photo: Messenger
Youth Climate Warriors expressed their determination to build livable cities at Satkhira Urban Youth Climate Conference-2024. For this reason, they also demanded to take initiative by the state.
On Wednesday (December 18) research organization BARCIK organized the conference.
In the morning, prominent political and cultural personality Kamrul Islam Farooq and Azad Hossain Belal, convenor of the District Citizen Committee, inaugurated the conference by hoisting the national flag.
Later, a colorful march took place in the city of Satkhira to demand climate justice. The procession went round various roads and ended at Satkhira Public Library auditorium.
After that, a seminar titled 'Climate Tolerant and Environment Friendly City' was held there. Imti Jamil, a member of the Education Culture and Diversity Protection Team, read the concept paper.
Satkhira District Citizen Committee Member Secretary Abul Kalam Azad, Sadar Upazila Project Implementation Officer Shahinul Islam, Environment Activist Principal Ashek-e-Elahi, Human Rights Activist Madhav Chandra Dutta, BARCIK Director Pavel Partha, Coordinator Jahangir Alam & Young climate warrior SM Shaheen Alam spoke among others.
Speakers in the seminar said that due to climate change, the people of the coastal areas are forced to move from the village to the city in the hope of surviving. Most of the displaced people are living in slums and sidewalks in the city. Although not responsible for this critical situation, they have to choose a life of pain. The crisis of climate change has forced them to leave their villages, but they are suffering from the negative effects of climate change even when they come to the cities.
The participants in the seminar proposed ensuring safe, environment-friendly and disaster-resilient housing for urban low-income people, ensuring education for slum children, providing free medical service to the poor, ensuring water supply, sanitation, sewage and waste management, reduce urban heat and create at least 20 percent of forest land by the government and ensuring 15 percent of wetlands, ensuring income-generating training and employment generation facilities for youth especially women, Initiatives to stop noise pollution, air pollution, water pollution, use of eco-friendly building materials in construction, ensuring use of green energy for all and creation of footpaths and bicycle lanes for pedestrians in the city.
In the closing ceremony of the conference, Sadar Upazila Nirbahi Officer Shoaib Ahmad as the chief guest. Professor Mozammel Hossain and Professor Pabitra Mohan Das were present as guests.
On the conference, SM Shahin Alam, Maqsuda Khatun and Abdur Rahman as the best climate warriors, Tamim Hossain for tree plantation, Hridoy Mandal for preventing child marriage, Farid Gazi for protecting Pransayar canal, Irafil Hossain for urban agriculture and Varendra Climate Warrior Shaikh Tasnim Jamal are awarded Urban Youth Climate Commendation 2024.
Messenger/Asaduzzaman/Tushar
