Tashi's way of looking at the problems faced by Nepal is holistic in that only a new social contract between the state and citizens can transform the nation
What was supposed to be a conversation about climate activism and the impact that climate warming is having on local indigenous populations of Nepal turned out instead to be a much deeper discussion about democracy, good governance and, yes, climate change. It was also about inequalities and unjust power dynamics in the country that underpin the way the country is fighting one of its biggest challenges.
I am referring to a recent meeting I had with Tashi Lhazom, a well-known Indigenous climate activist originally from the remote Limi Valley located in the northernmost part of Humla district. Tashi was the guest speaker at the second day of the course on Climate Action that The Good Leadership and Planet Pulse, the latter a group of climate enthusiasts and practitioners, had organised for local youths.
In the session, Tashi had spoken about a documentary she had just shot, "No Monastery, No Village", an internationally acclaimed story financed by the Agha Khan University through its Voices from the Roof of the World. The documentary is centered on Tashi's own village of Halzi, a magnificent place amid majestic arid mountains, and the role that an ancient local monastery is still having on the lives of the people living there.
The Waltse Rinchenling Monastery, one of the oldest Buddhist sacred spaces of the nation, has been, for centuries, a venerated place, the epicentre of people's lives in the Limi Valley, with locals showing a strong bond and attachment with the shrine. As the documentary explains, the monastery is still an "irreplaceable cultural treasure" for the few hundreds of people who still inhabit Halzi.
Unfortunately, due to climate warming, the religious place and the whole community living around it, is threatened by the melting of the Halzi glacier located 6.5 km above the village.
We have already witnessed massive glacial lake outburst floods in several regions of the country. More devastation and more deaths are set to occur unless the state both at the federal, provincial and local levels, comes up with an ambitious blueprint focused on early warning systems, cutting edge disaster management measures and climate adaptation initiatives.
Discussing and writing about indigenous ownership on climate action is paramount because no action can lead to meaningful, lifesaving results unless the locals, especially those inhabiting the valleys of the Himalayan region for millennia, are involved and have a real voice on the table.
For Tashi, talking about climate action means going to the core of nation-building and the way governance has been exercised in the country: a minority ruling and exercising authority while a vast majority, including millions of indigenous ethnic groups, remain at the margins. If we want to deal effectively with climate warming, then, according to Tashi, it is not just about coming up with the right technical solutions, being them either in the realm of mitigation or adaptation or disaster risk reduction and management. To her, it is really about power inequities and the inequalities that are still so entrenched at the system level.
It is not a coincidence that Tashi, who is currently interning for the American Embassy and is also a LeadNext Fellow with The Asia Foundation, studied political science at the prestigious Hindu College of Delhi University. In our conversation, Tashi recounted how at school, during her grade 9 studies, while she was learning how democracy was described as the best form of government, deep inside she was feeling uncomfortable because her own village was so completely neglected by the authorities.
That's how the activist started a personal reflection that soon became a quest, a journey to first understand and then address why her own people had mostly lacked access not only to power but also to the most basic facilities like roads, public schools, and effective health facilities.
Her skepticism towards the way democracy was and is still unfolding in the country, led her to become passionate about good governance, especially on how political systems can truly involve local people. The journey that Tashi started led her to focus on climate action because there was a huge need as her own whole village is at risk of being wiped out by the melting of the imposing Halzi glacier.
Experts and pundits tend to focus first on cause-effect relationships of global warming; they do emphasise solutions that are much needed if we want to prevent more casualties, but the reasoning made by Tashi is different, more profound and much more powerful. It is, in a way, radical as it is really aiming at changing the system and turning it around to make it more diverse and inclusive.
With no changes in the power dynamics in the country, the most intricate challenges, I was explained, including climate change, cannot be fully addressed. Her way of looking at the problems faced by Nepal is holistic and comprehensive in the sense that only a new social contract between the state and citizens can truly transform the nation for better.
Her own campaigning for climate justice is bringing a neglected community with a unique history and ancient traditions to the attention of the international community.
The fact that the documentary was showcased around the world, including in the USA, is significant because more people are becoming aware of the often-overshadowed linkages between local culture and the adverse impact that climate warming is having on it.
The fight against climate action, Tashi told me, goes through a process that should be empowering for all those citizens that have been left out of decision-making. "Because poverty of power is the root cause of all forms of marginalisations," she told me.
She concluded our conversation with the following statement: "By embracing this approach, we have a unique opportunity to transform Nepal and address the challenge of global warming, empowering marginalised groups like mine to have a meaningful voice and, yes, power."
