Home to rare plants, snow leopards, Himalayan ibex and vibrant mountain communities, this is India’s 13th designation in the dynamic and interactive global network of sites of excellence that foster harmony between people and nature for sustainable development.

As India’s first high-altitude cold desert biosphere reserve, this designation highlights the urgent need to safeguard fragile mountain ecosystems facing tourism pressures and climate change. Ongoing initiatives include snow leopard conservation, glacial lake monitoring, community-based climate resilience, and environmental education programmes that bridge Indigenous knowledge with scientific research—helping ensure the survival of this stark yet vibrant Himalayan sanctuary.

UNESCO officially announced the designation of the Cold Desert Biosphere Reserve in India – as part of 26 new sites added to UNESCO’s World Network of Biosphere Reserves (WNBR) during the 5th World Congress of Biosphere Reserves in Hangzhou, China. This designation brings India’s total to 13 UNESCO Biosphere Reserves, joining a global network of 785 sites.
Spanning 7,770 km² at altitudes ranging from 3,300 to 6,600 meters, the Cold Desert Biosphere Reserve encompasses windswept plateaus, glacial valleys, alpine lakes, and rugged high-altitude deserts. This is India’s first high-altitude cold desert biosphere reserve and one of the coldest and driest ecosystems in UNESCO’s WNBR. It covers the Pin Valley National Park and its surroundings, Chandratal and Sarchu & Kibber Wildlife Sanctuary. It harbors 732 species of vascular plants, including 30 endemics and 157 near-endemics of the Indian Himalayas, as well as iconic fauna such as the Snow Leopard (Panthera uncia), the Himalayan Ibex (Capra sibirica), the Blue Sheep (Pseudois nayaur), the Himalayan wolf (Canis lupus chanco), the Himalayan snowcock (Tetraogallus himalayensis), and the Golden Eagle (Aquila chrysaetos daphanea).

The trans-Himalayan region is home also to around 12,000 inhabitants who live in scattered villages, practicing traditional pastoralism, yak and goat herding, barley and pea farming, and Tibetan herbal medicine, knowledge sustained through Buddhist monastic traditions and community councils that regulate the use of fragile alpine resources.

“The Cold Desert Biosphere Reserve is a powerful example of how fragile ecosystems can be protected while supporting the communities that depend on them. This designation reflects India’s commitment to balancing conservation with sustainable development, especially in ecologically sensitive and culturally rich regions. UNESCO’s World Network of Biosphere Reserves, under the Man and the Biosphere Programme, is a cornerstone of our efforts to protect biodiversity and promote sustainable development. These sites are not just protected areas, they are places where we actively learn to reconcile with nature, fostering harmony between people and planet through science, culture, and community-led stewardship,” said Tim Curtis, Director & Representative, UNESCO Regional Office for South Asia.

The announcement is part of UNESCO’s broader commitment to the Man and the Biosphere Programme, which celebrates its 50th anniversary and continues to evolve as a global platform for innovation, inclusion, and sustainability.

UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere (MAB) programme is an intergovernmental scientific programme that aims to establish a scientific basis for enhancing the relationship between people and their environments. It combines the natural and social sciences with a view to improving human livelihoods and safeguarding natural and managed ecosystems, thus promoting innovative approaches to economic development that are socially and culturally appropriate and environmentally sustainable.

Herein, the Biosphere Reserves serve as ‘learning places for sustainable development’ for testing interdisciplinary approaches to understanding and managing changes and interactions between social and ecological systems, including conflict prevention and management of biodiversity. They are places that provide local solutions to global challenges. Biosphere reserves include terrestrial, marine and coastal ecosystems. Each site promotes solutions reconciling the conservation of biodiversity with its sustainable use, involving local communities and all interested stakeholders in planning and management. They integrate three main functions: Conservation of biodiversity and cultural diversity; economic development that is socio-culturally and environmentally sustainable; and logistic support underpinning development through research.

The 5th WCBR is the largest and most influential conference under UNESCO's MAB programme, with over 3,000 participants from more than 100 countries and regions. It is also the first time the congress is held in Asia, and outside Europe and the Americas – marking a milestone in the MAB program's development and highlighting its global inclusivity.