2025 International Mountain Day

Celebrated on 11 December annually, the United Nations’ International Mountain Day is an international observance day whose goal is to raise awareness about the role that mountainous regions play in the lives of people and their importance to our planet.

The theme of the 2025 celebration is:

Glaciers matter for water, food and livelihoods in mountains and beyond” 

International Mountain Day 2025 is an opportunity to highlight the importance of glacier preservation for agriculture, water security and the livelihoods of vulnerable mountain communities.

Glaciers, vast reserves of ice and snow found across the planet, are far more than frozen landscapes – they are lifelines for ecosystems and communities. Yet, these critical components of the Earth’s systems are undergoing rapid and alarming transformations with profound consequences for us all.

The United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 2025 as the International Year of Glaciers’ Preservation to raise awareness on the vital role glaciers, snow and ice play in the climate system and water cycle, as well as the far-reaching impacts of rapid glacial melt. It aims to promote global collaboration, strengthen scientific research, and promote policies and actions to protect glaciers and cryospheric systems.

Glaciers and ice sheets hold around 70 percent of the world’s freshwater. Their accelerated melting represents not only an environmental crisis, but a humanitarian one, threatening agriculture, clean energy, water security and billions of peoples’ lives. Their retreat, driven by rising global temperatures, is a stark indicator of the climate crisis. Melting glaciers and thawing permafrost increase risks such as floods, glacier lake outburst floods, landslides or enhanced erosion and sediment, endangering downstream populations and critical infrastructure.

Economically, sectors like agriculture, hydropower, mountain tourism and transportation feel the strain of glacier changes. For many Indigenous Peoples, glaciers are sacred, and their disappearance signifies a loss of identity and connection to nature.