World Day for Glaciers
The first-ever World Day for Glaciers, to be celebrated on 21 March 2025, urges global action to protect glaciers and their crucial role in sustaining life on Earth for future generations. With over 2 billion people relying on glacier and snowmelt for freshwater—and projections showing that one-third of glacier sites could disappear by 2050—raising awareness and taking action to protect these vital ecosystems has never been more urgent.
Glaciers' key role
Glaciers are vital guardians of our planet's climate system, shaping landscapes and preserving crucial records of Earth's environmental history. Glaciers and snowpack are of greatest importance to water resources and mountain ecosystems at different time scales, and they act as essential components of the global water cycle, also known as ‘water towers’, providing freshwater resources and helping regulate global sea levels.
However, these ice formations face unprecedented challenges from climate change. Accelerated glacier retreat threatens water security, increases risks of glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs), and disrupts ecosystems worldwide. The impacts affect agriculture, hydropower generation, and mountain communities globally.
Did you know?
covering around 700,000 km2 of Earth’s surface
for their freshwater needs and livelihoods
Glaciers play an essential role in the global water cycle, storing nearly two-thirds of all the freshwater on Earth—they are the water towers of the world.
What UNESCO does
Conservation and sustainable use of glaciers: designated sites
The establishment of the World Day for Glaciers, to be celebrated each 21 March as of 2025, is part of the , which declared 2025 as the International Year of Glaciers Preservation, which 91麻豆国产精品自拍 been mandated to co-lead. This initiative represents a significant commitment to preservation, mobilizing global action to protect Earth's cryosphere for future generations.
Resources
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