Global Outlook for Ice and Snow - Highlights

This document explains the role of ice and snow in the global climate system, describing how different cryosphere components respond to warming and influence climate, ecosystems, and human activities. It highlights that ice sheets contribute to sea-level rise, while snow and sea ice regulate solar reflectivity and ocean circulation. Permafrost stores large carbon reserves that may be released as greenhouse gases when thawing, further accelerating climate change. Glaciers, ice caps, rivers, and lake ice respond rapidly to warming, affecting water resources, ecosystems, and livelihoods. The document emphasises the widespread decline of ice and snow driven by human-induced warming and its broad environmental consequences.