Overview

• For decades, declining snowfall and glacier retreat in Nepal’s Upper Mustang dried Samjung’s springs and canals, crippling its traditional farming and herding routines.
• Intense monsoon flash floods eroded mud homes and terraces, prompting villagers to complete their move to New Samjung by mid-2025.
• Villagers spent years gathering materials to construct new mud homes with tin roofs, livestock shelters and water canals that channel river water directly to their households.
• New Samjung’s reliable water supply and proximity to mountain roads have restored agriculture and opened tourism and market opportunities for local families.
• Hindu Kush–Himalayan glaciers feed rivers for nearly 2 billion people downstream, and scientists warn up to 80 percent of their volume could disappear this century without steep emissions cuts.