From the peaks to the valleys

I am change 

We are in the midst of a revolution, a transformation. Record after record, the 'hottest years of all time' follow one another. Humanity is aware that we, the perennial ice bodies, although covering only 10% of the Earth's surface, are climate regulators, freshwater resources on which the survival of billions of people and hundreds of living species depends.  

Here, in the Alps, we hold the mountains together, and if we retreat, they lose their balance, they collapse. That is why the United Nations has decided to dedicate 2025 to us: International Year of Glaciers’ Preservation! A very symbolic year, of course, to put us back in the spotlight. At the current rate of melting, the Alpine glaciers are in danger of disappearing completely by 2100 - the Marmolada even before 2050! 

I am life 

According to the Italian Glaciological Committee, we, the Alpine glaciers, have lost more than 60% of our surface area between 1850 and today. The Marmolada bore tragic witness to this in 2022, when a huge serac collapsed, claiming the lives of several people. There are other, less visible signs: disappearing roads and paths, mountain huts that need to be rebuilt, mountain villages that need to reinvent themselves in order to survive, increasingly uncertain water availability.  

In the areas where the ice retreats, mosses, lichens and pioneer species colonise the exposed surfaces, followed by shrubs and small trees. Many cold environment species have no time to adapt and risk being pushed higher and higher until they disappear. 

The International Year of Glaciers’ Preservation should be a reminder, an opportunity to reflect and to act. Research is essential to understand the changes taking place and to predict their consequences. The science that studies me and other terrestrial ice masses—ice caps, snow, sea ice and permafrost—is called Cryosphere Science and integrates several disciplines: geology, climatology, hydrology, engineering and social sciences.  

It is a powerful tool to guide adaptation policies in a targeted and sustainable way: understanding the evolution of glaciers and permafrost allows the development of increasingly accurate prediction models.  

Now I want you to try and see yourself in my shimmering ice and listen to my silence. I have only two words: 'be careful'.