4 April 2011: The International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) has launched an e-discussion on sustainable mountain development in the Hindu Kush-Himalayan (HKH) region to help prepare a Regional Assessment Report on the topic.

The aim of the discussion is to identify key gaps, issues, opportunities, and challenges in the area of sustainable mountain development, as well as qualified people from government, NGOs, academia, foundations, nature trusts and the private sector. ICIMOD, a member of the global Mountain Partnership Consortium (MPC), works to improve living conditions of HKH populations and contribute to sustainable conservation and promotion of mountain ecological and socio-cultural systems.

ICIMOD was assigned the preparation of the Report to: take stock of what has, and has not, been achieved in promoting sustainable mountain development since 1992 in different parts of the region; identify current and future challenges; and propose a “plan of work” towards the preparation of the Report by September 2011.

The e-discussion takes place over three weeks, with the third week devoted to the questions of how mountain systems can provide a strategic way forward for the “Rio+20” agenda.

An International Conference will be held in Lucerne, Switzerland, on 10-12 October 2011, providing a platform to discuss preliminary findings and extract the Report’s key messages for policy makers.

The report will be ready for global presentation and distribution on the occasion of the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, or Rio+20). [ICIMOD News Release]