Researchers from the School of Geography and Planning have contributed to a major new international publication which highlights the accelerating decline of glaciers and ice sheets and their consequences for people and the planet.
The UK National Commission for UNESCO (UKNC) has launched Glaciers and Ice Sheets in a Warming World: Impacts and Outcomes, as the United Nations marks the 2025 International Year of Glaciers’ Preservation.
Professor in Physical Geography and Head of School, Stephen Livingstone and Senior Lecturers in Physical Geography Dr Jeremy Ely and Dr Andrew Sole, have all authored chapters in the landmark report.
The report has found that since 2000, glaciers worldwide have lost more than 6,500 billion tonnes of ice, contributing roughly one-third of current sea-level rise and reducing the availability of water to countless mountain communities.
The loss rate has accelerated by more than a third in the past decade, underscoring the urgency of limiting global warming to 1.5 °C.
Edited by Professor David J. Drewry, former Director of the British Antarctic Survey and Vice-Chair and Director for Natural Sciences at the UKNC, the report unites new findings from universities across the UK. This includes contributions from leading British scientists who work in partnership with international teams in glacier regions from the Andes and Himalayas to the Arctic and Antarctic.
2025 is International Year of Glaciers’ Preservation (IYGP 2025). Adopted by the UN General Assembly, the Year aims to raise global awareness of glaciers’ critical role in ecosystems, economies and societies. UNESCO and the WMO are coordinating scientific and policy initiatives throughout 2025, culminating each year on World Day for Glaciers (21 March).