The 'Chapter 13' process has led to increasing recognition of the global importance of mountains. This was formally recognised by the declaration by the UN General Assembly in November 1998 that the year 2002 would be the International Year of Mountains (IYM).
The mission statement of the IYM, whose slogan is "We are all mountain people" is to promote "the conservation and sustainable development of mountain regions, thereby ensuring the well-being of mountain and lowland communities".
The CMS was involved in the IYM at the international level, responsible for coordinating events within Scotland, and for creating a website. The report of the IYM Scotland project can be downloaded from Related Documents.
At the global level, Martin Price assisted the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) with preparations for the final global event of the year, the Bishkek Global Mountain Summit. This was held on 29 October - 1 November 2002 in Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan, the country which proposed the designation of the IYM to the United Nations.
Professor Price's involvement included acting as editor-in-chief for the thematic papers prepared for the conference and the final documents which were discussed there, as well as assisting with the planning of the programme.
The thematic papers have subsequently been published as a book by UNU Press.