- Nepal and four mountain nations co-hosted a COP31 event demanding urgent global action on high-altitude climate devastation and retreating glaciers.
- After their formal agenda proposal was excluded, these nations are pushing to institutionalize mountain issues within the permanent UN climate process.
- Minister Shishir Khanal proposed a "Sagarmatha to Sea" alliance to unite mountain and coastal states against shared environmental vulnerabilities.
- Key demands include grant-based financing, black carbon reduction, and improved early warning systems to protect vulnerable high-altitude and downstream communities.
ANTALYA, Türkiye: Frustrated by the exclusion of a dedicated mountain agenda item at the ongoing UN Climate Change Conference (COP31), Nepal has joined forces with four other mountain nations to push the worsening Himalayan climate crisis to the forefront of global negotiations.
On Thursday, Nepal, Bhutan, Pakistan, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan co-hosted a high-level event titled “Advancing the Mountain Agenda” to demand urgent international action on how rising temperatures are devastating high-altitude ecosystems and communities.
Addressing the gathering, Nepal’s Foreign Minister Shishir Khanal called for stronger global cooperation, accessible climate finance, and formal recognition of mountain vulnerabilities within the UN climate framework. He outlined five core priorities:
Slashing greenhouse gas and black carbon emissions
Delivering predictable, grant-based climate finance to mountain nations
Addressing climate-induced loss and damage
Strengthening scientific monitoring and early warning systems
Institutionalizing mountain issues as a permanent fixture of the UN climate process
“The crisis unfolding in the mountains is not the problem of one country or one region alone. It is a crisis for humanity,” Khanal warned, emphasizing that shifts in high-altitude regions directly threaten downstream river systems, economies, and ecosystems far beyond national borders.
Building a “Sagarmatha to Sea” Alliance
To build broader diplomatic leverage, Khanal proposed a new alliance linking mountain nations with coastal and island states under a “Sagarmatha to Sea” initiative. While mountain nations grapple with rapidly retreating glaciers, erratic river flows, and catastrophic glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs), coastal nations face encroaching seas and severe erosion. Despite their geographic differences, both regions are on the front lines of global warming, and Nepal hopes a united front will force their shared vulnerabilities onto the main stage.
Thursday’s push follows a diplomatic setback earlier in the conference. On October 29, Nepal and Bhutan jointly proposed an agenda item titled “1.5°C Warming in Mountains,” advocating for deeper scientific research, a dedicated UN mountain work programme, and expanded climate financing. Kyrgyzstan submitted a parallel proposal to institutionalize regular climate dialogues on mountains.
Although both proposals appeared on the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) supplementary provisional agenda on November 6, they were dropped when participating nations adopted the final conference agenda on November 9. As a compromise, the COP31 presidency agreed to hold further consultations and include mountain issues in an upcoming research dialogue, alongside discussions at UNFCCC subsidiary body meetings in 2027 and 2028.
Speaking at the opening plenary, Khanal acknowledged that the outcome fell short of Nepal’s expectations, vowing to keep pressing for a formal mountain work programme.
Emissions, Debt, and Ground-Level Survival
Elaborating on his five-point plan, Khanal stressed that keeping the Paris Agreement’s 1.5°C target alive requires rapid cuts in carbon dioxide alongside strict controls on black carbon—soot from diesel, coal, and firewood that settles on snow and accelerates melting by absorbing sunlight.
He also made a forceful case for grant-based financing rather than loans. Despite contributing negligibly to global emissions, countries like Nepal bear staggering recovery costs from climate disasters. Relying on loans to fund adaptation and rebuilding, Khanal noted, only traps vulnerable nations deeper in debt.
Distinguishing between proactive adaptation and reactive recovery, the minister urged wealthy nations to deliver tangible loss-and-damage support rather than mere expressions of sympathy. For communities across Nepal, that means direct assistance to rebuild washed-out homes, farmland, roads, bridges, and hydropower infrastructure.
Equally urgent is closing the technology gap in the Hindu Kush Himalaya—a critical water tower supporting hundreds of millions of people across South and Central Asia. Khanal called for major investments in satellite monitoring, cross-border data sharing, and last-mile early warning systems capable of alerting remote villages before landslides or sudden floods strike.
The Road Ahead
With COP31 running until November 20, Nepal and its allies face an uphill diplomatic battle to turn conference rhetoric into binding commitments. The success of the proposed Sagarmatha to Sea partnership will depend on clear objectives and genuine buy-in from coastal blocs. For Kathmandu, the immediate test is ensuring that the compromises struck in Antalya evolve into concrete funding and protections for the communities living on the roof of the world.
