Together for the Change: Educate, Empower, and Grow

Do you think we haven’t felt the full impact of climate change like other countries have, or are we just relying on technologically thriving countries to address this particular issue? The answers to these questions are not as straightforward as they seem. The mindset is buried in a multi-layered context of long historical, cultural, diplomatic, and political influences that have embedded in the social fabric of the society. The smart solution approach starts from acknowledging the problem with a vision that it should be resolved through inclusivity in its true sense, involving people from the grassroots level on the discussion forums, and implementing community-led growth programs. The key problem is that we cannot resolve the issue until its gravity is understood by a wider population. The Solar Mamas Program in Zanzibar (Tanzania) equips women aged between 35 and 50 with training to assemble, install, and repair solar systems in their rural communities and earn a reasonable amount of money to support themselves. After completing the training, the local government provides free solar kits to women for economic support. Similarly, in Senegal, the women-led social enterprise ElleSolaire has designed a six-month cohort course to train young girls and women with no or limited formal education to learn entrepreneurship and technical skills for their socioeconomic development. These trained women learn basic marketing skills and sell clean energy products in the remote rural areas through microfinancing. While challenges remain due to the existing patriarchal setup, their strength lies in moving forward together, supporting one another for the greater good. These community-driven and gender-inclusive projects show that raising awareness and adopting renewable energy sources are essential steps toward building a cleaner environment. It is important to engage marginalized communities in climate change action plans, which can yield immediate results with long-term impact.

The dire need is to train young minds with a growth mindset approach, encouraging individuals to seek solutions independently while collaborating with other well-informed clusters present at the local and global levels. We are living in a globalized world, where the exchange of educated thoughts and climate-resilient working models/action plans can build a healthier society. The crucial factor is that the strategies should have a local flavor aimed at resolving the plight of local communities and, at large, the surrounding regional communities, as we share the same environmental landscape. The need is to find smart and sustainable solutions at both the indigenous and regional domains to minimize the hazardous impact on the environment. It is quite evident that the global footprint is becoming increasingly devastating due to continuous war conflicts and carbon pollution. This needs to be collaboratively addressed at both the local and regional levels to maximize damage control. To look at the brighter side, every cloud has a silver lining, and so in this case, young students, professionals, and government officials are working on different platforms separately and in collaboration to implement eco-friendly policies. However, the motivation of teenagers and youth is on another level in mobilizing the communities, taking up leadership roles, and making their voices heard on influential platforms, bringing relief to the local communities. To name a few eco-friendly local projects:

Go Green

Floating wetlands on the Korangi and Liyari rivers help purify polluted water contaminated with toxins and heavy metals. These aquatic plants purify the water to make it usable for the local communities. The lab testing revealed an alarming number that shows 80 percent of the water is contaminated with highly toxic elements. A study conducted by the UNDP reported that Pakistan falls in the category of top 10 nations with the highest number of people living without access to clean water. The youth activists are working hard to provide clean water in urban and rural communities. One such initiative is Bondh‑e‑Shams, “droplets of the sun,“ a global clean-water charity founded in 2014 by Hamza Farrukh. It converts abundant solar energy into safe drinking water for communities.

Green Architecture and Green Education

During the humanitarian crisis, the Lari Octa Green Project, built with zero-carbon and low-cost materials, provided significant relief to disaster-affected communities in Sindh and Balochistan. Talking about a comprehensive green education initiative, Emaan Danish has designed an educational toolkit based on environment-supporting textbooks, storybooks, animated stories, and a cotton doll (Fizza) to narrate stories to early educators to instill an understanding of real-world challenges and to develop a sense of responsibility towards the environment at a formative age. These dolls are hand-stitched by women of low-income areas, hence supporting them financially and giving them a direction in life.

Green Economy

We have all witnessed children attending school wearing masks and seeing elderly people suffering from lung diseases due to the presence of heavy smog in the air. It is a horrible sight to see that the routine matters are disrupted and business centers are closing down in Lahore due to the worst climate change in Lahore. In these desperate times, it is a sigh of relief to know that steps are being taken in this direction to minimize the damage. The student-led projects, such as the C3-Yes Youth Climate Challenge, are where students pitch different innovative climate-friendly ideas, and if selected, they receive seed funding support. The other highlight is the GIZ textile program; it was launched in collaboration with the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development and the Government of Pakistan to develop sustainable quality standards in the textile industry. Its follow-up phase keenly focuses on the circular economy and representation of women in the sector. The National Vocational and Technical Training Center (NAVTTC) launched a Center of Excellence in Islamabad in collaboration with the EU, Norway, and Germany to form IT Hubs to support research and training on environment and sustainability. Another impactful endeavor, promoting the concept of a circular economy, is the PecoDrop Initiative, aimed at recycling plastic bottles and turning them into useful daily items. The Pecodrop is a reverse vending machine where the used PET bottles are inserted, and in return the person is going to receive a fixed monetary reward. This local tech initiative promotes responsible waste dumping and inculcates responsible, environment-friendly behavior. These local climate-resilient practices need to become more accessible to individuals from all walks of life so that the climate change drive can make a promising change on a large scale. To see projects scale, the power of social media can be leveraged to make it inclusive for all. It is inspiring to see the young activists and civil society collaborating on different platforms, sharing their unique ideas, exchanging innovative strategies, and bringing something effective for the people of this country. These individuals are the torchbearers of a society that is eyeing sustainable solutions and becoming a more climate-conscious society than ever before.