Happy Cryosphere 2026

Thank You for 2025!

From the launch of the International Year of Glaciers Preservation during January and March in Geneva, Paris, and New York; to Sagarmatha Sambaad in Kathmandu and the International Glaciers’ Conference in Dushanbe during May; through SB62 in Bonn, UNGA Climate Week in New York, and COP30 in Belém; and across dozens of scientific meetings worldwide, recognition of the cryosphere’s central role in climate action continues to grow. There is no negotiating with the melting point of ice.

It was fantastic to see many of you at COP30 in Belém, including at the Cryosphere Pavilion in coordination with Ambition on Melting Ice Co-chairs Chile and Iceland. We are grateful to everyone who took part in-person and virtually, and helped bring cryosphere science to the forefront of discussions, including in the 2025 State of the Cryosphere Report. The message was clear: cutting fossil fuel emissions is urgent, and latest science leaves no room for delay.

Importantly, the Paris Agreement limit of 1.5°C remains within reach. Whether we succeed depends on today’s policy decisions, and on turning climate commitments into action. An increasing number of nations and scientists are speaking up to ensure decisions are guided by the best available science, steering towards the “highest possible ambition” pathways by implementing needed transformative action to meet 2030 and 2050 benchmarks.

Looking Ahead to 2026!

Next year will build on the International Year of Glaciers’ Preservation and move into the UN Decade of Action for Cryospheric Sciences. ICCI and these weekly Cryosphere Capsules will continue to share clear, policy-relevant scientific developments from Earth’s polar and high mountain regions to ensure decision makers have access to latest cryosphere science each week; and we’ll continue to support scientists to bring that science to bear across relevant policy forums throughout the year.

In April 2026, Colombia and the Netherlands will co-host the First International Conference on the Phase-Out of Fossil Fuels in Santa Marta (28–29 April). This major initiative will complement the UNFCCC process by helping to define a roadmap for a just and equitable transition away from fossil fuels, grounded in IPCC and other scientific findings over recent decades, and underscored by cryosphere science projections that point to an especially urgent timeline to avert widespread global loss and damage. These efforts align with the International Court of Justice Advisory Opinion delivered in July 2025, which recognized the legal obligation of countries to protect the climate from damaging emissions linked to fossil fuel production.

Cryosphere Capsules will return on January 9. If you would like to read any of the Capsules from the past year, please visit ICCI’s website and select “Latest Science“.

We wish you a relaxing holiday season and look forward to staying connected in 2026!

The ICCI Cryosphere Capsules Team