India’s Cold Desert region has been recognized as the country’s 13th UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization announced the designation on September 27, 2025, during the fifth World Congress of Biosphere Reserves in Hangzhou, China. It is India’s first high-altitude cold desert reserve and one of the coldest and driest ecosystems in the global network.
The new reserve spans 7,770 square kilometres at elevations between 3,300 and 6,600 metres. It includes Pin Valley National Park, Chandratal, Sarchu, and Kibber Wildlife Sanctuary in the trans-Himalayan region. The landscape consists of windswept plateaus, glacial valleys, alpine lakes, and barren high-altitude deserts.
India’s first cold desert reserve
The Cold Desert harbours 732 species of vascular plants, with 30 endemic to the region and 157 near-endemic to the Indian Himalayas. Its wildlife includes snow leopards, Himalayan ibex, blue sheep, Himalayan wolves, golden eagles, and Himalayan snowcocks.
UNESCO’s recognition highlights both the ecological importance of the area and the role of its communities. Around 12,000 people live in small settlements scattered across the region. They sustain themselves through yak and goat herding, small-scale farming, and traditional Tibetan medicine. Local councils and Buddhist monasteries play a central role in managing land and water resources in this fragile environment.
Tim Curtis, Director of UNESCO’s Regional Office for South Asia, said the designation reflects India’s commitment to conserving rare ecosystems while supporting local livelihoods. “The Cold Desert Biosphere Reserve is a powerful example of how fragile ecosystems can be protected while supporting the communities that depend on them,” he said.
The announcement coincides with the 50th anniversary of UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere Programme, which promotes conservation, sustainable development, and scientific research across 785 reserves worldwide.
Where people and wildlife endure
The Cold Desert Cultural Landscape stretches across parts of Ladakh in Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh’s Spiti and Kinnaur districts. It sits on the leeward side of the Himalayas, creating a rain-shadow zone with little precipitation. Combined with altitudes above 3,000 metres, the region experiences extreme seasonal conditions, scorching sunlight during short summers and freezing winds in long winters. Temperatures range from 36°C in the daytime summer months to minus 32°C during winter nights. Blizzards and avalanches are common, and agriculture is limited to brief growing seasons.
Despite the harsh climate, human settlements have existed here for centuries. Archaeological evidence points to prehistoric habitation, with stone tools and petroglyphs found in Ladakh. Over time, the region became linked to Tibetan Buddhism, with monasteries such as Hemis in Ladakh and Ki in Spiti shaping local culture and traditions. Many settlements developed around these monasteries, which continue to serve as centers of community life.
The population is ethnically diverse. Indo-Mongoloid groups dominate much of Ladakh and Spiti, while Dard communities live in western Ladakh. Tibetan influence is evident in language, architecture, and cultural practices. Traditional chanting of Buddhist texts in Ladakh has been inscribed on UNESCO’s list of Intangible Cultural Heritage since 2012.
UNESCO honor for Cold Desert
The region’s cultural heritage includes monastic dances, thangka painting, carpet weaving, and the making of prayer flags, alongside folk music and oral traditions. Many practices are tied to the natural environment, including the use of local medicinal plants, of which 118 species are recorded in Spiti Valley alone.
The new designation adds to a network of conservation areas already established in the region, such as Pin Valley National Park and Kibber Wildlife Sanctuary. These protected areas safeguard species ranging from snow leopards and Himalayan brown bears to red foxes and Tibetan wolves. Glacier-fed rivers and streams provide the main water sources for both wildlife and communities.
India’s Cold Desert joins a select group of biosphere reserves worldwide that combine ecological significance with distinctive cultural traditions. Its recognition by UNESCO reinforces efforts to preserve fragile mountain ecosystems while acknowledging the resilience of communities who have adapted to life in one of the world’s harshest environments.
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