diff --git a/.github/workflows/ci-additional.yaml b/.github/workflows/ci-additional.yaml
index ff3e8ab7e63..5636f5d99c3 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/ci-additional.yaml
+++ b/.github/workflows/ci-additional.yaml
@@ -39,22 +39,29 @@ jobs:
       run:
         shell: bash -l {0}
 
+    env:
+      CONDA_ENV_FILE: ci/requirements/environment.yml
+      PYTHON_VERSION: "3.10"
+
     steps:
       - uses: actions/checkout@v3
         with:
           fetch-depth: 0 # Fetch all history for all branches and tags.
-      - uses: conda-incubator/setup-miniconda@v2
-        with:
-          channels: conda-forge
-          channel-priority: strict
-          mamba-version: "*"
-          activate-environment: xarray-tests
-          auto-update-conda: false
-          python-version: "3.9"
 
-      - name: Install conda dependencies
+      - name: set environment variables
         run: |
-          mamba env update -f ci/requirements/environment.yml
+          echo "TODAY=$(date  +'%Y-%m-%d')" >> $GITHUB_ENV
+
+      - name: Setup micromamba
+        uses: mamba-org/provision-with-micromamba@de032af7fb3675649f3d4bbdda85178ba412ee41
+        with:
+          environment-file: ${{env.CONDA_ENV_FILE}}
+          environment-name: xarray-tests
+          extra-specs: |
+            python=${{env.PYTHON_VERSION}}
+          cache-env: true
+          cache-env-key: "${{runner.os}}-${{runner.arch}}-py${{env.PYTHON_VERSION}}-${{env.TODAY}}-${{hashFiles(env.CONDA_ENV_FILE)}}"
+
       - name: Install xarray
         run: |
           python -m pip install --no-deps -e .
@@ -76,23 +83,27 @@ jobs:
     defaults:
       run:
         shell: bash -l {0}
+    env:
+      CONDA_ENV_FILE: ci/requirements/environment.yml
+      PYTHON_VERSION: "3.10"
 
     steps:
       - uses: actions/checkout@v3
         with:
           fetch-depth: 0 # Fetch all history for all branches and tags.
-      - uses: conda-incubator/setup-miniconda@v2
-        with:
-          channels: conda-forge
-          channel-priority: strict
-          mamba-version: "*"
-          activate-environment: xarray-tests
-          auto-update-conda: false
-          python-version: "3.9"
 
-      - name: Install conda dependencies
+      - name: set environment variables
         run: |
-          mamba env update -f ci/requirements/environment.yml
+          echo "TODAY=$(date +'%Y-%m-%d')" >> $GITHUB_ENV
+      - name: Setup micromamba
+        uses: mamba-org/provision-with-micromamba@de032af7fb3675649f3d4bbdda85178ba412ee41
+        with:
+          environment-file: ${{env.CONDA_ENV_FILE}}
+          environment-name: xarray-tests
+          extra-specs: |
+            python=${{env.PYTHON_VERSION}}
+          cache-env: true
+          cache-env-key: "${{runner.os}}-${{runner.arch}}-py${{env.PYTHON_VERSION}}-${{env.TODAY}}-${{hashFiles(env.CONDA_ENV_FILE)}}"
       - name: Install xarray
         run: |
           python -m pip install --no-deps -e .
@@ -118,20 +129,28 @@ jobs:
       run:
         shell: bash -l {0}
 
+    strategy:
+      matrix:
+        environment-file: ["bare-minimum", "min-all-deps"]
+      fail-fast: false
+
     steps:
       - uses: actions/checkout@v3
         with:
           fetch-depth: 0 # Fetch all history for all branches and tags.
-      - uses: conda-incubator/setup-miniconda@v2
+
+      - name: Setup micromamba
+        uses: mamba-org/provision-with-micromamba@de032af7fb3675649f3d4bbdda85178ba412ee41
         with:
+          environment-name: xarray-tests
+          environment-file: false
+          extra-specs: |
+            python=3.10
+            pyyaml
+            conda
+            python-dateutil
           channels: conda-forge
-          channel-priority: strict
-          mamba-version: "*"
-          auto-update-conda: false
-          python-version: "3.9"
 
       - name: minimum versions policy
         run: |
-          mamba install -y pyyaml conda python-dateutil
-          python ci/min_deps_check.py ci/requirements/bare-minimum.yml
-          python ci/min_deps_check.py ci/requirements/min-all-deps.yml
+          python ci/min_deps_check.py ci/requirements/${{ matrix.environment-file }}.yml
diff --git a/.github/workflows/ci.yaml b/.github/workflows/ci.yaml
index 20f876b52fc..1d5c8ddefba 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/ci.yaml
+++ b/.github/workflows/ci.yaml
@@ -65,6 +65,8 @@ jobs:
           fetch-depth: 0 # Fetch all history for all branches and tags.
       - name: Set environment variables
         run: |
+          echo "TODAY=$(date +'%Y-%m-%d')" >> $GITHUB_ENV
+
           if [[ ${{ matrix.os }} == windows* ]] ;
           then
             echo "CONDA_ENV_FILE=ci/requirements/environment-windows.yml" >> $GITHUB_ENV
@@ -83,25 +85,13 @@ jobs:
 
           echo "PYTHON_VERSION=${{ matrix.python-version }}" >> $GITHUB_ENV
 
-      - name: Cache conda
-        uses: actions/cache@v3
-        with:
-          path: ~/conda_pkgs_dir
-          key: ${{ runner.os }}-conda-py${{ matrix.python-version }}-${{ hashFiles('ci/requirements/**.yml') }}-${{ matrix.env }}
-
-      - uses: conda-incubator/setup-miniconda@v2
+      - name: Setup micromamba
+        uses: mamba-org/provision-with-micromamba@de032af7fb3675649f3d4bbdda85178ba412ee41
         with:
-          channels: conda-forge
-          channel-priority: strict
-          mamba-version: "*"
-          activate-environment: xarray-tests
-          auto-update-conda: false
-          python-version: ${{ matrix.python-version }}
-          use-only-tar-bz2: true
-
-      - name: Install conda dependencies
-        run: |
-          mamba env update -f $CONDA_ENV_FILE
+          environment-file: ${{ env.CONDA_ENV_FILE }}
+          environment-name: xarray-tests
+          cache-env: true
+          cache-env-key: "${{runner.os}}-${{runner.arch}}-py${{matrix.python-version}}-${{env.TODAY}}-${{hashFiles(env.CONDA_ENV_FILE)}}"
 
       # We only want to install this on one run, because otherwise we'll have
       # duplicate annotations.
diff --git a/.github/workflows/upstream-dev-ci.yaml b/.github/workflows/upstream-dev-ci.yaml
index 81d1c7db4b8..b37ec390a71 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/upstream-dev-ci.yaml
+++ b/.github/workflows/upstream-dev-ci.yaml
@@ -55,17 +55,15 @@ jobs:
       - uses: actions/checkout@v3
         with:
           fetch-depth: 0 # Fetch all history for all branches and tags.
-      - uses: conda-incubator/setup-miniconda@v2
-        with:
-          channels: conda-forge
-          channel-priority: strict
-          mamba-version: "*"
-          activate-environment: xarray-tests
-          auto-update-conda: false
-          python-version: ${{ matrix.python-version }}
       - name: Set up conda environment
+        uses: mamba-org/provision-with-micromamba@de032af7fb3675649f3d4bbdda85178ba412ee41
+        with:
+          environment-file: ci/requirements/environment.yml
+          environment-name: xarray-tests
+          extra-specs: |
+            python=${{ matrix.python-version }}
+      - name: Install upstream versions
         run: |
-          mamba env update -f ci/requirements/environment.yml
           bash ci/install-upstream-wheels.sh
       - name: Install xarray
         run: |
diff --git a/ci/requirements/bare-minimum.yml b/ci/requirements/bare-minimum.yml
index 5986ec7186b..cb5bfa05006 100644
--- a/ci/requirements/bare-minimum.yml
+++ b/ci/requirements/bare-minimum.yml
@@ -10,6 +10,6 @@ dependencies:
   - pytest-cov
   - pytest-env
   - pytest-xdist
-  - numpy=1.18
+  - numpy=1.19
   - packaging=20.0
-  - pandas=1.1
+  - pandas=1.2