Project involves the construction of a series of massive tunnels and dams to take water from the Senqu/Orange River to South Africa’s industrial heartland, Gauteng province. The displaced mountain communities of Lesotho now face a demoralizing dependency on compensation payments. You can read their moving stories, and those of other communities displaced by development projects in India, Pakistan, Lesotho, Kenya, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia, in the Panos Oral Testimonies series ‘Tales of resettlement’. Read the booklets on-line here.
CEA. “The Alps. The People”
Mountain Partnership member, the Centre for Alpine Ecology / Centro di Ecologia Alpina (CEA), is an Italian research institute that promotes, co-ordinates and develops research projects on the alpine environment at the local and transboundary levels. This new publication explores sustainable development processes in five marginalized alpine communities of the north-eastern Italian region of Trentino Alto Adige. Using participatory action research, author Michela Zucca analyses demographic trends, the incidence of traditional rural activities alongside more innovative sectors such as tourism, ICT and networking and the constraints and opportunities for community development, especially for young people and women. For further details on how to obtain a copy of “The Alps.The People” (available in Italian and English), contact Michela Zucca at: michela.zucca@tin.it.
Case study
Sharing resources and responsibilities in an Andean Watershed
In the El Angel watershed in Ecuador’s Carchi province, water shortages that ruined the crops of marginal farmers led to conflicts and a demand for increased water supply that threatened to destroy a unique ecological reserve. But participatory research showed that the real problems lay with management of the resource. Solutions required the people of the region to take responsibility for protecting the environment and to work together to conserve the resource. Visit the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Web site, to read the case study.
Web site
European Mountain Forum Website
European Mountain Forum (EMF) is a growing network of organizations and individuals concerned with the well-being of mountain people, their environments and cultures, particularly in Europe. The Forum’s re-organized Web site offers users the tools and resources in which to share information, exchange experiences and engage in collaboration for mountain development in Europe. Visit the EMF Website to become a EMF member and make use of the network’s range of services: http://www.mtnforum.org/europe/index.cfm.
Calls for poster and presentations
Natural Resources Forum. Special Series on Sustainable Development
The Natural Resources Forum, a quarterly journal issued by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA), focuses on inter-linked, multidisciplinary issues related to sustainable development, particularly in developing countries and countries in transition. The Forum has recently announced a call for papers on the themes that will be considered by the United Nations Commission of Sustainable Development (CSD) at its 16 and 17th sessions, namely: Africa, agriculture, rural development, land, drought, and desertification. Interested researchers and practitioners are invited to first submit abstracts. For more details, contact Hiroko Morita-Lou, Editor-in-Chief at: NRFORUM@un.org.
The Future of Forests in Asia and the Pacific: Outlook for 2020 (16–18 October 2007, Chiang Mai, Thailand)
This major international conference, organized by the Asia-Pacific Forestry Commission, in partnership with member countries and international organizations, will explore the impact of social, economic, institutional and technological changes in the Asia-Pacific region and their impacts on forests, identify potential opportunities and challenges for forestry in the face of changing demands for forest goods and services, and assess options for future action. Conference organizers are inviting poster submissions and state “Poster presenters will be given the opportunity to present ideas through text and graphics on a door-sized panel available at the conference venue.” Poster abstracts should be received not later than 31 August 2007 and selected poster authors will be notified by 15 September 2007. For further details, visit the FAO Forestry Web site.
The World Conservation Forum, at the Fourth IUCN World Conservation Congress (Barcelona, Spain, 5-14 October 2008)
The Fourth IUCN World Conservation Congress, co-hosted by Spain and Catalonia in Barcelona next year, promises to be one of the premier environmental events of 2008. The first part of the Congress, the World Conservation Forum, runs from 6 to 10 October and is an opportunity to debate pressing issues and their solutions for sustainable development. Building on IUCN’s long history of bringing together diverse stakeholders and providing scientific leadership, the Forum will allow partners to share knowledge and experiences, develop innovative and inspiring solutions and make commitments towards sustainability. If you wish to participate and/or organize one or more event(s) at the Forum, please visit the IUCN Congress Web site.
Mountains featured prominently during the Third IUCN World Conservation Congress (Bangkok, Thailand, 17-25 November 2004), which explored the effects of climate change on the world’s mountain ecosystems. Experts attending the conference warned that little was being done to monitor the state of glaciers in the Himalayas, melting due to global warming and increasing the risk of major floods. TheCongress included a workshop on conservation and sustainable development in mountain areas and adopted recommendations that directly relate to mountains, including the Resolution on the Conservation and Sustainable Development of Mountain Regions.