Until recently, climate scientists had been warning that Pakistan was in the list of the top ten countries most vulnerable to climate change. While these warnings were a cause of concern for government officials and climate activists, they hardly made much sense to the ordinary people who lacked climate change awareness. They only became evident in the form of the recent devastating rains and subsequent floods.
Now, when we have seen the stark manifestations of climate change in the shape of torrential rains and devastating floods which have left in their wake destruction of biblical proportions, many educated people who earlier denied the fact that the climate is changing, now understand that climate change is not a hoax; rather it is a stark reality.
Having said this, no one can deny the fact that people on the street still do not understand what climate change means. When I talk to the flood affectees and say that the devastation occurred because of the change in climate which has been caused by greenhouse gas emissions, they do not understand what I am talking about. They just shrug it off saying that it was not because of this climate thing that the rains came, rather it was an act of God that intended to punish human beings for their transgressions.
That the rains and floods were a divine punishment for our ‘misdeeds’ is the narrative well liked by our politicians and other stakeholders, for it absolves them of their responsibility for their ineffective and dismal management in the climate catastrophe as well as their failure to formulate policies aimed at tackling climate change.
Climate change is so big of an issue that a country like Pakistan cannot tackle it on its own unless the world mobilises against it, because Pakistan contributes only one percent of all greenhouse gas emissions. So, even if the country switches to renewable energy and becomes completely carbon free, it will not make much of a difference in tackling or slowing down the consequences of climate change. This is the reason why climate activists and other conscious people are calling on the international community to play their part.
Having said this, it does not mean that Pakistan should be dependent on the international community in shaping its response to climate change. The country needs to take action even if the outside world does little on that count, for there is little it can do to influence other countries except for calling on them.
What Pakistan should do or should not do has been debated on a lot. In fact, there are ministries working on evolving strategies and formulating policies to deal with climate change and to mitigate its consequences. What I want to do is to point out one of the most important areas the country is missing on. It is public apathy.
There’s little doubt that our government’s policies lack public interest and enthusiasm. They fail to get the proper attention from people they are meant for. And the troubling thing is, governments try to carry on not minding that in order to get their policies implemented effectively, they need to arouse the public’s interest. Same is the case with policies intended to counter climate change.
First of all, most people lack awareness about climate change. They do not what fossil fuels are and how their consumption ultimately ends up contributing to climate change. It appears from the response of the governments and organisations that climate change is meant for only educated people. You must have seen that seminars dealing with climate change are only conducted for people who already know what climate change or global warming is.
Because of lack of awareness, people do not take part in activities designed to tackle climate change. For example, people living in rural areas do not plant new trees. In fact, they feel no qualms in taking down existing trees. They only take trees for their wood and fruit.
I have seen that various governmental schemes fail because of public apathy. People do not think even for a moment that the schemes are meant for their welfare. I believe if they feel a sense of belonging, almost all governmental schemes would produce better results.
To sum up, my point is simple: unless both the federal and provincial governments arouse people’s interest in their policies, their response to climate change would not bear fruit. So, they should take heed of this and act accordingly. If they become successful in garnering people’s support, the battle to tackle climate change would become a bit easy.