The International High-Level Conference on Glacier Conservation will be held in Dushanbe from 29 to 31 May 2025, the conference secretariat reports.
Its goal is to highlight the key role of glaciers in maintaining the global ecological balance and solving water problems.
According to the source, the conference aims to raise awareness of the critical link between glaciers and sustainable socio-economic development.
“The focus will be on the impact of glacier conservation on livelihoods, water availability, climate risk reduction, incorporation of indigenous knowledge and practices, and achieving long-term development goals for vulnerable regions and populations. Glacier melting is one of the most pressing environmental challenges of our time. About a third of mountain ice has already been lost due to climate change, and this process will continue unless urgent action is taken to slow it down. Glacier shrinkage disrupts local and seasonal water supplies that are essential for drinking water, irrigation, and hydropower, on which billions of people depend. This has a direct impact on agricultural productivity, food security, and energy stability, especially in regions dependent on glacier runoff. According to the Hindu Kush Himalayan Assessment, the region could lose up to two-thirds of its glaciers by the end of the century. In Tajikistan, about 30% of glaciers have disappeared over the past century. The world’s largest continental glacier, Vanjyakh (formerly Fedchenko), has retreated more than 1 km and decreased by 44 km² over the past 70-80 years. Other parts of the world are also experiencing extreme consequences of glacier melting. For example, the Brazilian Amazon, fed by the Andean glaciers, has experienced severe drought, while catastrophic floods and landslides caused by accelerated ice melting have hit countries from Germany to Peru and Nepal,” the secretariat reported.
The rapid shrinkage of major polar ice caps, including Greenland and Antarctica, is also reported to be alarming. According to NASA, Greenland lost an average of 279 gigatons of ice per year from 1993 to 2019, while Antarctica lost 148 gigatons. These losses are causing global sea levels to rise, posing a serious threat to small island developing states and coastal areas where hundreds of millions of people live.
Recognizing the urgency of these climate challenges and their socio-economic impacts, in December 2022, the UN General Assembly declared 2025 as the International Year of Glacier Preservation, mandating the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) to jointly promote relevant activities. In August 2024, a resolution was also adopted on the “Decade of Action in Cryospheric Sciences, 2025-2034”, aimed at studying and monitoring the cryosphere. In addition, on 22 September 2024, the Future Summit endorsed the “Pact for the Future”, providing a framework for global action to preserve glaciers.
Glacier conservation requires climate stability and resilience, and the High-Level International Conference on Glacier Conservation aims to raise awareness and advocate for collective action in this direction.
The International High-Level Conference on Glacier Conservation aims to place glaciers on the global agenda and highlight the need for urgent action to prevent their melting. The conference aims to consolidate international efforts to combat glacier loss through scientific research, innovation and coherent policy development.
The conference will also contribute to the implementation of the UN resolutions “2025 — International Year of Glacier Conservation” and “Decade of Action for Cryospheric Sciences, 2025-2034”. It will provide a platform for resource mobilization and international cooperation, as well as strengthening partnerships between governments, the scientific community, civil society and other stakeholders. Particular attention will be paid to transboundary cooperation to conserve glaciers and ensure their socio-economic benefits.
NIAT “KHOVAR”
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