In order to deal with the effects of climate change, stakeholders have emphasized that climate policy should be made at the local level to include the youth. They also said that the government should allocate sufficient budget for this research.
In the climate dialogue on 'Role of Gandaki's youth in dealing with climate change' held by English daily The Kathmandu Post of Kantipur Publications on Thursday in Pokhara, the speaker emphasized that policies and plans should be made at the local level to increase the involvement of the youth. Tikaram Paudel (Santosh), a young entrepreneur working in waste management, said that although various climate policies, strategies and plans have been made at the national level, the implementation aspect is weak.
"Because of the lack of climate policy at the local level, the youth have not been able to implement their views," he said, "even the youth are not included in the national level policy." He argued that the problem will be solved sustainably through youth participation in climate-friendly entrepreneurship. He mentioned that climate-related data should also be searched. "We need a provincial youth council, a government mechanism to bring the youth together on the issue of climate change at the state level," he said.
Climate researcher Orchid Rosie Puri said that if there is a third world war, it will be about who gets to drink clean water and who gets to breathe clean air. Mentioning that the situation has worsened in developing countries like Nepal, she emphasized that development and environment should be balanced. Puri said that the government spends very little on scientific research. He said that because the government did not release enough budget for climate research, the participation of the youth was also reduced.
Although science and technology institute has been established in Gandaki province, it is not able to work due to lack of budget, she said. She said that the government should put climate change in the curriculum from the school level and the youth should also adopt climate-friendly behavior. "Carbon emissions can be reduced even by taking care of our habits," she said, "Using public vehicles instead of private vehicles, getting into the habit of walking short distances, using the sun instead of sitting in the room to heat the heater."
Vice President of Gandaki State Policy and Planning Commission Krishnachandra Devkota admitted that although there are plenty of policies and plans suitable for the current environment at the national level regarding climate change, their effective implementation is challenging. He informed that the Gandaki state government is preparing to bring a climate strategy within January to deal with climate change. "The climate policy made by the government is not of a type that excludes the youth," he said, "if it can be made effective, youth involvement will increase." Admitting that the government sector is lagging behind in climate-related studies and research, he agreed that investment should be increased.
According to Devkota, Nepal has not been able to speak strongly in the international forum for the necessary resources to deal with the effects of climate change. "We have not been able to raise the issue at the same level as we are affected," he said did Climate activist Amrit Paudel, speaking on behalf of the audience participating in the
dialogue, said that the poor have to bear the impact of the consumption of rich people in the form of climate change. Presenting the data that Pokhara's hotels emit 400 kg of carbon per bed per year, he pointed out the weaknesses in the implementation of the government's policies on sustainable development. "There is a lot of difference between the fishtail we saw when we were young and the fishtail of today," he said, "It is necessary for the young generation to be serious about it." Lakshmi Gurung, a tourism entrepreneur and climate activist from Mustang, narrated the devastation of the floods in Kagbeni in 2023.
'Rain in the central hills has now moved to the Himalayas,' she said, 'Mustang was a place where there was no rain before, so the roof of the house was made of mud. Mustang was known as the city of mud. But now those houses are being destroyed due to rain. She said that participating in the COP-28 in Dubai in 2023, countries like Nepal should get compensation from the damage fund. She said, "We don't need loans or investment, we want compensation," she said, "This is our right." He stressed that adaptation plans should be effectively implemented to deal with the effects of climate change. Biswas Baral, editor of Kathmandu Post, said that it started from Gandaki as per the plan to have climate dialogue at the provincial level. He said that there is a plan to start a public debate on climate dialogue in all seven provinces and prepare a document and take this debate to the international level. The Climate Dialogue was also supported by the Nepali Youth Entrepreneurs Forum, Pokhara Chapter.
