Spotlight on the cryosphere at COP29

“We must leverage scientific research and Indigenous Knowledge to tackle these issues, to slow irreversible climate change,” said Jonas Gahr Støre. Later he added, “Let us not forget climate change is a global responsibility, largely man-made. All countries must do their part in reducing emissions, and real global efforts will have real impacts on the cryosphere.”

The Arctic Council’s Chair of the Senior Arctic Officials, Morten Høglund, also highlighted the global nature of cryosphere when he took the stage to open the event.

“We are stepping into a critical and unpredictable new phase of the climate crisis,” said Morten Høglund. “Extreme weather events have affected communities across the globe and as we will hear in this important session today: changes in our cryosphere are contributing to and amplifying the risks of flooding, droughts, fires, landslides and coastal erosion.”

He pointed out that one of the regions changing most rapidly is the Arctic. “It’s warming three times faster than the global average,” stressed Morten Høglund.

Also setting the scene from the perspective of the Southern hemisphere was the Minister of the Environment for Chile, Maisa Rojas Corradi. She highlighted how Chile is connected to the cryosphere and urged action before it’s too late.

“Although the impacts that we’ve seen and are experiencing in the cryosphere region are alarming, we still have time to make a course correction,” said Minister Maisa Rojas Corradi. She later added, “The planet with less or no cryosphere is a very different planet. Let’s work together to avoid the worst of the impacts.”

The state of the cryosphere

“How many more warnings, how many more lives, before we stop pretending that we care about ice?” This was the title of the presentation given by Dr. Heïdi Sevestre of the Arctic Council’s Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP), who also moderated the event. The presentation overviewed the rates and impacts of melting the cryosphere, including glaciers, permafrost and sea ice.

Dr. Heïdi Sevestre highlighted that ice responds very quickly to climate change and warned that the loss of snow and ice can have severe consequences. “Here in Baku, 26% of the annual freshwater supply comes from melting snow and ice.”

The science is clear, according to Dr. Heïdi Sevestre, “The best way to save the cryosphere and to save ourselves is to keep global temperatures below 1.5°C. To do this, it means we have to reduce our emissions by at least 42% by 2030. But to be honest, every ton of CO₂ matters. Every 10th of a degree truly matters.”

Dr. James Kirkham of the International Climate and Cryosphere Initiative (ICCI) presented about ice sheets and sea level rise. “Everything is accelerating. We are seeing extremes we have not seen before, with massive impacts on the rest of the planet,” said Dr. James Kirkham.

Sea levels are rising twice as fast as they were 30 years ago, according to Dr. James Kirkham. “Some amount of irreversible sea level rise is now locked in because of the actions we’ve already taken today. But exactly how much we get and how fast is still our choice.”

Dr. James Kirkham shared possible future scenarios for sea level rise: “With a 1.5°C compatible pathway, we can limit sea level rise to half a meter by 2100 and one to three meters by 2300. However, our current emissions pathway will lead us to one meter by 2100 and could be six or seven meters by 2300. You can’t adapt to that. If these ice sheets continue to accelerate and become more unstable, all of these timelines will be brought forward faster. And in that scenario, we could see one meter in the next 50 years, three meters in 2100, and up to 15 meters by 2300.”

“We are a People of the cryosphere”

Sara Olsvig, Chair of the Inuit Circumpolar Council (ICC), stressed how Inuit are deeply and intrinsically connected to the cryosphere.

“Cryosphere for us translates to rights. Cryosphere translates to our infrastructure,” said Sara Olsvig. “The fact that our land is frozen makes our land our infrastructure. The fact the sea ice is there in the winter makes our sea part of our infrastructure. When it melts, it is literally the ground under us that is melting.”

Sara Olsvig highlighted how Indigenous Peoples need to be part of decision-making processes. “You cannot talk about the cryosphere, you cannot write about the cryosphere, and you cannot decide on declarations or resolutions on the cryosphere if Indigenous Peoples are not part of it and if Indigenous Peoples’ rights are not fully recognized in those texts.”

Sara Olsvig pointed to the Arctic Council as an example of a governance model where Indigenous Peoples, nation states, scientists and knowledge holders have been able to work together, even in difficult times. “The Arctic Council is a very important forum for us to produce knowledge about climate change...but also how to make the lives better and healthier for the people who live in the Arctic.”

Regional and global impacts

While all people on Earth depend on the cryosphere, those living in coastal regions, low-lying islands, polar and high mountain areas are especially vulnerable.

Dr. Pema Gymatsho, Director of the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), gave a presentation about how the glaciers and snow of the Hindu Kush Himalaya support two billion people in Southeast Asia. In this region, the cryosphere is a critical source of energy through hydropower; it supports food production as a major source of water for irrigation; it’s a health and sanitation resource; it supports livelihoods such as the tourism and transport industry; and it’s an important resource for biodiversity.

Pakistan has also felt the impacts of the melting cryosphere. “We are at the brunt of this climate change,” stated the Honorable Ahmen Atteeq Anwar, Parliamentary Secretary for the Ministry of Climate Change in Pakistan. He highlighted the issue of flooding and Glacial Lake Outburst Floods. In 2022, Pakistan experienced severe flooding made worse by accelerated seasonal runoff from melting mountain glaciers. The flooding displaced millions of people. “40% of our country was underwater due to floods,” Parliamentary Secretary Ahmen Atteeq Anwar noted.

Germany has also witnessed the loss of the cryosphere. The Honorable Dr. Anna Lührmann, Minister of State for Europe and Climate in Germany, noted that Germany lost one of its glaciers in September 2022. Now, it has four glaciers left. “The white and icy world I knew from my childhood is shrinking dramatically,” she said. Dr. Anna Lührmann highlighted Germany’s role in polar research, including the MOSAiC expedition that brought together researchers from 20 nations to collect data about the Arctic climate. “We have to join hands in the fight against the climate crisis and do our utmost to get on the 1.5°C pathway,” she stressed.

Khedrup Dorji of Bhutan and Youth Ambassador for ICIMOD emphasized that the cryosphere is of common interest across the world. “Although Norway and the Himalayas are apart by distance, it is our shared commitment, cooperation and sacrifices in protecting our frozen heritage that binds us together more closely and intimately, particularly in this room,” he said. He noted that the cryosphere is not only a frozen heritage, but also a lifeline for communities, flora and fauna in Bhutan. “I request that we forge partnerships, mobilize resources, and advocate for sustainable policies and actions so we can ensure our cryosphere and mountains continue to serve as a beacon of hope and resilience for generations to come.”

A message to policymakers

At the end of the event, Dr. Heïdi Sevestre posed a question to Sara Olsvig and Khedrup Dorji: what are the key messages you would like to send to policymakers?

Sara Olsvig stressed that we must in every way integrate a human rights approach to policymaking. “The question is, how can we ensure there will be a systemic change in how we approach negotiations, policymaking, decision making and knowledge production all over the globe,” she said. “We need to cut fossil fuels, but we need to ensure that there is a a just transition.”

Khedrup Dorji stressed the need to act and hoped that Bhutan – which is now a carbon negative country – can serve as an inspiration to all. Khedrup Dorji highlighted that despite its small size, Bhutan was able to transition to a carbon negative country due to the right mindset and the will to act on it.

An Ambition on Melting Ice declaration signing

The Ambition on Melting Ice (AMI) was created at COP27 in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt by a coalition of 20 governments led by Chile and Iceland. The Declaration was signed on 16 November 2022. At the conclusion of the side event at COP29, Dr. Anna Lührmann of Germany signed the AMI Declaration.

You can watch the side event, A Message from the Frozen World, in full. Learn more about the cryosphere.