The International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) is a regional intergovernmental learning and knowledge sharing centre serving the eight regional member countries of the Hindu Kush Himalayas: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, Nepal, and Pakistan. ICIMOD aims to assist mountain people to understand these changes, adapt to them, and make the most of new opportunities, while addressing upstream-downstream issues.
ICIMOD’s provision of services and support is in terms of assisting its constituents to understand the changes happening to mountainous ecosystems due to impacts of climate change.
AREAS OF SUPPORT
ICIMOD engages in regional transboundary programmes through partnership and extensive collaboration with regional partner institutions and global centers of excellence. The center’s strategic objective is working to develop an economically and environmentally sound mountain ecosystem to improve the living standards of mountain population at the same ensuring sustainability of ecosystem services for the billions of people living in the area.
As one of regional networks for Asian region collaborates with the LDC Expert Group in conducting training packages for developing countries in the region. Specifically, ICIMOD also provides insights to the LEG on what ongoing adaptation initiatives are currently undertaken by the countries. ICIMOD likewise provide assistance in selecting case studies particularly from the HKH region that demonstrates effective adaptation undertakings or elements of the process. ICIMOD serve as member of advisory group for some of the workshops and
ICIMOD’s programmes and projects relevant to the process to formulate and implement national adaptation plans are:
- Himalayan Climate Change Adaptation Programme (HICAP). HICAP is a pioneering collaboration among three organizations – CICERO, ICIMOD, and GRID-Arendal – aimed at contributing to enhanced resilience of mountain communities, particularly women, through improved understanding of vulnerabilities, opportunities, and potentials for adaptation. It will generate knowledge of climate change impacts on natural resources, ecosystem services, and the communities depending on them, contributing to policy and practice for enhanced adaptation.
- The programme is organized around six interlinked components:
- ICIMOD also produced several publications on adaptation, which showcased case examples of country experiences. These are:
- Policy and institutions in adaptation to climate change: case study on responding to water stress in Chitral, Pakistan;
- Role of policy and institutions in Local Adaptation to climate change: Case studies on responses to too much and too little water in the Hindu Kush Himalayas;
- Long term environmental and socio-ecological monitoring in transboundary landscapes.
RELEVANT LINKS
International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD)
(http://www.icimod.org/)