Central Asia, glaciers and global water supply

In The Earth Transformed, I wrote about how shifts in climate have always been agents of profound transformation. From the collapse of ancient empires to the rise of new political and economic orders, environmental change has shaped human history in ways that we are only beginning to fully understand. Glaciers, as sentinels of climate change, provide both a stark warning and a call to action.

In December 2022, the United Nations General Assembly designated 2025 as the International Year of Glaciers’ Preservation. Last August, the UN also adopted a resolution for a Decade of Action on Cryospheric Sciences (2025–2034) to address glacier melt and cryosphere challenges through scientific research and monitoring.

So, at the end of last week, I headed to Dushanbe, the capital of Tajikistan, to take part in the High-Level International Conference on Glaciers’ Preservation.