Current climate crisis manmade: Sultana Kamal

Human rights activist and Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) Chairperson Sultana Kamal said that human activity is to blame for the current climate crisis.

"We are destroying the environment in various ways. We are constantly destroying protected forests by bringing them under various profitable projects, increasing the risk of climate change," she said on Friday during the inaugural ceremony of a two-day climate justice rally at Stamford University's Siddheswari campus in the capital.

Sultana Kamal, convener of the rally organising committee, also said that we need to continue to coordinate efforts to force wealthy countries responsible for the climate crisis to take appropriate measures to address the climate crisis.

"We need to find out from this rally what needs to be done to prevent and address climate change and take steps accordingly," she added.

In his virtual address as chief guest, Saber Hossain Chowdhury, special envoy of the prime minister on environment and climate change, said, "Climate change is causing the least responsible to suffer the most. Again, those who are most affected are the least capable of adapting to climate change. Therefore, the demand for climate justice is very important in addressing this crisis."

He called for continued collective efforts to compel rich countries to ensure climate justice.

Lidy Nacpil, coordinator of the Asian Peoples' Movement on Debt and Development (APMDD), said, "Climate change is happening at a much faster pace than scientists had thought. The decision to keep the average temperature of our planet within 1.5 degrees Celsius is now almost impossible, due to the continuous emission of carbon dioxide by rich countries.

"Although we are supposed to be carbon neutral by 2050, we are still not even close to implementing that directive. The next two to three years are very important for us. Therefore, we must force rich countries to take the necessary initiatives to address climate change."

Sanjeeb Drong, the general secretary of Bangladesh Indigenous Peoples Forum, said, "Indigenous peoples make up only 5% of the world's population. However, indigenous peoples protect 80% of the world's total biodiversity.

"The irresponsible development philosophy of the developed world has severely damaged the ecosystems of countries like ours. Especially our indigenous peoples are being affected the most."

Thousands of participants from both domestic and international regions attended the first day of the rally organised on the occasion of the World Climate Conference (COP-28).