The spiritual significance of glaciers in an age of climate change

Allison, Elizabeth

doi:10.1002/wcc.354

Cited by 86 publications

(78 citation statements)

References 103 publications

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“…With the rapid retreat of the glacier, this custom has been stopped and guards now make sure that no ice is removed (Allison, 2015). Similarly candles that are lit around the glacier during this procession have been reduced in size to limit their impact on glacier melt.…”

Section: Cultural Beliefsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Hence environmental aspects of water demand, use and allocation are clearly intertwined with social and cultural aspects that are often equally important for understanding the impacts on local society and its response to these external forces. Allison (2015) for example documents how glacier retreat is not simply seen as just a material loss, but has implications for the local identity of rural communities and the way they see themselves and their surroundings. After all, in many places mountain glaciers are viewed not just as sources of freshwater but are sacred places, home of gods or even living beings.…”

Section: Cultural Beliefsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Rapid decline of snow and ice in the tropical Andes – Impacts, uncertainties and challenges ahead

Vuille

Carey

Huggel

et al. 2018

Earth-Science Reviews

250

213

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Glaciers in the tropical Andes have been retreating for the past several decades, leading to a temporary increase in dry season water supply downstream. Projected future glacier shrinkage, however, will lead to a long-term reduction in dry season river discharge from glacierized catchments. This glacier retreat is closely related to the observed increase in high-elevation, surface air temperature in the region. Future projections using a simple freezing level height-equilibrium-line altitude scaling approach suggest that glaciers in the inner tropics, such as Antizana in Ecuador, may be most vulnerable to future warming while glaciers in the more arid outer tropics, such as Zongo in Bolivia, may persist, albeit in a smaller size, throughout the 21st century regardless of emission scenario. Nonetheless many uncertainties persist, most notably problems with accurate snowfall measurements in the glacier accumulation zone, uncertainties in establishing accurate thickness measurements on glaciers, unknown future changes associated with local-scale circulation and cloud cover affecting glacier energy balance, the role of aerosols and in particular black carbon deposition on Andean glaciers, and the role of groundwater and aquifers interacting with glacier meltwater.The reduction in water supply for export-oriented agriculture, mining, hydropower production and human consumption are the most commonly discussed concerns associated with glacier retreat, but many other aspects including glacial hazards, tourism and recreation, and ecosystem integrity are also affected by glacier retreat. Social and political problems surrounding water allocation for subsistence farming have led to conflicts due to lack of adequate water governance. Local water management practices in many regions reflect cultural belief systems, perceptions and spiritual values and glacier retreat in some places is seen as a threat to these local livelihoods.Comprehensive adaptation strategies, if they are to be successful, therefore need to consider science, policy, culture and practice, and involve local populations. Planning needs to be based not only on future scenarios derived from physically-based numerical models, but must also consider societal needs, economic agendas, political conflicts, socioeconomic inequality and cultural values. This review elaborates on the need for adaptation as well as the challenges and constraints many adaptation projects are faced with, and lays out future directions where opportunities exist to develop successful, culturally acceptable and sustainable adaptation strategies.

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Section: Cultural Beliefsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Cultural Beliefsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rapid decline of snow and ice in the tropical Andes – Impacts, uncertainties and challenges ahead

Vuille

Carey

Huggel

et al. 2018

Earth-Science Reviews

250

213

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…In addition to its role for the nature conservation, sacred cultural and religious aspects behind sacred institutions are potential for climate change prediction and shock resistance [40], however, the emphasis on consumption, economics and policy usually fail to engage people at any deep level because it does not address the narrative, the mythological, the metaphorical or the existence of memories of past disasters and the way out [41,42]. The faiths are the holders of these areas and without them policies will have very few real roots.…”

Section: Sacred Institution Role In Nature Conservation and Climate Cmentioning

confidence: 99%

Holy Hills Role in Biodiversity Conservation and Mountain Management: Implication of Multi-Purpose Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahido Church in Sustainable Mountain Conservation

Tt¹,

Soromess²,

Argaw³

et al. 2017

J Biodivers Endanger Species

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Ethiopia had practiced Judaism before Christianity. This church is unique in the continent of Africa and glob in holding judo-Christian sect. In the church tradition forests are considered as shelter of the earth crust which provides enormous scenery to the world. Most of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahido Church and monasteries are built on hills, mountains and high places which are covered with densely forests. This practice and tradition was comes from Eden, the place had all the best and choicest trees and plant, God a tender Father, provide not only for Adam's needs, but also his pleasure. The church on the earth signifies the new heaven, the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband, Adam. Therefore, gardening was the first kind of employment on record in which man was engaged. Though trees and plants produced the necessary flower and fruits by the will of God, dressing and keeping are necessary to maintain in their perfection. The greenery in Eden is the underlying principles on which Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahido Church dwell to conserve nature. Existing literatures on the nature conservation role of Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahido Church is not the detail. Therefore, published articles and Holy Scriptures were reviewed and presented in a more coherent manner. The main objective of the paper is to explore past and present work on sacred grove role in general, Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahido Church in particular in mountain ecology management and biodiversity conservation. The result shows that unreplaceable role of Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahido Church in conserving forest and mountain biodiversity in Ethiopia by indicating large scale forests and ecosystem is currently under the custodianship of Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahido church and its role on carbon emission reduction in the changing world. Therefore, recognizing the indigenous knowledge in biodiversity and mountain conservation and customizing the best practice from it would help global efforts on remnant resource conservation. It is a win-win scenario for diversity management and mountain conservation policy formulation effort too.

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“…Excessive use and encroachment of the land resources have led to extensive degradation of natural landscapes, extinction of species, and loss of ecosystem functions and services . Glacier retreat in these high mountains is not just a physical process but it also affects the livelihood and economy of the downstream regions with implications on the traditional knowledge and beliefs of the local communities . Because of the difficult terrain and harsh weather conditions, the availability of observed data is scarce and fragmented, and the studies carried out in the IHR are very few.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Changing climate and glacio‐hydrology in Indian Himalayan Region: a review

Singh

Kumar

Bhardwaj

et al. 2016

WIREs Climate Change

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This study presents a comprehensive review of the published literature on the evidences of a changing climate in the Indian Himalayan Region (IHR) and its impacts on the glacio-hydrology of the region. The IHR serves as an important source of fresh water for the densely populated areas downstream. It is evident from the available studies that temperature is significantly increasing in all parts of the IHR, whereas precipitation is not indicative of any particular spatiotemporal trend. Glacio-hydrological proxies for changing climate, such as, terminus and areal changes of the glaciers, glacier mass balance, and streamflow in downstream areas, highlight changes more evidently in recent decades. On an average, studies have predicted an increase in temperature and precipitation in the region, along with increase in streamflow of major rivers. Such trends are already apparent in some sub-basins of the western IHR. The region is particularly vulnerable to changing climate as it is highly dependent on snow and glacier melt run-off to meet its freshwater demands. We present a systematic review of key papers dealing with changing temperature, precipitation, glaciers, and streamflow in the IHR. We discuss these interdisciplinary themes in relation to each other, in order to establish the present and future impacts of climatic, glaciological, and hydrological changes in the region.

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The spiritual significance of glaciers in an age of climate change

Cited by 86 publications

References 103 publications

Rapid decline of snow and ice in the tropical Andes – Impacts, uncertainties and challenges ahead

Rapid decline of snow and ice in the tropical Andes – Impacts, uncertainties and challenges ahead

Holy Hills Role in Biodiversity Conservation and Mountain Management: Implication of Multi-Purpose Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahido Church in Sustainable Mountain Conservation

Changing climate and glacio‐hydrology in Indian Himalayan Region: a review

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