This site uses cookies, as explained in our terms of use. If you consent, please close this message and continue to use this site.
9-20 November 2026
Antalya, Türkiye
On 26 August, 2026, a huge mass of rock and ice broke off a Himalayan peak in Nepal’s Rasuwa district. Within minutes it had become a wall of water and debris racing down the Trishuli valley and across the border with China. Downstream, the river rose nine metres in half an hour, leaving almost no time to warn anyone.
More than 1,450 people lost their lives in Nepal, and thousands more are still missing. Tens of thousands lost their homes, land and livelihoods. The country’s losses are estimated at over USD 5 billion, close to 15% of its GDP. More recently, a destructive flash flood swept through Nepal’s Budhi Gandaki river system on 11 October. The flash flood left people missing, swept away houses, destroyed bridges, and damaged infrastructure along the river.
As parties gather in Antalya, Türkiye, for the UNFCCC 31st Conference of Parties (COP 31), the message from the mountains is clear: the time for action is now.
These are not flash events. This is what climate change looks like in the Hindu Kush Himalaya: risks that cascade across valleys and borders faster than our systems can respond.
COP31 is a chance to move mountains from the margins to the centre of global climate action. That is the heart of the mountain agenda: mountains warm faster than most of the planet, and the risks that follow, from melting glaciers to failing water supplies, reach far beyond the mountains themselves. These realities need to be recognised in global climate decisions, backed by better science and matched with the finance mountain communities need to adapt. The momentum is already building. At COP28, mountains were recognised in UNFCCC outcomes for the first time, and SBSTA 60 hosted the first-ever expert dialogue on mountains and climate change. At COP29 and SB62, ICIMOD worked alongside its Regional Member Countries to carry that momentum into the negotiations and keep the mountain agenda in sight.
In Antalya, we aim to turn this hard-won recognition into real progress for the people of the Hindu Kush Himalaya.
Contribute to and support RMCs in negotiation bringing in mountain agenda in different negotiation tracks (adaptation, loss and damage, finance).
Advocate the importance of the HKH region and mountains and call for increased support and climate actions.
Enhance existing partnership and build new ones – RMCs, regional and global stakeholders/groups working on mountain agenda.
We will be working with RMCs to advance the mountain agenda on the following key thematic areas:
Strengthen access to loss and damage finance by following up on the Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage (FRLD), including its COP31 Board report and efforts to improve access for vulnerable HKH countries.
Advance the implementation of the Global Goal on Adaptation (GGA) by engaging in the post-SB64 process on the Belém Adaptation Indicators, including their further technical development, metadata and methodologies, formation of a taskforce, indicators testing, and their use in assessing progress towards the UAE Framework for Global Climate Resilience.
Support HKH countries in the shift from climate-finance commitments towards implementation and delivery, including by linking national adaptation priorities, National Adaptation Plans and investment plans with available public, private and multilateral sources of finance.
Strengthen research, systematic observation and long-term data systems for the HKH, including cryosphere, glaciers, snow, permafrost, water resources, extreme events, ecosystems and climate impacts, and improve the availability and interoperability of regional datasets for climate-risk assessment and adaptation planning.
Support HKH countries in implementing the Enhanced Transparency Framework (ETF), including timely preparation and submission of second BTRs and strengthening national reporting systems. Support RMCs at negotiations for important agenda items on Reporting and review pursuant to Article 13 of the Paris Agreement: provision of financial and technical support to developing country Parties for reporting and capacity-building.
Support in advancing a just and inclusive energy transition, supporting increased deployment of renewable energy while ensuring social dialogue, decent livelihoods, skills development and opportunities for vulnerable communities.
Pema Gyamtsho
Director General
Kunzang
Global Lead – Climate Policy, Regional Action, Global Advocacy
Pradyumna Rana
Manager Global Engagement – Climate Adaption and Governance
Claire Warmenbol
Head of Communications – Media, Knowledge and Partnerships
Avishek Malla
Manager Renewable Energy – Climate Adaptation and Mitigation
Amina Maharjan
Manager Foresight – Climate Adaptation and Migration
Ravi Sahu
Manager Air Quality Monitoring – Pollution and Air Quality Policy
Sravan Shrestha
Researcher Geoinformation – Loss and damage and Disaster Risk Reduction
Ajay Kumar KC
Coordinator PROAACT – Adaptation and Nature-Based Solutions
Rajesh Bahadur Thapa
Sn. Coordinator Glaciers to Oceans – Cryosphere, Water and Geospatial Solutions
