National seminar on Climate Change held at Jakhama, Nagaland
A two-day national seminar titled “Differentiated Responsibilities and Respective Capabilities: Responses to Climate Change”, was organised by St. Joseph’s College, Jakhama (Nagaland). The governor of Nagaland Nikhil Kumar, gracedthe occasion as the chief guest. The inaugural session was chaired by the convenor of the event, Fr. Abraham Lotha. Welcoming the chief guest, the college principal, Fr. Isaac Padinjarekuttu, said that the seminar is part of the college’s silver jubilee celebration. The governor mentioned that the topic was of importance and termed it the order of the day. Mr. Probir Bose, of The Climate Change Project, delivered the keynote address. He spoke and showed the audience several interesting slides on different aspects of climate change and global warming.
Various resource persons presented papers in the afternoon session that was chaired by Dr. Sushmita Dasgupta of Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU), New Delhi. In the course of the session, Mhonlumo Kikon spoke about the politics of carbon emission and its impact on indigenous communities in non-metropolitan places such as Nagaland. Following this, Dr. Dolly Mathew, enlightened the audience about the carbon budget, emission and its stabilisation steps, which included a description of procession farming. Speaking on the occasion, Zuchamo Kikon, additional director of agriculture, government of Nagaland, spoke at length about sustainable jhum cultivation and its effects in Nagaland.
The media partners for the seminar are Morung Express and Panos South Asia.
James H. K., Media liaison officer
Comments (1)
It is one of the most significant conference that I have ever attended. Being one of the co-convener of the conference, I has benefited me in so many ways... Climate change is profoundly an issue of fairness. It is caused mainly by the burning of fossil fuels in the wealthiest countries, especially the United States, and in the rapidly growing economies of China and other middle-income countries. Yet, it will hurt most the poorest of the poor, who lack the resources to adjust and who live in the areas most affected by the increased drought, flooding, and water-borne disease that come with a warmer climate. Even in America, Hurricane Katrina showed us how natural disasters can fall most heavily on the poor. We cannot attribute any one storm to climate change, any more than we can attribute any one person's heart attack to our national epidemic of obesity. Nevertheless, warmer oceans are expected to increase the intensity of tropical storms. Katrina is, therefore, an example of the kind of disaster that is likely to become more common with global warming. It is an image of how the world's poor will pay for the lifestyles of the wealthy. • Does it promote goodwill? Fair solutions to climate change are essential to international goodwill. Climate change, and how to share the responsibility for minimizing it, are already the subjects of rancorous disputes among Europe, the United States, China and developing nations. Climate change may already have exacerbated the drought and famine that fuel the violence in Darfur. Two other climate-change effects, sea level rise and increased seasonal flooding, have driven refugees from Bangladesh into Northeast India, sparking an often-violent conflict with the Assamese already living there. Further warming is likely to bring wars over water, instability due to hunger and disease, and social conflict due to the movement of millions of climate refugees. Such problems are likely in many regions that already have ongoing conflicts, including North Africa, the Sahel, Southern Africa, South Asia, Central Asia, the Caribbean and the Amazon. Climate change is a threat to our own national security, according to a recent report by eleven retired admirals and generals including former U.S. Army Chief of Staff Gordon Sullivan and former Commander of the U.S. Central Command Anthony Zinni. As the United Nations Environment Program puts it, "Combating climate change will be a central peace policy of the 21st century.
Leave a Comment