One of my personal highlights from 2025 was attending the 50th anniversary of the UIAA Safety Commission, held in Chamonix in April. I was last in Chamonix in 1979 when backpacking. And one thing had not changed, the weather was atrocious and I never saw Mont Blanc. Does it really exist? Or is a tourist attraction fabricated by the French, Swiss and Italians? It remains a mythical mountain for me.

It was really nice to observe the massive turnout for the SafeCom event and listen to many complex and technical discussions. The dedication and skill that supply that particular Commission is outstanding. And it is typical of many areas of the UIAA.

My own climbing activities have been hit hard by the fires in Canada over the past year, another reminder of the impact of climate change. Most of the backcountry in Northwest Ontario, in Manitoba, and in the Canadian Shield, was closed until really the end of June. I guess this has given me more time for meetings…

I’d like to also reflect on the change of Chief Executive Officer. Andre von Rotz succeeded Nils Glatthard as CEO in January. I was worried when Nils left because he had performed a great job and was very skilled at dealing with people and many challenging situations. Andre has really hit the ground running and not only ensured continued stability but brought his own personality and different interpretation to the role.

Over the past year, I have really enjoyed both the Executive Committee and Management Board meetings. I always did, but over the past year, they have taken on a new kind of persona. Everybody is involved, everybody is interested, bringing lots of good ideas. And I attribute a lot to the fact that we’ve set strategic priorities rather than a strategic plan. People have found the path clearer.

Here are my reflections on the seven strategic priorities:

Greater concentration, greater focus and progress of the seven strategic priorities

As I outlined at the 2025 UIAA General Assembly in Kosovo, delegates hopefully picked up on both my optimism and my reflections on the positive direction that the UIAA is heading. We are more concentrated and more focused, thanks significantly to our new strategic priorities.

Words from Peter Muir, President of the UIAA

Part 1: Executive Review - President's Report

At the 2024 General Assembly, agreement was reached on the new UIAA Strategic Priorities for the period 2025-2028. A reminder of these guidelines can be found here.

Part 1: Executive Review - Strategic Priorities

The 2025 UIAA General Assembly took place in Peja, Kosovo from 24-26 October and was hosted by the Kosovo Mountaineering and Sport Climbing Federation. Kosovo became the 35th country to host a UIAA GA. Annexed to the GA programme was the second edition of the UIAA Mountain Sports Symposium.

Over 90 delegates representing 54 member associations attended the GA. The GA programme, as has become tradition, included a Climate Change Summit and panel discussions dedicated to the UIAA Strategic Priorities, the role of innovations and ethics, and the development of climbing and mountaineering in emerging federations.

During the GA, the two main prizes awarded as part of the 2025 UIAA Mountain Protection Award, partnered by Lenovo and Altezza Travel, were granted. Flagship Shelters for the Environment from UIAA member association FFCAM (Fédération française des clubs alpins et de montagne) was confirmed as the overall winner and Walking the Tra Tra by fellow UIAA active/full member Mountain Club of South Africa (MCSA) as the Best New Initiative.  The official prizegiving for the 2025-26 Mountain Protection Award will take place at the Alpine Museum in Bern, Switzerland held on 23-24 October, 2026 and jointly to the ceremony of the Albert Mountain Awards.

In addition to the GA, the autumn UIAA Management Board meeting was held as well as meetings for the Mountaineering, Safety and Medical Commissions as well as for the World Ice Climbing Board. The Mountain Sports Symposium, a two-day course focused on topics related to mountain medicine, safety and training with a particular focus on the Balkan region attracted over 60 attendees. A full review of this event is available in Part 2.

Future UIAA General Assemblies

Next year’s GA will be held in Kathmandu, Nepal, from 29-31 October. The Nepal Mountaineering Association (NMA) will be the hosts. The 2027 UIAA GA will visit Santiago, Chile and be hosted by FEACH. Dates are to be confirmed.

Part 1: Executive Review - General Assembly

The Communication team is responsible for the federation’s external communications, the UIAA’s digital platforms, social media, and supporting UIAA commissions, working groups and member federations with all communication-related needs. It is also the main contact point for media requests.

In numbers:

Episodes of Mountain Voices podcast

Views on YouTube

(-3.2 million from 2024)

Website news stories

Audience growth on Instagram

Posts on Instagram

Total views on Instagram

Total views on Facebook (+2.7 million from 2024)

Number of countries Mountain Voices podcast has been downloaded

Website page views

Part 1: Executive Review - Communication

How to follow the UIAA:

Report by

Peter Bourne, UIAA Communication Manager

Tom Tushaw, UIAA Social Media Manager

The calendar year was marked by a number of initiatives related to glacier awareness. On 21 March, the inaugural World Glacier Day was observed and on 11 December, International Mountain Day, the theme was "Glaciers matter for water, food and livelihoods in mountains and beyond". The UlAA produced, and collated, a number of assets related to the International Year of Glaciers' Preservation including:

Part 2: Featured Stories - Glaciers

Flagship Shelters for the Environment by UIAA member association Fédération française des clubs alpins et de montagne (FFCAM) was announced as the winner of the 11th edition of the UIAA Mountain Protection Award (MPA) at the UIAA General Assembly (GA) in Peja.

It is the second time a French project has won the Award following Mountain Wilderness France in 2016. The Best New Initiative was awarded to Walking the Tra Tra by Mountain Club of South Africa.

A total of 20 international projects operational on five continents and in 19 countries were showcased as part of 2025 MPA nominee list.

While the two prize winners were confirmed at the General Assembly, the official award ceremony will take place in 2026, specifically at the Alpine Museum in Bern, Switzerland held 23-24 October and jointly to the ceremony of the King Albert I Foundation's Mountain Awards.

As of 2025, the MPA functions on a two-year cycle with one year being an adjudication and award year; with the alternate year having a focus on community building and associated knowledge sharing. The MPA Award is sponsored by presenting partner Lenovo and Altezza Travel as supporting partner.

Return of the MPA, winners announced

Part 2: Featured Stories - MPA 2025

In recent years, the UIAA has dedicated significant investment, some 200,000 euros and counting, and resources to research related to rock anchors and bolts. Initially, this centred around the subject of corrosion and stress corrosion cracking failure. A significant milestone was reached when the updated UIAA Rock Anchors Standard was released in 2020. However, work in this field remains significant. While new products – certified to Standard 123 – are now available on the market, the challenge is ensuring both bolters and climbers are aware of the issues related to corrosion and the importance of using certified products.

Part 2: Achievements - Rock Anchors & Bolts

Map of failed rock anchors

Support SafeCom with its analysis and help add more areas to the global map linked above and thereby improve the information available to climbers about dangerous or potentially dangerous areas to climb.

Report failed rock anchors here.

The UIAA Climate Change Summit (CCS) 2025, held alongside the General Assembly (GA) in Peja, Kosovo, represented the latest step in the federation's long-term effort to turn climate ambition into climate action. Starting in Banff in 2022, this was the fourth edition of the CCS, again incorporated within the programme of a GA.

As a logical step following the earlier Summits, the 2025 programme shifted its principal focus from awareness-raising toward supporting and promoting practical, member-driven commitments. From a generic but abstract framework for climate action to genuine, concrete actions, each tailored to the capacity and context of individual member associations.

Just as in 2024, the 2025 Summit took place under the slogan "UIAA Climate Action: commit, move, together, now!", a nod to the central message that the UIAA and its member federations must take collective steps, however small, but consistently and in a coordinated manner. The Climate Change & Sustainability Action List, presented in a poster format, discussed and enriched by the Summits' participants, now outlines realistic options for member federations at different stages of their climate journey whether beginner, on-the-way, and advanced. It focused on the UlAA's four pillars: Commit, Mitigate, Adapt and Advocate/ Educate.

The Summit opened with presentations of three flagship federation projects (from France, South Africa and Argentina) that embody the aforementioned pillars, each demonstrating how federations can turn the climate principles promoted by the UIAA into applied practice. Paul Kwakkenbos, President of the Mountain Protection Commission, recapped the UIAA commitment to the Sports for Climate Action 2050 goals, progress related to the UIAA's internal Climate Action Plan and introduced the Commitment Statement for Member Federations, a mechanism through which the UIAA wishes to translate collective agreement into measurable progress, using more structured frameworks and clearer expectations.

This year for the first time, a workflow has been created for collecting concrete federation commitments between December 2025 and September 2026. This workflow involves distributing a clarified list of possible climate actions, asking federations to choose at least three before the end of March 2026, and sharing back the results at the 2026 General Assembly.

This process shows a marked progression from past Summits: the CCS is no longer merely a discussion forum but has become a structured tool for supporting, gathering, and celebrating meaningful climate actions.

A core aim of the CCS is to help federations feel encouraged and not pressured to take action. Throughout the design of the Summit and its follow up process, the UlAA adopts an incremental approach: federations are invited to choose only what fits their context, but they are also asked to choose something, and to repeat their efforts consistently over time. The actions are presented as options, not mandatory requirements, and should reflect each federation's resources, constraints, and ambitions.

The breakout sessions embodied this approach. Each participant was invited to mark the Climate Change & Sustainability Action List poster indicating the stage their federation was at across certain themes of 'Commit, Mitigate, Adapt, and Advocate/Educate'. Designated breakout session experts then led discussions on feasibility, clarity, and interpretation of some of these topics. This process was intentionally designed to create a dialogue and allow the UIAA to refine the Action List based on feedback.

Part 2: Featured Stories - Climate Change Summit

In mid-April, the UIAA Safety Commission gathered for its main annual meetings in Chamonix, France.

A diverse programme of activities were held including internal UIAA Safety Commission meetings, plenary meetings involving UIAA Safety Label holding manufacturers and independent accredited laboratories, working group meetings dedicated to specific topics as well as a Bolting workshop and two insightful public conferences.

Furthermore, the UIAA Safety Commission celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2025. In reality, the UIAA has developed safety standards since the early 1960s, and been engaged in safety topics since the 1930s, but 1975 marked the merging of the Ropes and Belaying Methods Commissions and creation of what today is commonly referred to as 'SafeCom'.

Nearly 100 delegates attended the various meetings including UIAA President Peter Muir, UIAA General Secretary and former SafeCom President Amit Chowdhury, UIAA CEO Andre Von Rotz, 14 members of the UIAA Safety Commission (as well as ten joining online), over 30 delegates from equipment manufacturers, representatives from accredited laboratories as well as honorary and former members of the UIAA Safety Commission, experts from UIAA member associations (FFCAM, France; SAC, Switzerland), environmental specialists and bolters from across France, Italy and Switzerland; rebolting organisations; and personnel from two UIAA Observer Members - International Slackline Association (ISA) and International Commission for Alpine Rescue (ICAR).

In addition to delivering new standards, making progress in the research and development of others, the meetings provided important opportunities for stakeholders to discuss current trends, innovations and issues in the industry.

Part 2: Featured Stories - SafeCom at 50

We report the style by which we climb with honesty.

We help others in need, even at the expense of our own goals.

We accept other people’s styles when different from our own.

We respect the natural ecosystems in climbing areas and mountain regions.

We will not harm the experience of others while hiking or climbing.

We recognise climate change and seek to reduce our impact.

We consider the effect on others before taking risks.

We adhere to local regulations and respect local communities and cultures.

We support the right of access to the wilderness with responsibility.

The declaration was officially approved at the 2024 UIAA General Assembly in Malta and has been conceived to exist in a number of different formats.

Part 2: Achievements - UIAA Declaration

The UIAA Mountaineering Commission was tasked by the UIAA Executive Committee to draft this new Declaration as the previous version (Tyrol Declaration 2002) required updating. The Mountaineering Commission was supported in the development and delivery of this new Declaration by a number of other UIAA commissions as well as the UIAA Executive Committee and Management Board.

“It is hoped that the new Declaration will provide the basis for a number of initiatives planned for the future, notably providing a platform for views and opinions on matters mountaineering and climbing. In this way, the Declaration will be a living document reflecting the views of mountaineers around the world.”

Greg Moseley, UIAA Mountaineering Commission President

To clarify the best practice for climbers and mountaineers from a mountaineering viewpoint. This particularly refers to the style of rock climbs and ascents of “alpine” peaks.

To lay out the generally accepted norms for behaviour that the UIAA considers optimal. This includes the ethics and style with which we climb and the environmental and social considerations that we should be aware of.

The 2025 UIAA Mountain Sports Symposium (MSS), held from 25-26 October in Peja, Kosovo, brought together over sixty participants from 27 countries to explore mountain medicine, safety, and techniques. The event was organised by the UIAA in collaboration with the Kosovo Mountaineering and Sport Climbing Federation (FBNSK), and showcased, with a particular focus on the Balkan region, the growing cross-region and international cooperation in mountain sports education and safety.

This was the second Mountain Sports Symposium organised by the UIAA following the inaugural event in Bariloche, Argentina held in April 2024.

Part 2: Featured Stories - MSS

The publication of the UIAA Standard 110 for Static Ropes heralds the latest achievement of the UIAA Safety Commission. It was approved at the Commission’s 50-year anniversary meeting in Chamonix in April following five years of intense efforts from a dedicated working group, composed of delegates from various climbing, mountaineering and rescue federations, technical experts, rope manufacturers and testing laboratories.

Standard 110 will be joined shortly by Standard 171 for Via Ferrata Construction as well as updates to five existing Standards as outlined here. The delivery of these updates has been achieved in parallel with the impressive and ongoing work in the field of rock anchors and bolting for which a dedicated library of assets for climbers, bolters and gear manufacturers is available.

Part 2: Featured Stories - Static Ropes 110

 “The process to establish a new Standard was complex and very thorough, for example it took us several meetings to come to an agreement first on the scope, which is the root of the Standard and then eases the discussions about technical requirements and test methods.”

Lionel Kiener (SAC, Switzerland), UIAA Safety Commission President

The Technical Perspective

Standard 110 is distinguished from the other UIAA and EN standards related to climbing and mountaineering ropes. While the requirements for dynamic ropes have been well defined since 1961 in the international standard UIAA 101 (and later in the EN 892), the situation is more complex for low elongation ropes. As shown in a table in the explanatory information guide, UIAA 107 (Low Stretch Ropes) is valid for low-stretch kernmantle ropes with an elongation up to 5%. In UIAA 107, the minimal diameter is set to 8.5mm (and the maximal to 16mm).

Nevertheless, for several years, ropes smaller than 8.5mm diameter have been on the market for crevasse rescue, rappelling and haul maneuvers. These ropes are currently certified according to UIAA 102 (Accessory Cord) and EN 564, but these standards are meant for accessory cords. For example, they have no specification on static strength with terminations, nor fall arrest test and the minimal tensile strength is low for thin ropes. This situation was not fully satisfactory, the UIAA decided to homogenise the requirements with the release of a new Standard.

“Static ropes have evolved as rope technology has advanced. And the way we use these ropes has evolved. This revolutionary standard has no minimum diameter, a first for global rope standards. It focuses on performance and ensures minimum requirements focused around supporting human life – anyone using ropes only certified to an accessory cord standard is missing out on real important guarantees that come with this Standard.”

Stephen Gladieux (USA, American Alpine Club), UIAA Safety Commission Working Group Lead for UIAA Standard 110

“This is a very positive step. The approved new structure of ice climbing is going to enable the people who are experts in this field to work with a greater degree of independence. Personally I don’t think that the previous ‘Commission-type of structure’ worked for ice climbing. This is a specialised project. If you look at other organisations they have very specific structures in place to develop their sports and by experts who are fully focussed on that. This is a major step in allowing the sport to develop”

Peter Muir, UIAA President

Part 2: Achievements - World Ice Climbing

Shortly after the creation of the Operating Unit, following an extensive recruitment process, the UIAA Management Board elected the first three officials to the inaugural World Ice Climbing Board. They are:

The Board is also comprised of athlete representatives, elected by the Athlete’s Committee:

JoAnne Carilli-Stevenson                                             

Etienne Grillot                                                                     

Alexandru Paun                                                             

USA

France                                                                     

Romania

IRL

GBR

ACC - Chair

FFCAM

CAR                                                             

MI

BMC

Eimir McSwiggan                                                 

Willis Morris                                            

The UIAA is the sole and exclusive international body recognized by the International Olympic Committee IOC governing Ice Climbing competitions worldwide.

The UIAA General Assembly establishes a competitive Ice Climbing operating unit to be known as World Ice Climbing for the purpose of governing, directing, regulating, promoting, developing and the general furtherance of competitiveIceClimbing (its “Objects”).

World Ice Climbing operates on a self-guided and self-governed basis and on behalf of the UIAA as beneficial owner will administer, apply, preserve and develop the competitive Ice Climbing assets and funds of the UIAA.

The UIAA, in partnership with the Petzl Foundation, published the digital English language version of the Alpine Skills: Summer handbook in August 2025. A global resource for safe and sustainable hiking, climbing and mountaineering, this seminal document is now available for climbers worldwide to purchase.

Now in its fourth English edition, this comprehensive guide is a trusted resource for anyone looking to enhance their skills in hiking, climbing, and mountaineering. Whether you’re a beginner eager to explore the outdoors safely or an experienced trip leader refining your technical knowledge, this handbook offers an invaluable reference designed for field use.

The handbook is a unique collaboration that draws on decades of expertise from global mountaineering communities and instructors. It combines Petzl’s renowned visual clarity with concise, practical text – making complex techniques accessible to readers of all backgrounds and experience levels.

Part 2: Featured Stories - Alpine Handbook goes digital

“Thanks to the Petzl Foundation for its commitment to climber safety far and wide. We are honoured to partner with such a recognized mountain leader. The Foundation’s continuing contributions to the UIAA’s priority of mountaineering safety cannot be underestimated.”

Peter Muir, UIAA President

“This hands-on, user-friendly document represents knowledge collected by Petzl over more than 30 years, and is supplemented by tried-and-true techniques from mountaineering clubs and organizations around the world. We wish to recognize and thank all the instructors and volunteers whose efforts have gone into this important reference book.”
Paul Petzl, Petzl Foundation President

Thanks largely to a very active social media campaign, sales of the Handbook were impressive. By the close of 2025, the following numbers had been registered

In January 2025, the UIAA Medical Commission published the following statement:

The UIAA Medical Commission has recently received multiple reports and correspondence from mountaineers asking whether inhaling xenon has a positive effect on the body's response to adapt to the lower oxygen availability at altitude (acclimatization).

The UIAA Medical Commission is asked these sorts of questions due to their role in providing the mountaineering community with scientifically based information in the form of fact-based safety and health recommendations which are free of charge, evaluated by specialists, and commonly published in scientific journals. The Medical Commission is open to and interested in new methods and developments used by the climbing community and carefully evaluates their worth.

According to current literature, there is no evidence that breathing in xenon improves performance in the mountains, and inappropriate use can be dangerous. Although a single inhalation of xenon can measurably increase the release of erythropoietin, this increase is not sustained over four weeks use, nor is it associated with any changes in red blood cells. According to the literature, the effects on performance are unclear and probably non-existent.

Acclimatization to altitude is a complex process that affects the various organs/systems such as the brain, lungs, heart, kidneys and blood to different degrees, and is not fully understood. Since the physiological changes take days to weeks to influence the organism, from a physiological point of view, a single, one-off drug cannot be the key to improved acclimatization or increased performance. For erythropoietin in particular, the target of xenon, the effects take weeks to increase red blood cells, so use just before climbing would not be expected to make any difference in hemoglobin, hematocrit or performance.

Moreover, xenon has been on the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Prohibited List of banned substances since 2014. A ban on the use of performance-enhancing substances can only be applied to sports that are subject to WADA rules, thus applying for example to competitive ice climbing but not to high-altitude mountaineering. Xenon is an anesthetic gas, and thus a medicine, with corresponding adverse effects and health risks, meaning in an unmonitored setting this could be impaired brain function, respiratory compromise, and even death. One study showed significant sedation in people using it at doses recommended for mountaineering. Even slight sedation is detrimental in the potentially dangerous setting of high-altitude mountaineering.

Xenon is rarely used in medicine and is not approved in all countries. Its use should be reserved for the operating room and procedural sedation by specialists with appropriate training in anesthesia. From a medical point of view, off-label use without a scientific basis and with unknown health risks must be rejected.

On the other hand, the well-known and established methods of pre- and acclimatization are safe and recommended. Discover more here.

Part 2: Featured Stories - Xenon gas

It has been almost 18 years since the first doping controls were introduced in competition ice climbing. What began with ice climbing is now expanding to include skyrunning, further strengthening the commitment to clean sport across disciplines. Over the years, testing has been carried out among the top athletes, and ice climbing can be proud to be one of the rare sports in which a small athlete community has been tested almost in its entirety. This provides strong evidence that the fight for fair play has been consistently upheld in practice throughout these years.

Words from Peter Muir, President of the UIAA

Dr Marija Andjelkovic

President

UIAA Anti-Doping Commission

(centre)

Part 3: Commission Report - Anti-Doping

The main achievements of the UIAA Anti-Doping Commission for 2025 and its main projects and considerations for the future are detailed below:

“ In 2025, we continued to expand the legal database, with particular attention to decisions concerning the liability of clubs and instructors. We also welcomed two new active members, which helped broaden our work to include cases involving slackline accidents. Towards the end of the year, we began supporting the Training Commission in giving the Mountain Qualification Label Program a clearer legal framework, especially by defining the relationships between Member Federations, the UIAA and external experts. We see this as a very important step. Looking ahead, we hope to move gradually from individual cases towards more general recommendations that may be useful across jurisdictions. And, as we are all busy volunteers, I hope the positive energy within the LAC stays with us.“

Words from Peter Muir, President of the UIAA

Klara Dvorakova

President, Legal Affairs Commission

Part 3: Commission Report - Legal Affairs

The main achievements for the UIAA Legal Affairs Commission for 2025, and its main projects and considerations for the future are detailed below:

"The aim of the UIAA Medical Commission is to make knowledge about mountaineering in general, and in particular information on the prevention of illness and accidents in the mountains, freely available to all mountaineers.

Many volunteers contribute their highly specialised knowledge to teaching and, above all, to mountaineering training worldwide. A big thank you goes to them. 

Looking ahead to 2026, we will also be active at international conferences during which the UIAA will make its expertise accessible to a wide audience.

Science in general and the dissemination of knowledge are becoming increasingly complex, which is why voluntary work also poses a major challenge for everyone involved.  Sometimes exciting projects have to be put on hold because resources must be used wisely. I would like to thank the members of the Medical Commission for their cooperation and the UIAA, and in particular the Office, for their trust in the Medical Commission."

Words from Peter Muir, President of the UIAA

Dr Urs Hefti

President UIAA Medical Commission

Part 3: Commission Report - Medical

Below is a summary of the main achievements of the UIAA Medical Commission in 2025:

“Following on from the decisions taken at the 2024 General Assembly, where various “strategic” initiatives” were defined, 2025 was a year of consolidation with two new working groups being set up.

The Hiking and Trails working group had actually been started the previous year following on from the Italian Alpine Club (CAI) initiative. Alberto Vicari has proved an energetic and resourceful leader of this WG and much has been accomplished. One interesting project is to consolidate the grading system for Via Ferratas worldwide as this is a fast-growing aspect of our sport. In 2026, a ‘joint-venture” with the Safety Commission is envisaged to ensure that all aspects of via ferratas are covered.

The other major strategic priority is rock climbing and to better cover this aspect, two new working groups have been started - one to deal with ensuring that the UIAA is giving a high priority to the broader aspects of rock climbing and a second one to encourage rock climbing festivals. These two groups are just getting into their stride.

As in previous years, the Commission has dealt with a number of more or less controversial incidents throughout 2025. The “new” system whereby, the Commission President deals with these incidents, obviously assisted by other members of the Commission and the Communications staff, has worked well and is contributing to the raising the profile of the UIAA worldwide.”

Words from Peter Muir, President of the UIAA

Greg Moseley

President, UIAA Mountaineering

Commission

Part 3: Commission Report - Mountaineering

The main achievements of the UIAA Mountaineering Commission for 2025 and its main projects and considerations for the future are detailed below:

"The UN International Year of Glacier Preservation was present in many of our MPC activities across the globe – the year being a clear signal that, despite global geopolitical turmoil, we need to continue focusing on the long-term preservation of the cryosphere as one of the most important elements of our world’s ecosystems, at the same time playing such an important role in the environment were UIAA members worldwide enjoy their adventures, sports and friendships.

We progressed steadily with our efforts to combine the UIAA commitment to the UNFCCC Sports for Climate Action with our mountain protection mandate in the following ways: Please see further details in this report.

The relaunch of the UIAA Mountain Protection Award in 2025 after a year’s re-calibration turned out to be very successful with unchanged enthusiasm from all over the world with more than 25 applicants, and winners connecting mountain protection with local and regional community involvement and advocacy for these causes. In 2026, we will build and extend the award with MPA-nominees community learning and exchange.

We would like to close with a big thank you to all members of the Mountain Protection Commission and the Climate Change Taskforce for their commitment and collaboration during the year 2025. It is based on their time, expertise and contributions that we can continue working on sustainable actions for mountain protection.

"

Words from Peter Muir, President of the UIAA

Paul Kwakkenbos

President, UIAA Mountain Protection Commission

Mary Sanseverino

Vice President, UIAA Mountain Protection Commission

Part 3: Commission Report - Mountain Protection

As noted in one of the big achievements in Chapter 2 – the relaunch of the UIAA Mountain Protection Award - the year 2025 proved to be very active for the UIAA Mountain Protection Commission.

2025 heralded the International Year of Glaciers' Preservation. The UIAA marked the occasion with a series of communication initiatives.

“The highlight of 2025 was undoubtedly the 50th anniversary of the Safety Commission, celebrated in Chamonix with special guests and public conferences. It was the ideal time to remember the creation of the Commission and celebrate the eternal and clear goal to standardise and improve the safety of climbing and mountaineering equipment.”

Words from Peter Muir, President of the UIAA

Lionel Kiener

UIAA Safety Commission President

Part 3: Commission Report - Safety

UIAA & IFMGA collaboration

As reported in the 2024 UIAA Annual Report, the UIAA and the International Federation of Mountain Guides Associations (IFMGA) stepped up collaboration on topics of mutual interest. Developments in 2025 included:

• UIAA attended IFMGA Technical Meeting in Arco, Italy
• IFMGA presented at UIAA Mountain Sports Symposium in Kosovo 
• Nomination of the first IFMGA delegate onto the UIAA Safety Commission
• Close discussions regarding UIAA Training Commission reorganisation, notably on topics of accountability, between the UIAA and IFMGA
• The UIAA and IFMGA collaborated on content for the upcoming UIAA Canyoning Handbook
• IFMGA to contribute to 2026 UIAA Mountain Voices podcast episodes

2024 Achievements:

The Training Commission Working Group has been hard at work throughout 2025.  The Training Commission's focus, methodology, and visibility have been carefully reorganized, and we are proudly relaunching our activities, our website, and our commission members.  Our immediate horizon involves communicating the availability of the training commission to resume accreditations, to begin updating our MQL standards, and begin our search for a Vice-President of the Training Commission.

Words from Peter Muir, President of the UIAA

Ron Funderburke

UIAA Training Commission President

Part 3: Commission Report - Training

Owing to the UIAA Management Board's decision to allow a period of time to restructure the UIAA Training Commission as its associated activities and qualifications, there is no Commission report for the year 2025. The full report will return in 2026. Please see the official statement for further context.

The Youth Commission is on its way to restarting activities soon. In preparation for that, an extensive survey was carried out with the member federations to understand more about their youth structures and activities. As a positive result, we can already say that the participation was huge and quite a few federations have established youth structures and are actively organising several different kinds of activities.

We also asked for nominations so that we can start with a new team on the upcoming challenges. Here we can also give an encouraging message: we have received nominations from four continents and will start soon to analyse the results of the survey with the whole team. This will set the basis for the future engagement and main objectives of the commission. To get in dialogue with the youth coordinators of all member federations, we plan to have a regular exchange plenary. On one side, we can inform in these sessions about our topics and on the other side we can hear about the ideas and activities of all the federations.

Michael Nagel, Youth Commission President

Words from Peter Muir, President of the UIAA

Part 3: Commission Report - Youth

Owing to the UIAA Management Board's decision to allow a period of time to restructure UIAA youth activities and programmes, there is no Commission report for the year 2025. The full report will return in 2026. Please see the following communication for further context.

“The 2025-2026 season will be the first full campaign overseen by the World Ice Climbing Board. It seems that ice climbing is going from strength to strength as we push forward with our project to get the sport into the 2030 Winter Olympics in France. Our now regular World Cups on three continents should be great and as always it is fantastic to see the Continental Senior and Youth Series develop even further this year with some excellent looking events offering even more competition opportunities for even more athletes.”

Words from Peter Muir, President of the UIAA

JoAnne Carilli Stevenson

World Ice Climbing Board Chair

Part 4: Competition Sport - Ice Climbing

The World Ice Climbing Board which came into being just before the start of the 2024-2025 UIAA Ice Climbing World Tour assisted with the delivery of a great season and were able to make a lot of positive connections both at the events and at the interim meetings in order to accelerate progress on a number of key objectives.

Report by

ROB ADIE
UIAA Sport Events Coordinator

With major developments implemented in 2024, 2025 saw the continued expansion of these projects and the introduction of new ones.

Words from Peter Muir, President of the UIAA

Part 4: Competition Sport - International Skyrunning Federation Report

Report by

MARINO GIACOMETTI
President, International Skyrunning Federation

Income 2025

Expenses 2025

Part 5: Membership, Finance and People - Finance Report

The UIAA closed 2025 with

99 member associations:

Full members

Observer members

Different countries

Total individual members

Unit member

Associate members

Please note these figures reflect the four membership changes at the 2025 UIAA General Assembly. These memberships are active as of 1 January 2026.

Change in membership

Denmark: Following an agreement between two federations, Dansk Bjerg – Og Klatreklub is no longer a UIAA member and the Danish Climbing Federation becomes the Active/Full Member for Denmark as of 1 January, 2026.

New active/full members
The following federations were elected as active/full members of the UIAA:

Armenia: Armenian Mountaineering & Hiking Federation (AMHF)
Estonia: Eesti Matkaliit (EM)
Syria: Syrian Association for Mountain Activities (SAMA)

New associate members
The following federations were elected as associate members of the UIAA:

Iraqi Kurdistan: Kurdistan Mountaineering & Climbing Federation (KMCF)
USA: USA Ice Climbing

New observer member
The following association was elected as an observer member of the UIAA:

Germany: Albrecht von Dewitz Stiftung

Part 5: Membership, Finance and People - Membership List

UIAA Presidents

Count Charles Egmond d’Arcis

Edouard Wyss-Dunant

Albert Eggler

Jean Juge

Pierre Bossus

Carlo Sganzini

Pietro Segantini

Ian McNaught-Davis

Alan Blackshaw

Pierre Humblet (acting)

Mike Mortimer

Jordi Colomer (acting)

Frits Vrijlandt

Peter Muir

1932–1964

1965–1968

1968–1972

1973–1976

1976–1984

1985–1989

1990–1995

1995–2004

2004–2005

2005-2006

2007–2011

2011-2012

2012–2020

2020-

Part 5: Membership, Finance and People - Executive Committee

This list is correct as of the 2025 UIAA General Assembly.

Continental Representatives

Representative Members

Largest Federation Repesentatives

Unit Member Representation

Part 5: Membership, Finance and People - Management Board

This list is correct as of the 2024 UIAA General Assembly.

Anne Arran (BMC, UK), Kul Bahadur Gurung (NMA, Nepal) and Steve Long (BMC, UK) all served the Management Board throughout 2024 and until the GA. The UIAA thanks them for their commitment and dedicated to the MB.

The UIAA Office is located in Bern. The staff working in Switzerland are responsible for running the daily operations of the UIAA. It is the staff’s duty and commitment to serve UIAA members and to support, coordinate, plan and implement the activities and decisions of the Executive Board, the Management Committee and UIAA Commissions. On an operational level, the UIAA continues to benefit from a close collaboration with the Swiss Alpine Club (SAC).

Part 5: Membership, Finance and People - Office

Part 5: Membership, Finance and People - Commission Lists

Count Charles Egmond d’Arcis

Edouard Wyss-Dunant

Hans Von Bomhard

Ugo di Vallepiana

Guido Tonella

Franz Hiess

Fritz Wiessner

Jaromir Wolf

Sir Edmond Hillary

Walter Bonatti

Dr. Pietro Segantini

Robbert Leopold

Dr. Carlo Sganzini

Georges Moissidis

William Lowell Putnam

Dr. Fritz März

Nassos Tzartzanos

Jordi Pons Sanjines

Pit Schubert

Kazuo Saito

Ang Tshering Sherpa

Claude Eckhardt

Tamotsu Nakamura

Reinhold Messner

Injeong Lee

Doug Scott

Frits Vrijlandt

1964

1968

1969

1975

1980

1983

1987

1990

1992

1995

2000

2001

2002

2003

2003

2007

2008

2010

2012

2013

2014

2016

2019

2020

2023

Part 5: Membership, Finance and People - Honorary Members

The UIAA Court is this internal and independent judicial body of the UIAA (AoA23). When requested, its task is to solve any possible disputes between the UIAA, UIAA members and UIAA bodies, and between UIAA member organisations. This is a first instance internal arbitration court where possible disputes must be brought before any appeal to an external one, in this instance the Court of Arbitration for Sport at Lausanne (AoA 23 3) and 24)).

This is not the sole mission assigned to the UIAA Court. It is also the independent judicial body founded to decide upon the alleged violations of the UIAA Code of Ethics (Article 4). Additionally, the UIAA Court is also the Ethics Panel in charge of conflicts of interests, should the Executive Committee be unable to reach a decision. At the 2024 General Assembly in Malta the UIAA Court became the Appeals Body for the Disciplinary Committee in the new World Ice Climbing structure, except in doping matters.

The UIAA Court is considering changes to its operations to improve its efficiency. In this context the Court could recruit the expertise of new tenured (effective) or substituted (deputy) members to complete its team. Any federations who have experienced female and/or male arbitrators, lawyers or managers, are invited to propose a candidate to the UIAA Court.

Part 5: Membership, Finance and People - Court

Report by

PIERRE HUMBLET

President, UIAA Court

Report by

PAUL CARSTENSEN

UIAA Management Board,
(Outgoing) Continental Representative for Africa
Mountain Club of South Africa, MCSA

The continent of Africa comprises a number of mountain clubs and national federations: The Mountain Club of South Africa (MCSA), the Mountain Clubs of Namibia, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Kenya, Uganda, Kilimanjaro (in Tanzania), Morocco and the Climbing Club of Zambia. Only the MCSA and Morocco, through the Federation Royale Marocaine de Ski et Sports de Montagne are members of the UIAA. However, Namibia is a direct member of the MCSA. The UIAA, at a continental level, is working towards increasing membership.

2025 Achievements

African project wins UIAA Mountain Protection Award Best New Initiative

The Mountain Club of South Africa’s Walking the Tra Tra project was awarded the 2025 UIAA Mountain Protection Award (MPA) Best New Initiative prize. The project is rooted in the Cederberg mountains located approximately 300km north of Cape Town and in the Tra Tra valley. Walking the Tra Tra brings together mountain sport, environmental care, and support for local cultural expression. The project is built through direct collaboration with Cederberg residents, local youth, and partnering landowners. By responding to community needs the initiative strengthens land-based livelihoods and helps grow eco-tourism opportunities in a way that honours the vision and requests of those who live there.

The project bridges two dramatically contrasting landscapes in South Africa: the vast, arid expanse of the Tankwa desert, stretching for hundreds of kilometres, and the lush, water-rich Tra Tra valley, which winds its way upward toward its source – the Cederberg mountains.

“This is no doubt a big project in a remote country. The project encourages trail runners and walkers to engage with two special physical and cultural landscapes, to not look at the landscape from afar, but to be part of it. This builds awareness and personal experience of the need for sustainability and of changes being wrought by climate change, such as impacts of drought on local Indigenous people.”
– UIAA Assessment Team

Discover more about the project here.

Part 6: 2025 Continental Report: Africa

Report by

YOUNG HOON OH
Management Board, Continental Representative for Asia Korean Alpine Federation, KAF

The continental body, the Union of Asian Alpine Associations (UAAA), founded in 1994, is the leading mountaineering and climbing organisation in Asia. It represents climbers and mountaineers on one of the largest continents in terms of population and density of high mountains.

The UAAA itself has 18 members and organised its own General Assembly in Ulaanbaataar, Mongolia in June, 2025.

Asia member highlights:

Many Asian member federations are relatively small and have shorter histories compared to those in other regions. As a result, their volunteers have primarily focused on various initiatives to support climbing and mountaineering. These efforts include enhancing the public image of the sports, developing new climbing areas and trails, and organising training programme, among other activities

Training programmes, both organizing and facilitating local sessions, remain a core focus for nearly all member federations across Asia. For example, the Nepal Mountaineering Association (NMA), one of the oldest Asian members, introduced curricula for the Professional Mountain Guide (PMG) and Professional Mountain Leader (PML) programs in 2025. These programs received official accreditation from the Government of Nepal. While the NMA has been offering specialised training since 1979, these new programmes represent some of the most comprehensive to date and reflect evolving expectations for Nepali mountaineers. The PML programme includes courses such as Basics (5 days, August), Fundamental Skills (19 days, August), Winter Skills (11 days, March), and Instructor Training (5 days, July). The PMG programme features Fundamental Skills (13 days, June) and Summer Skills (30 days, September). In total, 93 individuals earned certificates through these programmes in 2025.

Established in 2006 and joining the UIAA in 2025, the Kurdistan Mountaineering and Climbing Federation (KMCF) has been actively engaged in ongoing crag development projects. The Kurdistan Region of Iraq currently boasts five limestone crags, developed over the past decade by KMCF volunteers, offering more than one hundred single-pitch routes and several multi-pitch routes. Notably, four of these crags were developed within the last two years, with approximately fifty new routes bolted in 2025 alone. Additionally, several major peaks and walls have been identified for future development projects. To meet the demand for sport climbing instruction, KMCF partnered with the US-based Professional Climbing Instructors Association (PCIA) to host a training course, resulting in certifications for seven local climbers.

The Bangladesh Mountaineering Federation (BMF), a full UIAA member since 2013, proudly celebrated the remarkable achievement of Ikramul Hasan Shakil in May 2025. Shakil successfully completed the “Everest Sea to Summit” challenge, covering over 1,300 km on foot from Cox’s Bazar, a coastal town in southern Bangladesh, to the summit of Mount Everest. His journey included walking, biking, and swimming across 3 km of Jamuna River. He became the first Bangladeshi to accomplish this feat and the seventh to reach the highest point on Earth. This milestone received widespread attention in Bangladesh and significantly boosted the profile of mountaineering in the country, while also raising awareness about plastic pollution and climate action internationally.

Part 6: 2025 Continental Report: Asia

2025 was the year of climate change in the region, and the year in which the magnitude of the threats that environmental changes bring to our communities and to mountain sports in general became most evident.

Indeed, 2025 was recorded as one of the eight warmest years in the history of Latin America and the Caribbean, which brought with it a series of historic climate disasters, marked by severe hydrological extremes (floods and droughts), megafires, and significant seismic activity, driven primarily by the climate crisis.

In this scenario, mountain activities were severely affected, whether by dangers inherent to the complex environmental situation or by the emergency generated by these anomalous events that impacted large geographical areas of our continent. This led many expert athletes to focus their attention on supporting rescue services or seeking resources to assist those most in need.

We believe that these types of actions fully reflect what the spirit of climbing represents, and where our greatest efforts will always be in favor of a group objective and not individual prizes based on egos or the desire to stand out.

The above obviously brought new pressure to the development of sports activities; however, conflict resolution, resilience, and teamwork were more present than ever, leading to new experiences and ways of doing more with less.

As a highlight, we must mention the ongoing efforts of many countries in the region to educate on risk management and accident prevention in the mountains. This has led government entities to develop legislation regulating access to and development of the sport, protecting both the natural environment and those new to mountain activities. This presents a great opportunity for the UIAA Training Commission to support the development of curricula and the design of sports training programs, which will help reduce mountain accidents and their associated costs.

Part 6: 2025 Continental Report: Central & South America

Report by

JOSEF KLENNER
President, EUMA (German Alpine Club, DAV)

European Mountaineering Association (EUMA) is an umbrella organisation of 36 European mountaineering associations from different countries with approximately 3,266,106 million members.

EUMA strives to include mountaineering in European Union priorities as an important factor of quality of life and to be recognised as the dialogue partner for mountaineering by EU institutions.

4th European Trails Conference

An important event took place in Macugnaga in Piedmont in October. With significant participation and support from Club Alpino Italiano, EUMA and ERA hosted the 4th European Trails Conference. About 70 participants and experts from 15 countries presented concepts, expertise and know-how on all aspects of trails. Climate change, the management of tails and AI took a special place in it.

International Mountain Conference Innsbruck

In September, the University of Innsbruck hosted the International Mountain Conference. Due to previous participations, EUMA had its own thematic area this time, in which experts from the EUMA environment could present topics on alpine infrastructure such as huts and paths, mountain sports and climate change. The high number of participants confirmed the relevance of the selected presentations.

European Union and European Week of Sports

The contacts with the European Union have been further developed. Talks took place at ministerial level of the Commission Education, Youth and Sports (EAS) to present and explain the specific concerns of mountain sports known to the EU. The EU representatives underlined that mountain sports should take a firm place in the strategies in the future.

As a start to an ongoing participation process, EUMA's participation in the European Week of Sports was agreed. Under the EU slogan #BeActive, 10 member associations took part in the 10 flags on 10 summits in 10 countries campaign.

The participation in the European Week of Sports was the reason for EAS to offer a partnership agreement to EUMA, in which EUMA now officially appears as a partner of the EAS – Week of Sports. The document was signed by EU Commissioner Glenn Micallef and EUMA President Josef Klenner in Copenhagen on 23 September, 2025.

Part 6: 2025 Continental Report: EUMA

European Trails Charter

On the occasion of the conference in Macugnaga, the final work and vote on the European Trails Charter took place, which was written as a joint position and demand paper by EUMA and ERA. This is the first document existing at European level that deals with all aspects of trails and addresses demands to the EU, national governments, regional organisations and individual users.

Immediately after the decision, EUMA sent the charter to all member associations and external partners. The relevance of this document is obvious from several approving comments, including from the EU.

Europe is the largest continental body in terms of UIAA membership with 58 members from 40 countries represented in this geographical area. It has some of the world's most diverse and iconic mountains and long rock faces with around three million federation members represented. Approximately two and a half million come from alpine or mountainous countries in Western Europe with a long history in climbing and mountaineering: notably in Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and Switzerland.

Part 6: 2025 Continental Report: Europe

2025 was an impactful year of continued progress and community growth. The ambitious three-year goals set in 2022 focused on strengthening the ACC's base and connecting on a deeper, more relevant level with our sections and members.

The ACC is proud to have made significant strides in expanding member engagement, enhancing program accessibility, and strengthening its commitment to environmental stewardship. New training initiatives and expanded youth outreach have brought fresh energy to our club, while investments in facilities have improved experiences for members and hut users alike.

The State of the Club remains strong and vibrant on the cusp of our 120th anniversary, with over 16,000 members and 26 sections across the country, including the newly formed Sault Ste-Marie Section. The ACC's dedicated volunteers, staff, and partners have worked tirelessly to foster a welcoming and inclusive environment through communication and programming

The ACC's self-funded model, combined with targeted fundraising, supports a strong financial position and long-term sustainability. This allows the federation to better resource its sections and invest in infrastructure through renovations and new capital projects. Shadow Lake Lodge is thriving under its updated model, and the ACC is proud to celebrate the completion of the Robson Pass (Byron Caldwell) Hut—a significant milestone following years of dedication and effort.

The Alpine Club of Canada in 2025

During 2025, the ACC undertook a comprehensive, stakeholder-driven strategic planning process that has shaped a renewed long-term vision and ten-year ambitions for the Club. These center on strengthening national cohesion, building leadership capacity at all levels, improving organizational processes, and clarifying the ACC's role in environmental stewardship and access. The ACC remains focused on diversifying revenue and evolving its funding model, including a review of its fee structure.

The ACC launched new IT platforms in December, offering an enhanced user experience for its members and the public. During the year, the federation will work on strengthening our ties with its sections and developing tools to better share knowledge and training among our volunteer leaders across the country. Its new hut at Robson Pass will open in late May to our members, and the ACC plans to make progress towards greening the backcountry with an alternative energy system at the Illecillewaet hut.

The ACC are grateful for the dedicated staff, volunteers, and donors who support its work. At the heart of all its progress lies what matters most: a shared passion for the mountains and a deep respect for the craft that brings us together.

2026, the year ahead

Part 6: 2025 Continental Report: North America

The annual review of the American Alpine Club can be viewed through its highly engaging and information Impact Report. View the Impact Report by following the prompt below.

https://americanalpineclub.org/news/2025/10/21/aacs-2025-impact-report

American Alpine Club (AAC)

Report by

PHIL POWERS

UIAA Management Board, Continental Representative for North America
American Alpine Club (ACC)

The 2025 year again saw growth around Oceania in the numbers of people getting outdoors and taking part in climbing and hiking activities. This growth has been a trend in both Australia and New Zealand since the Covid lockdowns in 2020-21. Much of this activity is done independently outside of organised clubs or in small informal groups organised through social media channels. Demand for professional instruction continues to grow and it was great to see the Australian Climbing Instructors Association welcomed as an Associate UIAA member and the first Australian member at the end of 2024.

Part 6: 2025 Continental Report: Oceania