February 2015: The February 2015 issue of the Mountain Partnership newsletter, titled ‘Peak to Peak,’ focuses on diverse events held on 11 December 2014 in over 30 countries around the world to celebrate International Mountain Day (IMD). The IMD theme was ‘Mountain Family Farming.’
With the celebrations coinciding with the 20th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 20) of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Lima, Peru, the newsletter also provides an overview of activities organized as part of the Mountain and Water Pavilion at COP 20, which hosted over 50 events including roundtable discussions, multimedia exhibitions and ministerial meetings. The newsletter notes the “strong calls for action” in Lima, where the role of climate-smart agriculture in enhancing resilience was emphasized, as well as at an IMD observance event at the UN Headquarters in New York, US, which addressed ‘Perspectives on mountains and rural development in a post-2015 world,’ and underscored mountains’ role as ‘a cornerstone of humanity.’
In addition to the global IMD observance events, the newsletter highlights other activities in the Americas, including celebrations of family farming by mountain communities in Costa Rica and the US, and an excursion to Nevado Tres Cruces National Park in Copiapó, Costa Rica, that showcased the growing importance of mountain tourism.
Among activities in Asia, the newsletter highlights: the first-ever IMD celebrations in Myanmar and Borneo; the ‘Meet of the Mountain States’ in New Delhi, India, that discussed policy planning processes as a way to improve mountain development; a capacity building workshop for Himalayan youth on the emerging challenges of climate change and development; a memorial ceremony in Sri Lanka for victims of the Meeriyabedda landslide disaster in October 2014; and a photo exhibition featuring mountain farmers in the Kyrgyz Republic.
African IMD events mentioned include: the third edition of the National Festival of Mountains that took place in Béjaïa Province, Algeria, to promote local products, mountain sports and the preservation of natural, cultural and historical resources; an NGO-organized event in Cameroon that aimed to build the capacities of local mountain communities; the first regional meeting for Morocco’s mountain areas focused on strengthening joint civil action in support of local communities; and a university competition in Uganda that tested students’ understanding of concepts and practices of highland and mountain resource management.
Among European events, the newsletter highlights awareness raising activities involving school children in Greece and Turkey; the launch of a ‘mountain agri-food product’ label in Romania; a global photo contest by the Municipality of Dénia, Spain; and a research symposium on the challenges of sustainable development in Northern Eurasia that included presentations by farmers on the important role of agricultural management and mountain landscapes in the lives of many ethnic groups in the Russian Federation.
The newsletter also features a number of recent publications and multimedia resources including: ‘Climate Variability in Asia’s Highlands,’ published by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and the US Agency for International Development (USAID); an International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) documentary on mountain conservation with local people in Mt Elgon, Uganda; ‘The Water Tower,’ a video by Pete McBride that discusses the implications of environmental degradation in the Mt Kenya region, which provides 70% of the Kenya’s freshwater; and ‘Mountains and Climate Change: A Global Concern,’ co-published by the Centre for Development and Environment, the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, Geographica Bernensia and the Austrian Development Cooperation, which highlights policy messages and lessons learned in mountain areas where adaptation measures have been taken.
The newsletter includes a call for contributions to the Perth III international conference on the theme ‘Mountains of Our Future Earth,’ which will take place in Perth, Scotland, UK, on 4-8 October 2015. Held every five years, the Perth Conferences present, evaluate and synthesize knowledge on global change in mountains and aim to foster effective interdisciplinary and international research on mountain ecosystems.
Finally, the newsletter announces the launch of VERTEX, an online communication and networking platform for Mountain Partnership members and other mountain stakeholders in the North and Central American and the Caribbean. [Publication: Peak to Peak Mountain Partnership Newsletter, February 2015] [FAO IMD Website]