Cusco, Peru - 23 & 24 May 2014
Mountains, covering approximately 25% of the Earth’s land surface, are home to about 850 million people and provide indispensable goods and services for all humankind. However, many mountain regions suffer from dire poverty, widespread land degradation, inequitable land rights, and are already enduring severe negative impacts from climate change. As testimony of this situation, estimates indicate that approximately 35% of the mountain population in developing and transition countries are vulnerable to food insecurity while half are chronically hungry.
Mountains, covering approximately 25% of the Earth’s land surface, are home to about 850 million people and provide indispensable goods and services for all humankind. However, many mountain regions suffer from dire poverty, widespread land degradation, inequitable land rights, and are already enduring severe negative impacts from climate change. As testimony of this situation, estimates indicate that approximately 35% of the mountain population in developing and transition countries are vulnerable to food insecurity while half are chronically hungry.
Mountains
are among the regions most sensitive to and already getting affected by
climate change. Their diverse ecosystems act as early indicators of
change, e.g. through rapid glacier retreat, with consequences felt far
beyond mountain boundaries, making climate change in mountains a concern
of regional and global dimension.
In
order to promote Sustainable Mountain Development (SMD) in view of the
considerable global challenges ahead, several engaged partners have
jointly launched the World Mountain Forum (WMF). It provides an
outstanding platform for SMD and brings together SMD stakeholders from
around the globe, providing them a platform for exchange about their
experience, promotion of collaborative action and for fostering
political dialogue among different levels of government and society. The
overall goal therefore, is to create dialogue with articulated concrete
actions and concerted efforts of how to address the plight of these
fragile ecosystems, through SDM.
The
WMF 2014 will showcase and discuss available local, regional and
global experience in mountain development. It will identify
opportunities and challenges for the future of global SMD is likely to
face. The WMF 2014 is expected to produce insights that will feed into
other relevant global initiatives and events such as the UN Secretary
General’s High-level Panel on Global Sustainability (GSP) and the CSD
biennial cycle 20/21 in which mountains are one of five priority themes.
Furthermore, it will deliver valuable input to the main global
sustainable development processes including the Rio- (UNFCCC, CBD,
UNCCD) and RAMSAR Convention. It is expected that the WMF 2014 will also
contribute to the Post-2015 Agenda and Sustainable Development Goals
(SDGs) process at the national, regional and global levels. The WMF 2014
will bring the opportunity for mountain countries to discuss on how
better ensure mountains are adequately incorporated into the future
climate deal that the COP20 (Lima, December 2014) will advance.
Key topics
The
WMF 2014 will cover the following topics: Family Farming, Water and
Food Security; Climate Change; Mountain cities; and Mountain
Communities. As each topic is very broad, the WMF 2014 is proposing some
priority issues that will be covered by presentations from
participants. Based on the material received, the organizing committee
will arrange the sessions of the WMF. The presentations may have the
form of paper, poster or audiovisual.
Key dates
- 28.Feb.2014 Deadline for submission of abstracts for presentations
- 10.Mar.2014 Announcement of selected presentations
- 15.Mar.2014 Registration deadline
- 31.Mar.2014 Deadline for final version of presentations
- 23.May.2014 Starting of the WMF 2014
More information: wmf@mtnforum.org
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