Rice anthropologists spotlight human toll of glacier loss

(Press-News.org) In an important contribution from the social sciences, Rice University anthropologists Cymene Howe and Dominic Boyer examine the societal consequences of global glacier loss in a commentary published today in Science.

Their article appears alongside new research that estimates that more than three-quarters of the world’s glacier mass could disappear by the end of the century under current climate policies. While the study projects the physical outcomes of glacial melt, Howe and Boyer highlight the social impacts and human stories behind the statistics — from disrupted ecosystems and endangered cultural heritage to funeral rites held for vanished ice.

“Often statistics about glacier loss can feel abstract and distant. But glaciers have literally shaped the ground we walk on, and they provide crucial water resources to about 2 billion people. For people who have lived near glaciers, their cultural meanings are often profound, representing the fundamental relationship between social and natural worlds ” said Howe, professor of anthropology and co-director of Rice’s Program in Science and Technology Studies.

The commentary draws from the authors’ ongoing work on the Global Glacier Casualty List, a Rice-based digital platform that documents glaciers that have melted or are critically endangered. The project blends climate science, social science and community narratives to memorialize a rapidly disappearing part of Earth’s cryosphere.

“The past five years have been the worst five years for glaciers since ice loss has been tracked scientifically. We’re now losing 273 billion tons of ice globally each year, but there’s a feeling that even these staggering losses aren’t enough to motivate needed climate action,” said Boyer, professor of anthropology and co-director of the Center for Coastal Futures and Adaptive Resilience. “This is where we think the social sciences can work together with glaciologists and climate scientists to explain why these losses matter and how many lives and communities are impacted when these amazing landscapes disappear.”

Their publication marks an uncommon appearance by social scientists in Science, which primarily features research in the natural and physical sciences. The authors argue that addressing the impacts of climate change requires not only scientific measurement but also cultural understanding, public memory and collective action.

“As glacial loss accelerates, so do the social and emotional responses to environmental change,” they write.

The United Nations has designated 2025 as the International Year of Glaciers’ Preservation. Howe and Boyer emphasize that global climate goals, such as limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels, could still preserve a significant portion of the world’s glaciers and prevent the erosion of ecosystems, economies and cultural lifeways connected to them.

“Most people on Earth will never have a chance to be in the presence of a glacier, but their loss affects us all. We still have a chance to preserve half the world’s remaining glaciers if we act together — and immediately — to reduce global warming,” Howe said. “We have lost a lot, but there is still so much that can be saved for us and the generations that will come after us: They deserve to know the magnificence and meaning of these great bodies of ice.”

The commentary was supported by the National Science Foundation’s Office of Polar Programs.

To explore the Global Glacier Casualty List, visit https://ggcl.rice.edu.

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