Mount Everest, the world’s highest mountain, faces an environmental crisis, giving us a preview of the devastating effects of climate change. While the ice on its glaciers is melting at a record pace, increasing the risk of floods and other disasters, mass tourism has brought garbage and other pollution issues for local populations.

Climbers Conrad Anker and Dawa Steven Sherpa have worked together in the Everest Valley. Today, they are both taking action. In this episode of On Thin Ice, they discuss how climbers and local communities can work together to protect the mountain and its people from climate threats.

Conrad is one of the most iconic alpinists of the past three decades, and he has witnessed the dramatic transformations brought by climate change to mountain environments everywhere; he is now working with local communities and experienced Sherpa mountaineers to help make ice climbing safer in the region, as the glaciers become more unpredictable.

Dawa, a board member of the Bally Peak Outlook Foundation, is a famed mountaineer, serial entrepreneur and climate advocate, representing a new generation of Nepalis who are trying to develop a sustainable tourism industry–one that respects local traditions as well as the mountains they live off. Dawa has worked relentlessly to develop programs such as “Carry me back”, one of the key projects supported by the foundation, to reduce pollution and other negative impacts of tourism in the Everest Valley.

How can the local Sherpa communities handle the tons of trash left behind by tourism? How can climbers mitigate the risks of glacier collapses and avalanches? These are some of the vital questions they address on the mountain on a daily basis, as they look for answers that could also help other alpinists around the world.

On Thin Ice is produced in partnership with the Bally Peak Outlook Foundation.

Head to ballypeakoutlook.org/ to learn more about the foundation, which is on a mission to safeguard the world's fragile mountain habitats from the adverse effects of global warming and excessive tourism.

Production credits:

Original Music: Nadir Cassim

Editorial advisor: Dave Vetter

Graphic Design: Guillaume Ory

Video editing: Iceworm team

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