Leaders from mountain communities around the world are coming to Aspen next week to talk about sustainable development in the face of climate change, water scarcity and other environmental threats.
They’re gathering Tuesday through Sept. 29 for the sixth Global Meeting of the Mountain Partnership, which is based in Rome at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
The alliance has more than 300 members and includes government officials, nongovernmental organizations and business leaders — and this year marks the first time it is convening in North America.
Members meet about every four years to set sustainable development goals and brainstorm ways to tackle a range of issues impacting their communities.
Local resident Karinjo DeVore is the president of the Aspen International Mountain Foundation, which helped start the original U.N. partnership.
She and her team organized this year’s three-day event with help from The Aspen Institute, the city of Aspen and the state of Colorado.
“We’re going to be addressing issues that have to do with water, biodiversity, ecotourism and climate change, of course,” DeVore said. “It’s very important that mountain communities all over the world come together.”
Aspen Public Radio recently talked with DeVore about which events are open to the public and about what she hopes comes out of the gathering.
You can listen to the conversation in the audio story above.
