AD 2002 Declared by United Nations as “International Year of the Mountains”

On 10 November 1998 the United Nations General Assembly designated AD 2002 as the International Year of the Mountains in response to an initiative from Kyrghyzstan. This is the positive conclusion to a process long in the making and, we believe, full of significance for the future. This article is intended to outline some of the main strands which finally came together to bring about the UN decision, and to suggest why it should be regarded with optimism.Mountain lands occupy about twenty percent of the earth's terrestrial surface and provide the direct life-support base for about a tenth of all humanity. They also encompass extensive resources, especially water; but at the same time they have been flash points for warfare, international boundary controversies, and catastrophic natural and human-induced hazards with great potential for impacts far out onto the surrounding lowlands. Extreme poverty among mountain peoples, especially in developing countries, is another structural characteristic. They have been a source of religious and spiritual inspiration that has affected the lives of multitudes of people living among the mountains, and also far removed from them.