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IPROMO course to tackle climate change in mountains

29.09.2020

The effects of climate change in mountains is the main topic of the thirteenth IPROMO course, which opened in a completely virtual format on 28 September 2020 and runs until 9 October. Thirty-eight participants from 21 countries, including officers, development experts and technicians, are taking part in this year’s course, which features instructors from around the globe, including the University of British Colombia in Canada, Yamagata University in Japan and the Euro-Mediterranean Center on Climate Change, among others.

A small selection of the most committed students will be granted automatic participation in next year’s 2021 IPROMO course – which will hopefully be held in a classroom modality in the Italian Alps.

This year’s theme is “Mountains in a changing climate: Threats, challenges and opportunities.“ Mountains are particularly vulnerable to climate change. Temperatures are rising faster at high elevations, with some areas experiencing global warming at a rate twice as fast as the global average. Glaciers are melting, people and infrastructure are being exposed to natural hazards, water flow and agriculture are being impacted, and biodiversity is being lost. An integrated climate change approach in mountains allows for more effective sustainable management policies, adaptation and mitigation measures, which can prevent and alleviate the negative effects of climate change on mountain environments and communities. Sustainable management of mountains is essential for sustaining ecosystem services such as freshwater supply and food crop diversity, but also for combating the threats posed to local communities that are vulnerable to food insecurity and poverty.

"Climate change is an issue strongly affecting mountains that must be addressed urgently. I hope this year's IPROMO course will inspire participants to take quick action in their mountain areas," said Rosalaura Romeo, Mountain Partnership Secretariat Programme Officer.

The 2020 IPROMO course will focus on several aspects, tools and skills that contribute to an integrated management of mountain areas through the many lenses of climate change. Topics include environmental conservation, watershed management, mountain forests, soils and biodiversity, and also mountain policy and sustainable tourism.

The interrelations between climate change, watershed management, poverty reduction and food insecurity will be discussed during the course. Virtual working groups will be formed, allowing participants to share their knowledge and build a network of experts.

There will be four 45-minute modules per day, followed by 15 minutes for questions and answers, for a total of four hours of lessons each day. The e-learning platforms used will be MOODLE and CISCO WEBEX; all lessons will be available both live and recorded. At the end of each day, a questionnaire will be distributed to participants to be filled before the following day’s lesson.

The annual IPROMO course is jointly organized by the Mountain Partnership Secretariat, the University of Turin, Italy, and the University of Tuscia, Italy, with the high patronage of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Learn more about IPROMO 2020

Learn about the partnership with the University of Turin

Photo by Martine B.