Overview
- The day is being observed worldwide on December 11 with the FAO-led theme, “Glaciers matter for water, food and livelihoods in mountains and beyond.”
- The United Nations says glaciers store about 70% of the planet’s freshwater and more than two billion people rely on meltwater for drinking supplies, farming and energy.
- In Pune, mountaineering group Giripremi is hosting the ‘Melting Giants’ conclave today at the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, featuring a keynote by IISER Pune glaciology researcher Krishnanand J alongside other invited speakers.
- Giripremi will present a ‘Frozen Lifelines’ exhibition on December 13–14, and winners of a nationwide glacier photography competition will be felicitated.
- Coverage highlights accelerating glacier melt that raises flood and landslide risks and threatens long-term water security for mountain communities, which include 15% of the world’s population.