An International Conference-Workshop entitled “Adapting to a world without glaciers: realities, challenges, and actions” was held between 7-15 July, 2009 in response to one of the most pressing problems associated with global climate change today, i.e., changes in present and future water supply and availability. The desert Paciic coast of Peru, for example, home to more than 70 per cent of the country’s population and producing 60 per cent of its agricultural GDP, rely almost exclusively on water derived from highland watersheds to the east. The rapid recession of glaciers in Peru is certain to cause water shortages that will have severe impacts on the agricultural, power, and tourism sectors, particularly for these downstream and coastal populations. The continued degradation of water-retaining, high altitude ecosystems (cloud forests, grasslands, and alpine paramo wetlands), which is often associated with rural poverty, could further diminish both the supply and quality of water while accelerating the occurrence of catastrophic events, such as looding, landslides, and ultimately droughts.