Decade of Action for Cryospheric Sciences (2025–2034)
Context:
The UN General Assembly, led by UNESCO has declared 2025-2034 as the Decade of Action for Cryospheric Sciences.
It aims to advance scientific research, strengthen international collaboration, and raise awareness about the critical role of Earth's frozen regions.
About the Decade (2025–2034):
The objective is to address the rapid melting of glaciers and permafrost, which threatens freshwater supplies and climate stability for billions of people
Four Key Goals:
Advance Research:
Conduct coordinated studies on glacier retreat, polar ice loss, and permafrost thaw
Raise Awareness:
Educate policymakers and the public on the cryosphere's importance for ecosystems and weather
Support Adaptation:
Help vulnerable regions like mountain villages, low-lying islands to develop early warning systems for disasters like glacial lake outburst floods
Global Initiatives:
Bridge efforts between the Decade of Sciences for Sustainable Development (2024-2033) and the 5th International Polar Year (2032-2033)
What is the Cryosphere?
It refers to all parts of the Earth where water is frozen as snow or ice.
The components include Ice sheets, glaciers, snow, permafrost (soils that stay below 0°C for years), and sea ice
The cryosphere covers a huge area, around 10% of the Earth’s land, and stores most of the planet’s freshwater.
About 70% of the world’s fresh water is locked up in the cryosphere. This means most river water and drinking water ultimately come from snow and ice melt.
State of the Cryosphere 2025 Report:
coordinated by the International Cryosphere Climate Initiative (ICCI)
Highlights of the report:
Many mountain glaciers are vulnerable at even lower temperatures.
Thresholds: The report warns that current national pledges (leading to >2°C warming) will cause catastrophic ice loss.
Preserving the cryosphere requires limiting warming to 1.5°C and Lower global temperatures toward ~1°C afterward.
Polar oceans are acidifying faster than warmer waters, pushing some organisms toward non-survivable conditions.
Combined Arctic–Antarctic sea-ice area hit a record low in February 2025, indicating rapid shifting of climate baselines.
Impact on India:
For India, the cryosphere crisis cuts two ways.
In the long run, sealevel rise commitments at today’s warming will challenge Mumbai, Kochi, Kolkata and the Sundarbans, even if temperatures stop climbing
in the near term, Himalayan ice and snow decline is intensifying a hydrological whiplash, from rainonsnow flash floods and glaciallake outburst floods (GLOFs) to dryseason water stress across Ganga–BrahmaputraIndus basins.
Reducing soot (Black Carbon) from stoves and diesel can be a key lever for India to slow Himalayan melt quickly.