ICIMOD media workshop discusses green economy

To promote a global green economy, mountain ecosystems must be conserved and developed to ensure a sustained flow of resources and services. Conservation, adaptation, and climate change mitigation measures in mountains can support low-carbon economy in both mountains and lowlands.

This was discussed at the media workshop organized by International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) on green economy for sustainable mountain development in Kathmandu, Nepal, last week.

Climate change and poverty reduction are the most confronting challenges of the 21st century. And Hindu Kush Himalayan (HKH) region, which includes Bhutan, is facing the global impact of climate change.

A speaker said it is a critical time to advocate mountain development at the international level to make sure that mountain ecosystems and their products or services are properly recognized and valued so that they benefit from international mechanisms. This will help foster green economy and enable communities to adapt to climate change.

Green economy seeks to promote an economic system which increases human wellbeing in the long run while maintaining natural capital and environmental resources so that future generations do not face significant environmental risks and ecological sacrifices.

Loss of mountain ecosystems due to climate change can impose great economic, environmental, and social loss to populations both in mountains and downstream.

Experts say proper incentives should be paid to mountain populations to protect their ecosystem, promote environmental governance systems and frame the mountain agenda.

Therefore, the government must ensure that green economy contributes to eradicating poverty, ensuring livelihoods, and promoting social equity and security in line with the MDGs.

In order to ensure this, financial resources are required for conservation of mountain ecosystem services and for transition towards a more low-carbon path of development.

The workshop familiarized media professionals from HKH regional member countries to different issues, challenges, options and opportunities with regard to promotion of green economy and climate change adaptation in the region.

The workshop looked at enhancing improved coverage on mountain issues in the context of Rio+20 and UNFCCC debates, and increased awareness at various levels.

The workshop highlighted that the media should focus on how mountains provide solutions to the climate problems. Media coverage need not necessarily solve the problems, but reporting on such issues will help improve the situation on the ground, according to the editor of Nepal Times, Kunda Dixit.

Instead of giving so much attention on the global issues, Dixit said local climate change and environmental issues and other related issues should be given importance to help local communities improve their understanding on the subject.

Dr Golum Rasul from ICIMOD said the media should educate the policy makers and grassroots and build opinions. It should enhance public understanding and engage in constructive public engagement.

He said green economy helps sustain economic growth and addresses high carbon emissions, climate change, resource depletion, loss of biodiversity, energy crisis, water shortage, food insecurity, and persistent poverty.

Concept of green economy is important for mountain regions as a large number of mountain people depend on the natural environment for livelihood and prosperity. It is one of the mechanisms of maintaining the economic growth path without creating scarcity.

From a mountain perspective, it is vital to reduce poverty and conserve natural resources. Economic security and human wellbeing are fundamentally dependent on ecosystem goods and services.

The richest fifth of the world’s population receives 83 percent of the world’s income, one fifth gets 20 percent and the poorest fifth receives 1.4 percent of the total world income.

About half of the world’s population depends on mountains for fresh water, clean energy, irrigation water, minerals, forest, recreation, and genetic resources. However, mountains have high poverty rate although they are low carbon economies.

Mountains are important sources of hydropower which provides more than 15 percent of the world’s hydropower and other forms of clean energy. Mountains support 25 percent of the planet’s biodiversity, and have 50 percent of the world’s biodiversity hotspots. Mountain communities are custodians of agro biodiversity. Six of 20 plant crop species that supply 80 percent of the world’s food originate in the mountains.

A report from ICIMOD says mountain ecosystems contribute to regulating global climate by mediating carbon, energy, and water balance at the land surface.

Mountain communities have high adaptive capacity owing to their close contact with the environment. Their adaptation processes and practices, including traditional technologies for soil conservation, watershed protection, and conservation of indigenous seeds, can generate support from global communities and help address climate change impacts if adequate incentive mechanisms are developed.

The United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD or Rio+20) to be held in June 2012 will have green economy in the context of sustainable development and poverty eradication as one of its two thematic focuses.

By Sonam Pelden