The first ever World Day for Glaciers on 21 March 2025 will sound the alarm that accelerating glacier melt risks unleashing an avalanche of cascading impacts on economies, ecosystems and communities, not just in mountain regions but at global level.
Five of the past six years have witnessed the most rapid glacier retreat on record. 2022-2024 witnessed the largest three-year loss of glacier mass on record. In many regions, what used to be called glaciers' "eternal ice" will not survive the 21st century, according to reports from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the World Glacier Monitoring Service (WGMS).
More than 275,000 glaciers worldwide cover approximately 700,000 km². Together with ice sheets, glaciers store about 70% of the global freshwater resources. High mountain regions are the world's water towers. Depletion of glaciers therefore threatens supplies to hundreds of millions of people who live downstream and depend on the release of water stored over past winters during the hottest and driest parts of the year. In the short-term, glacier melt increases natural hazards like floods.
The United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 2025 as the International Year of Glaciers' Preservation and established 21 March as the annual World Day for Glaciers. It seeks to increase awareness of the vital role that glaciers, snow, and ice play in the climate system and hydrological cycle, and their importance to local, national, and global economies. UNESCO and WMO are spearheading activities and coordinating international efforts supported by over 200 contributing organizations and 35 countries.
