President Paudel advocates for climate justice

Kathmandu, March 10 — President Ram Chandra Paudel has emphasized the need to raise the issue of climate justice in international forums, particularly for countries like Nepal, which suffer the consequences of climate change despite not being its primary contributors. While inaugurating the Nepal Geological Conference organized by the Geological Society on Monday, he highlighted the importance of advocating for climate justice on the global stage.

President Paudel noted that the issue of "mitigating the impacts of climate change, managing natural disasters, and handling geological hazards" is highly relevant, making the conference particularly significant. He pointed out that these issues are directly connected to human daily life. Paudel also mentioned how industrialization, excessive use of fossil fuels, and carbon emissions in highly developed countries have disproportionately impacted developing nations like Nepal, which contribute very little to carbon emissions.

He also highlighted the rise in Earth's temperature and the loss of one-third of the snow in the Himalayan glaciers over the past three decades, warning that glacial lakes are on the brink of bursting. Paudel reminded the audience of the annual loss of lives and property due to water-related disasters, landslides, and soil erosion caused by heavy rainfall.

President Paudel further discussed how frequent earthquakes in the Himalayan mountain range pose challenges to Nepal's development and construction. He also pointed out that, while methods for predicting some natural disasters have been developed, no mechanism has yet been found to predict earthquakes. Paudel added, "With the tenth anniversary of the 2015 earthquake approaching, I believe this conference will play a significant role in analyzing it."

The President expressed hope that the conference would provide valuable discussions on the status, exploration, geological hazards, climate change, and the use of geology in the development of physical infrastructure in Nepal. He also expects that the conference will attract investment for the sustainable extraction and management of natural resources.