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GEO Week 2021 was held 22-26 November, and highlighted the many activities of the GEO work programme that address this years major milestones linked to global policy agendas, such as the 26th Conference of the Parties (COP26) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.
On Thursday 25 November, GEO Week 2021 focused on the use of Earth observations data to bridge the digital divide. As a part of this, GEO members presented examples of projects and initiatives being undertaken worldwide in order to facilitate full and open access to Earth observation data, thereby promoting policy development and supporting informed decision-making. Among the initiatives participating was GEO Mountains, represented by James Thornton, GEO Mountains Scientific Project Officer, and Carolina Adler, Executive Director of the Mountain Research Initiative and GEO Mountains Co-Lead.
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Volume 18, issue 11 of the Journal of Mountain Science explores topics ranging from a multi-scale analysis of ecosystem services trade-offs in an ecotone in the Eastern Margin of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau to an examination of 30 years of the transformation of non-urban public transport in Poland’s peripheral areas.
Other articles look at the spatial differentiation pattern of interregional migration in ethnic minority areas of Yunnan Province in China, assess the vegetation community distribution characteristics and succession stages in mountainous areas hosting the coming Winter Olympics, and quantify glacial elevation changes in the central Qilian Mountains during the early 21st century, among many other topics.
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With mountain snowpacks shrinking in the western U.S., a new Berkeley Lab study analyzes when a low-to-no-snow future might arrive and the implications for water management.
Mountain snowpacks around the world are on the decline, and if the planet continues to warm, climate models forecast that snowpacks could shrink dramatically and possibly even disappear altogether on certain mountains, including in the western United States, at some point in the next century. A new study led by researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) analyzes the likely timing of a low-to-no-snow future, what it will mean for water management, and opportunities for investments now that could stave off catastrophic consequences.
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Taking place as part of COP26 on 8 November, the focus of this session was on the impacts and risks of climate change in the cryosphere in Latin America, Central Asia, and the Andes, and how communities in our changing mountains can adapt. This session was contributed to by several representatives of the MRI.
The vast high latitude and high altitude cold regions of the world provide freshwater to over half of humanity. As a result of climate change, they are under threat. But which impacts of climate change are already being felt in the cryosphere? And which risks are mountain regions exposed to, both now and in the future? This session focused on Latin America, Central Asia, and the Andes aimed to address these questions, and explore adaptation options that offer potential solutions to the challenges and opportunities these regions face. It was jointly hosted by the COP26 Cryosphere Pavilion and the COP26 Geneva Cryosphere Hub.
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IPBES have announced the start of the external review of the draft scoping report for the IPBES business and biodiversity assessment, which is open from 2 November to 13 December 2021.
The rolling work programme of IPBES up to 2030, adopted by the Plenary in decision IPBES-7/1, includes a methodological assessment of the impact and dependence of business on biodiversity and nature’s contributions to people ('business and biodiversity assessment'). In the same decision, the Plenary approved a scoping process for the assessment, based on the initial scoping report set out in appendix II to document IPBES/7/6, for consideration by the Plenary at IPBES 9 (July 2022).
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This GEO Mountains workshop sought to better understand the current interdisciplinary 'data landscape' across Central Asia.
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As part of the UNFCCC COP26 Cryosphere Pavilion, Mountain Research Initiative Executive Director Dr. Carolina Adler was invited to participate in a discussion of 'Snow and Ice in Climate Change' organized by the Government of Tajikistan, the WMO, and UNESCO.
On 1 November, 'Tajikistan: Snow and Ice in Climate Change' was held as part of the Cryosphere Pavilion at the 26th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP26) of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
As Sulton Rakhimzoda, Special Envoy for the President of Tajikistan on Water and Climate, highlighted in his opening address, ice and snow hold 70 percent of the world’s freshwater resources. However, climate change is accelerating the melting of the cryosphere worldwide, altering hydrological systems and changing the risk landscape. How can mountain nations create resilience against the worsening impacts of disasters and rapidly changing water availability?
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A historic World Meteorological Congress has concluded with landmark resolutions to prioritize water and to dramatically strengthen the world’s weather and climate services through a systematic increase in exchange of observational data and data products.
The WMO Unified Data Policy, the Global Basic Observing Network, and the Systematic Observations Financing Facility were painstakingly developed through extensive consultation with thousands of experts and other stakeholders around the globe. The aim is to meet the explosive growth in demand for weather and climate data products and services, to fill gaps in the global observing system and ensure more sustainable financing.
