Businesses, partners, members and individuals – can support the UIAA on a one-off or ongoing basis by donating to specific projects or causes.
2026 General Assembly
Appeal
Give Back to Climbing
With the 2026 UIAA General Assembly taking place in Kathmandu, the UIAA Mountain Protection Commission and the Climate Change Taskforce felt it was important to set up a “give-back scheme” for all delegates traveling to Nepal. This is to offer an optional alternative to paying for CO2 offsetting to an airline company and rather giving the money to a locally rooted project. The idea being that if 100 delegates each give USD 20, then USD 2,000 can go to the selected project and sustainably support climbing and mountaineering in Nepal.
Each delegate can choose whether to donate or not.
And each delegate can choose what amount to donate to the cause. Airline companies give an estimate of the price necessary to offset the purchased flights. This could act as guidance.
The selected organisation for the give back scheme is:
Sustainable Solid Waste Management Plan for Sagarmatha – https://www.spcc.org.np/
- Nominated for the UIAA Mountain Protection Award in 2019, SPCC collects, manages, and recycles 300 tonnes of waste annually to keep the Everest Region clean.
- They oversee garbage management of 60+ peaks of the Khumbu Region including Mt. Everest. With over 30 years of experience, and with over 5000 partners – communities, organizations, and volunteers – they work to ensure Everest remains pristine.
- UIAA delegate donations will go towards ensuring the continuity, and expansion, and completion of the Khumbu Solid Waste Management Plan adopted in 2023 by the SPCC and Khumbu Pasang Lhamu Rural Municipality (KPLRM). More specifically, the donated funds would go toward educating school children on the importance of waste management. The SPCC team will conduct waste management awareness programs and training in 1-2 local schools in the Everest Region. The schools would also receive support in integrating the concept of waste recycling and upcycling – for example, turning waste into art. Educating students on proper waste collection, segregation, and recycling/upcycling is an integral part of achieving sustainable waste management in the region.
Through its Commissions, the UIAA spearheads a number of key initiatives including:
ONE
Safety
Resources
Creating and developing safety resources for climbers and mountaineers
TWO
Mountain Protection
Protection of the mountain environment
THREE
Youth Development
Encouraging youth development
FOUR
Mediating Access
Mediating in access issues
FIVE
Mountain Communities
Supporting mountain communities
You can support the UIAA as a whole or specific areas or projects. Furthermore, the UIAA uses this resource to raise awareness about projects organised by its member associations. Please select General UIAA support when donating.
UIAA Supported Charities
CLIMBING FOR PEACE
ClimbAID
The UIAA began supporting ClimbAID in early 2019. ClimbAID is a non-profit organisation founded in September 2016 in Zurich, Switzerland which focuses on humanitarian projects with an emphasis on climbing and other alpine sports activities. In particular, ClimbAID focuses on the holistic development of youth into autonomous, social, self- and environmentally aware actors. ClimbAID brings the joy of climbing to communities impacted by war and poverty.
FOUNDED BY JOHN ELLISON
Climbers Against Cancer
CAC is a not-for-profit charity that raises awareness and funds for cancer research through the worldwide climbing community. The charity was created by the late John Ellison, a British climber who after being diagnosed with terminal cancer, established a charity that has since raised hundreds of thousands of dollars from climbers and mountaineers. In May 2014, Ellison was honoured by the UIAA at a meeting of the UIAA Management Committee in Munich. Ellison was feted for his outstanding efforts to bring together the global family of climbers and mountaineers to raise funds for research to fight and beat cancer. The UIAA has supported CAC ever since.
In March 2026, the UIAA and CAC commemorated their long-term partnership through the creation of a collaborative t-shirt. Please follow the link below to purchase.