Nepal Proposes Trilateral Himalayan Climate Resilience Mechanism

The Himalayan region is warming at nearly twice the global average rate. This is destabilising glaciers across Nepal, Bhutan, and northern India. As glaciers retreat, unstable lakes form behind ice or moraine dams. When these dams fail, they release a Glacial Lake Outburst Flood (GLOF) that can destroy roads, hydropower plants, and entire valleys within minutes. Nepal contributes less than 0.1 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions, yet it bears a disproportionate share of this risk. This is the essence of the climate justice debate. The Common But Differentiated Responsibilities (CBDR-RC) principle, enshrined in the UNFCCC (1992) and reaffirmed by the Paris Agreement (2015) with its 1.5°C target, was meant to address exactly this asymmetry. The Loss and Damage Fund was agreed upon at COP27 and made operational at COP28, but actual disbursements remain far below assessed needs.

India's own climate diplomacy has shifted. It has moved from purely defending CBDR-RC as a shield against binding emission cuts to a more proactive posture. This includes the International Solar Alliance and a net-zero by 2070 commitment. India also ranks second in the Asia-Pacific region in CO2 emissions from fuel combustion. Electricity and heat producers form its single largest emission source, even though its overall footprint remains far below that of developed economies. This dual identity is a Global South advocate at the UNFCCC that is also a large regional emitter and infrastructure investor in its own neighbourhood. Nepal's flood diplomacy now exposes exactly this tension.