The Fifth Global Meeting of the Mountain Partnership met for the final day on Wednesday to “gear up” the Partnership and consider how best to support the implementation of the Framework for Action. Organizers of the side events held on Tuesday reported on the respective outcomes of events on: promoting mountain products to improve local economies and livelihoods; education in mountains; the launch of the Mountain 2018 platform; understanding landscape and watershed management in mountains; science and research for evidence-informed policy and action on the ground; and the Andean Mechanism. Throughout the day, members focused on the internal governance of the Partnership by considering: the inclusion of Central Asia as an additional region; nomination, endorsement and election of Steering Committee members for the period 2017-2021; setting priorities and identifying the main areas of work for the next biennium, including advocacy, capacity development, joint action, communication, and setting regional and thematic topics; and considering the meeting outcomes and steps going forward.

During lunchtime, participants took part in a speed-geeking session, engaging with different challenges and experiences related to sustainable management of mountain ecosystems and ways to engage with mountain people.

During the final session, the donor countries of Italy and Switzerland, FAO as host of the Secretariat, and the outgoing Chair and Coordinator provided concluding remarks. The meeting closed at 5:06 pm, after which the newly-elected Steering Committee met to consider its work for the next biennium.

The Fifth Global Meeting of the Mountain Partnership continued on Tuesday, with an early morning report on progress made and achievements since the Fourth Global Meeting in 2013. Thomas Hofer, Coordinator of the Mountain Partnership Secretariat, provided a summary of activities and challenges, highlighting the objectives, governance structure and composition, and achievements of the Partnership, urging members to “move from the opera house to the stadium” in broadening the advocacy and communication functions. This was followed by Steering Committee members reporting back on the achievements, priorities and challenges in their constituencies.

In the afternoon, members attended a panel session on resource mobilization, which included reports from major players sharing their experiences in the private sector, the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO).

The day concluded with an internal meeting of the members of the Mountain Partnership providing feedback on governance issues, including considering options on membership fees, the inclusion of Central Asia as a separate region, selecting alternate Steering Committee members, an approach to dealing with inactive members, the hosting arrangement of the Secretariat, and deletion of the Mountain Partnership’s function of “innovation.”

In the evening, three side events were held, focusing on: understanding landscape and watershed management in mountains; science and research for evidence-informed policy and action on the ground - experiences and outlook in mountain-specific cases; and the Andean Mechanism. The day concluded with a dinner hosted by FAO.

The Fifth Global Meeting of the Mountain Partnership opened on Monday, 11 December 2017, in Rome, Italy, under the theme ‘Mountains under pressure: climate, hunger, migration.’ International Mountain Day coincided with the first day of the meeting, and participants heard high-level statements and a keynote speech by Petteri Taalas, Secretary-General, World Meteorological Organization (WMO), in the morning. Representatives from the founding members of the Mountain Partnership conveyed their appreciation for progress made during the 15 years of the organization’s existence, including the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO), the governments of Italy and Switzerland, and UN Environment. This was followed by remarks by the Mountain Partnership Ambassadors, including from: His Holiness Drikung Kyabgön Chetsang, head of the Drikung Kagyu order of Tibetan Buddhism; Arjun Gupta, TeleSoft Partners; and Jake Norton, MountainWorld Productions.

The Framework for Action was launched, followed by government statements, and four sessions on the Framework and linkages to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. On the challenges and responses of the Framework and the 2030 Agenda, panelists discussed: the relationship between mountains and climate change and disaster risk management, and food and water; mountains and their goods and services; and mountain communities and migration.

The high-level segment concluded with a panel session during which panelists showcased practical approaches towards making the Framework work, including from the Kyrgyz Republic, the Secretariat of the Global Snow Leopard and Ecosystem Protection Program, the Aga Khan Development Network, the Global Island Partnership, and the Carpathian Convention.

International Mountain Day and the 15th anniversary of the Mountain Partnership was celebrated appropriately during an evening reception.