KATHMANDU, DECEMBER 1
Participated by environmental journalists from across the country, climate scientists and government officials, among others, the one-day workshop consisted of presentations, question–answer rounds, group works and valuable remarks from guests.
The workshop was jointly organized by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) in collaboration with Nepal Forum of Science Journalists (NFSJ).
Speaking at the event, Dr Sunita Chaudhary, Ecosystem Services Specialist at ICIMOD stated that the changes being noticed in the cryosphere in the Hindu Kush Himalayan region is remarkable. "We need to know the linkages between climate change, the cryosphere and the effects in the local communities," she said. "We should be alarmed that the climate-induced changes here are comparatively more intense compared to other parts of the world."
Michael Croft, Country representative of UNESCO recognized that 'Nepal quite matters to the entire world when it comes to climate change scenario.' "It is important to communicate the practical impacts of climate change to the world. It's important to tell how people are living with the reality of climate change," he said.
Similarly, Dr Pema Gyamtsho, Director General of ICIMOD, said, "Climate change is right here. Its impacts are not going to be faced by the public in the coming 100 years; but they are being felt now. And, the media plays a huge role in communicating these changes to the public."
Rajan Pokhrel, President of Nepal Forum of Science Journalists, meanwhile pointed out that the gap between the media and the science community is not pleasant. "Climate change is a cross-cutting issue; it cannot be ignored. But when we talk about climate change, we need to interlink it with science and the media should communicate to the rest of the world adequately," he added.
Highlighting the risks climate change poses on the cryosphere and the lives and livelihood of people, Dr Pramila Devi Bajracharya, Secretary at the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, said, "Any changes in the cryosphere can have disastrous effects on the settlements downstream. We all remember last year's Melamchi flood disaster. In order to reduce the disaster impact on the Nepali public, on behalf of the ministry, I urge all parties to work on intervention measures to safeguard our future."
The workshop dwelt with a number of presentations that explored the nexus between the cryosphere and climate change. Sudeep Thakuri, the dean of Mid-Western University, gave a presentation on 'Cryosphere change and its diverse impacts', where he shed light on the potential impact of rising global temperature on the cryosphere and its direct and indirect impacts on forest, biodiversity, water resources and agriculture.
Miriam Jackson, programme coordinator of the Cryosphere Initiative at ICIMOD, also gave a presentation on the science perspective of the research process and the importance of communicating this research with non-scientific audiences
In addition, Sanjeev Bhuchar, senior watershed management specialist at ICIMOD, spoke about the impacts of the changing cryosphere on water resources and adaptation options. Dr Binaya Pashakhala, of ICIMOD, also shared insights on social changes happening due to changes in the cryosphere.
Ramesh Bhusal, Nepal editor for the Third Pole who also manages Internews 'Earth Journalism Network's activities in South Asia, gave a presentation on 'how to report about the environment and climate change.'
Following the presentations, a group discussion was held among the journalists. They also shared their reporting experiences as they discussed 'Climate issues in different provinces and their linkages to livelihood'.
The final presentation was delivered by Srijana Shrestha, Under Secretary at the Ministry of Forest and Environment. She shed light on the federal government's role on the policy level regarding climate action.
