Climate Change and Our Civic Responsibility: A Call for Action in Gilgit-Baltistan and Chitral
By Dado Khan Sabir
In the contemporary world, human civilizations have been facing multifarious challenges, and one of them is Global Warming. Global Warming refers to an increase in the average surface temperature of the Earth. According to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the Earth’s average temperature has already increased from 1.1°C to 1.2°C in the late 19th century, and the last decade has been the warmest one in human history. The increase in temperature has many reasons; however, research revealed that the greenhouse effect and human attitudes towards their habitats and ecosystems are major factors of global warming. Global warming intensifies climate change through the swift melting of glaciers, changes in weather patterns, and increases the frequency of devastating incidents, such as flash floods, droughts, wildfires, and heatwaves. Consequently, the entire ecosystem and human lives are under threat worldwide.
In this connection, developed countries are taking substantial steps to combat climate change, including policy reforms such as the European Green Deal and the Inflation Reduction Act (2022), renewable energy transitions, green technology investments, and global climate funding. No doubt, developed countries are most responsible for excessive emissions of carbon and greenhouse gases, whereas the developing countries have far less contribution to global carbon emissions. Research has shown that climate change is caused by human activities such as burning fossil fuels and plastics, deforestation, and unhealthy industrial practices. No doubt, whole Pakistan, in general and particularly in Gilgit-Baltistan and Chitral, despite being among the least carbon-emitting regions in Pakistan, has been severely affected by climate change for the last two decades. Both regions have fragile mountainous ecosystems, mighty mountains, large glaciers at high altitude, lakes, springs, geysers, and river systems, making them highly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. All districts of Gilgit-Baltistan, in general, and in particular the district of Ghizer, are located in a high-risk disaster-prone zone. This district has been under threat of climate change for the last two decades due to glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs), clouds burst, landslides, debris flows, flash floods, cracking of rocks and mountains, and riverbank erosion.
In summer 2022, devastating flash-floods struck the villages of Immit, Buber, Sherqilla, Ishkoman, and Gupis-Yasin in the district of Ghizer. As a consequence, seventeen precious lives were lost, around three hundred and fifty houses, hundreds of acres of agricultural land, and livestock were destroyed. Similarly, in 2025, severe flash floods were witnessed in Piyarchi, Silpi, Kanchy, Grunjure, Nalti-Yasin, and Ishkoman Faizabad and Dawood Abad in the district of Ghizer. These disasters highlight the direct impact of climate change on human life, infrastructure, and natural habitats; in fact, the consequences are catastrophic. In such a critical situation, as a resident of GBC, I think it is an appropriate time for all of us to reflect on our roles and civic responsibilities as individuals, as institutions, and as a whole society, and ponder on these questions: What should be my roles as a member of civil society to combat climate change? How can we contribute as communities and institutions to saving our ecosystem and habitats from natural hazards? How can we assist government institutions and Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) that are combating climate change?
Man is the master piece of Allah Almighty, and Allah has created everything in precise balance in this universe. The holy Qur’an provides a profound ethical and spiritual framework for human beings to protect and care for the Earth. The man, as a khalifa of Allah on Earth, is caretaker, not owner, of the Earth, and must act responsibly in preserving it for future generations. Therefore, as members of civil society, it is our moral responsibility to combat climate change begins with cultivating awareness and action at the individual and family levels, and the collective level. Similarly, we can save energy, reduce plastic usage in our daily life, plant trees, and promote environmental awareness within our family, school, and social circles. Moreover, we can also play our role to advocate for eco-friendly policies, plans, and projects. Our role is not just to observe and wait, but to actively engage, influence, and inspire change in our community.
At the community and institutional level, we can contribute meaningfully by creating local climate action teams to execute and implement projects that contribute to minimizing climate change impacts through an excellent project such as EFAD. The primary aim of this project was not only to create sustainable agriculture, eco-friendly livelihood generation, and natural resource management, but also to empower local communities to adopt climate-resilient practices. Similarly, the Government and NGOs also initiate many projects with the collaboration and support of communities. Unfortunately, many of these projects are unable to achieve their objectives due to a lack of ownership on the community’s side. It was found in the developed countries that when a project is handed over to communities, then communities take responsibility to look after the project and get benefits from it for many decades. However, there is a dire need to develop this attitude in our contexts as well.
In addition, institutions such as schools, colleges, universities, religious platforms, forest, agriculture, B & R, P& W departments, and local organizations can play a pivotal role in building climate-resilient communities by initiating disaster preparedness sessions, providing free plants and trees to communities, protecting water resources and cultivating barren areas, and developing eco-friendly infrastructure respectively. No doubt, together, we can make a difference and preserve our ecosystems, protect our glaciers, lakes, rivers, forests, and grazing lands, and create awareness about early warning systems and disaster mitigation strategies that reduce the impact of natural hazards. To support and by working hand in hand with governments and NGOs, we can build a more sustainable and resilient future for all.
In a nutshell, combating climate change is a shared civic responsibility, not only the responsibility of the state or NGOs. In fact, the leading role is for government institutions; however, it is inevitable that as citizens of Pakistan, we have to support and stand with the state machineries and philanthropic institutions to develop strategic disaster risk mitigation plans and their implementations, empowering institutions like the Gilgit-Baltistan Disaster Management Authority (GBDMA) and other NGOs that are working to combat climate change. It is also essential for local government to train volunteers like Community Emergency Response Teams (CERTs) and village Emergency Response Teams (VERTs) at the local and village levels, and they should be mobilized, encouraged, and equipped with necessary kits to assist the people in difficult times to rescue, recover, and relieve them. Moreover, it is also indispensable to ensure legislation on an urgent basis to prohibit construction on riverbanks, floodways, and beneath mountains. In this connection, local administrations and municipalities should be empowered to strictly implement and regulate policies regarding land use, especially for the construction of houses.
Similarly, the Departments of Forests and Agriculture may play a critical role by providing incentives and saplings for communities to promote growing more trees and plants, while imposing strict sanctions on the cutting of trees and plants. At the same time, it is also important to ban and prohibit the usage of plastic for daily business, household use, and burning purposes. To build climate resilience, climate change and disaster management must be integrated into the school and college curricula to prepare the new generations for volunteerism and good citizenship, so that they may play their key roles to protect and safeguard their habitat and ecosystem. The basic training about rescue, recovery, and rehabilitation should be a mandatory part of our education system, ensuring that youth are informed, prepared, and proactive. To motivate youth for this purpose, some privileges like certification and preference for such youth in the admission of colleges and universities are provided. Climate change is no longer a distant threat; it is a lived reality, especially in the mountain communities of Gilgit-Baltistan and Chitral. Our collective efforts and change in our attitudes toward it can minimize the climate change.
The contributor is an Assistant Professor at Govt Degree College Hatoon, Ghizer.
