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Students from the University of Foix, France, together with the Club Alpin Francais des Pyrenees Ariegeoises, are organizing several activities in observance of International Mountain Day. On 11 December, they will lead a cultural excursion to the "Saint Sauveur", conduct a lecture on "Mountain aerology, landscape and geological formation" and present the permanent mountain photo exhibition in the University library. On 12 December, there will be further mountain lectures, concluding in an evening of sharing Pyrenees mountain stories and products. [...]

The exhibition “Ex Libris of the Mountains. Engravers of peaks”, organized by the National Mountain Museum in collaboration with the region of Piedmont, the CRT Foundation, the City of Turin and the Italian Alpine Club, has been extended until 11 December, International Mountain Day, due to the considerable interest shown by the public. The exhibition focuses on a collection of mountain bookplates with over 4 000 pieces, put together over many years by collector and antiquarian Gastone Mingardi.

The first annual Haines Junction Mountain Festival in Haines Junction, Canada will highlight the International Mountain Day theme "Mountain cultures: celebrating diversity and strengthening identity" with celebrations of the mountainous Kluane National Park and Reserve. The Haines Junction Mountain Festival will feature events starting in the evening on 9 December, followed by two full days of indoor and outdoor events in the Haines Junction area.

Guide Altopiano are planning an excursion on Mount Cornon and Sasso Rosso, historically important areas for the Asiago Plateau, Italy, on 11 December, International Mountain Day. The theme of the day will be linked to mountain cultures. Following a morning hike, there will be a lunch of typical local mountain products, a visit to the Museum of Foza and discussions about the Cimbri people that once lived in the area, as well as about the local flora and fauna.

The Association Assirem Gouraya "Earth Team" announces the fifth edition of the National Mountain Festival, to be held on 9-12 December 2016 in the Bejaia Province, Algeria. The theme of the festival will be “Mountain Cultures: celebrating diversity and strengthening identity”, in coordination with the theme of this year’s International Mountain Day. The event will promote the various cultures present in the different regions of the country to strengthen the identities of Algeria’s mountain peoples.

The University of Tehran’s Environmental Science Students Association is organizing the conference “International Mountain Day in Iran: mountains and negative impacts of climate change“, to be held on 11 December at the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources in Karaj City. Speakers from the Government and NGOs will discuss mountain ecosystems, climate change, biodiversity and more. The Association have chosen the Lorestan Mountain Newt as the symbol of IMD 2016 to raise aware about this Critically Endangered amphibian.  

In observance of International Mountain Day, the Canadian Mountain Network is bringing mountain community members and mountain researchers together for a Mountain Symposium on 15 December in Edmonton, Canada. A panel of mountain community leaders from Alberta, British Columbia, Yukon and the Northwest Territories will lead discussions and interactive break-out groups suggesting innovative solutions to balance living in the mountains with the protection of fragile mountain ecosystems.

The Romanian Outdoor Education and Culture Association (AECO Romania), in collaboration with the Alpine Convention, is organizing the first Reading Mountains Festival event to be held in the Carpathian Mountains. Between 1 November – 1 December, AECO Romania is hosting a contest for essays and poetry in Romanian language, with a focus on mountain themes. The winners will be announced publicly on 11 December and will be awarded prizes and diplomas offered by the event sponsors.

From the mountain island of Pico, Azores, Portugal, MiratecArts leads the annual celebration of International Mountain Day on 11 December. This year, MiratecArts will inaugurate an artistic installation at the local winery coop CVIP in Madalena, Portugal´s 2017 wine capital, followed by a saxophone concert at 2 351 metres. They will also launch the poster and programme of the January 2017 Montanha Pico Festival, which will feature art exhibitions, a film festival and tea-talk events on the mountain.

The Karnali Integrated Rural Development and Research Centre (KIRDARC) is organizing a Mountain Conference in observance of International Mountain Day on 14-15 December, to be held in Jumla, a remote, mountainous district of Nepal. This conference will raise the community’s awareness of mountain issues and focus on the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Community representatives and mountain experts will share their experiences on different themes related to mountain regions and indigenous mountain communities. (Photo: FAO/Sailendra Kharel)