2021 World Environment Day

Kicking off the Decade on Restoration with a Pledge to Conserve Nature

Dhaka. 05 June 2021

Statements by the Resident Representative, UNDP Bangladesh

Better late than never or at the very least let me at the outset highlight that the World Environment Day 2021 does present a somewhat perfect moment to talk about health of planet while we discuss about human development. The COVID-19 has magnified our historical mistreatment/neglect of the planet - and this calls for renewed efforts to heal it.   I also find the moment particularly timely as one reads the various discussions about the new Budget Bill which the Hon Finance Minister has presented to the Parliament a couple of days ago.

Perhaps not just Economists but also Environmentalists must seize the opportunity to take a critical look at the National Budget.  Grow we must but not at the cost of environmental diseconomies.  Here let me quote the Mahatma who said that : “The earth, the air, the land and the water are not an inheritance from our forefathers but on loan from our children. 

Let me now speak on Bangladesh. The nature has always been one that protects the people of the land. Due to the country’s extreme vulnerability to natural calamities like cyclones, floods and landslides, forest coverage in the local context remains a particularly important aspect in fending off natural disasters. This has been proven time and again, and most recently when cyclones Fani, Amphan, and Yaas made landfall, during which time the Sundarbans along the coast played an instrumental role in acting as a  natural shield which minimized physical damage and loss of lives. 

However, as Bangladesh excels economically with an impressive outlook for the future, a more holistic approach to her development efforts are required especially keeping in mind the environmental aspects, and especially prioritizing conservation of forests and wetlands. It is important that we challenge our own social norms and thinking about ‘trade offs between development and nature’ – and do development differently.   There are no trade-offs, by neglecting Mother Nature for the sake of growth at all means will only transfer the burden of our gross neglect to future generatons.

Let us remind ourselves that human interference continues to threaten the delicate balance of ecosystems created millions of years ago and Bangladesh too is at a critical juncture, with local annual deforestation rate being double that of the global average. In 2010, Bangladesh had 2.22 million hectares of forest, covering 16 percent of the country’s total land mass. However, a decade later in 2020, the country has lost 21.5 thousand hectares of tree cover, equivalent to 11.6 megatons of carbon dioxide emissions. Planet Earth is at risk with climate change, and the diverse ‘life over land’ and ‘life under water’ are threatened, and ‘peace for most’ has fallen victim to what is only ‘prosperity and progress for some’. 

The concern is not just about unplanned industrialization and urbanization leading to large scale deforestation. It is also important to note the substantial threat to loss of species and biodiversity deforestation poses. Many old citizens of Dhaka keep reminding me about how over the years many birds and bees and butterflies and different plants and trees have disappeared from the city.

The level of interconnectedness we as humans have with nature amazes me and I think we as humans often take this fact for granted. The food we eat, the water we drink, medicines we take, fuel and energy we use, clothes we wear and the shelter we have, are all dependent on vibrant and healthy ecosystems around us. Until we appreciate the beauty and complexity of this natural synergy and reconsider ourselves as coexisting factors within the ecosystems, we will not be able to achieve a holistic development approach in our ways. 

Unfortunately, the COVID-19 disease has perfectly underlined the importance of mending our relationship with nature and has signified that our health is connected directly to that of planet earth. The dramatic increase in recent zoonotic diseases, such as COVID-19, Ebola, SARS, Swine and Avian flu, are being increasingly attributed to unsustainable exploitation of nature and the only real solution is to change our ways at all levels in protecting the ecosystems and preventing  the degradation of natural habitats and biodiversity.

I must highlight a few good works of the Government of Bangladesh. It has designated a total of 52 protected areas and 13 ecologically critical areas to systematically manage and restore the degraded environment. To that end, United Nations Development Programme has been a longstanding partner of Bangladesh and have provided technical guidance and strategies to reduce emissions from deforestation and degradation of forest coverage. 

UNDP has also supported the forest department in expanding the operational coverages of protected areas in the Sundarbans. Through a conservation project, three new dolphin sanctuaries were also approved with the participation of the local communities to ensure sustainability. The alternative livelihood support provided to 1,000 community households have also empowered women and reduced pressure on the harvesting of natural resources within the Sundarbans.

With a staggering population of 170 million and an ambition to obtain a fully “developed” status by 2041, Bangladesh must generate further momentum in aligning favourable policy and regulations across all sectors to achieve a concerted effort in ensuring environmental protection. The 8th five-year plan of the Government is an excellent starting point in doing so, coupled by a whole-of-society approach which is required in all planning, programming, fiscal reforms and budgeting stages.

The years 2021-2030 have been declared the UN Decade on Restoration, a global mission that aims to protect and revive billions of hectares of valuable natural capital, from forests to oceans. As we observe World Environment Day with the theme “reimagine, recreate, restore”, I would like all of you to reflect upon the fact that it is us humans who are the major part of the problem in altering the environment but also, as an integral part of the solution. On World Environment Day 2021, I would like to again reiterate the importance of protecting our environment and biological assets, not just for our sake, but also for that of future generations.

Before I conclude, let me once again mention one of several invaluable teachings of Mahatma Gandhi. More than a century ago, in 1909, he already prophesized that the development in Western Societies in the form of insatiable pursuit of material pleasures was a threat to Planet Earth. In his writings, the Mahatma had warned the Western Society of the ill-effects that their over-consumptive lifestyle could bring on the Planet and appealed to his own countrymen to not be trapped by the lure of material gains. The Mahatma also reminded us that the “Earth provides enough to satisfy everyone’s needs, but not everyone’s greed.”

Achieving a green and graduate Bangladesh will require a number of bold actions.

First, policy and regulation in all sectors should be aligned and harmonized to address the rapid destruction of the environment.

Second, building on the past lessons from success and failure, the country needs, in line with the UN Decade on Restoration, a  market-based approach of polluters-pay, beneficiaries-pay, and green tax, which could be developed based on broad-based partnership with private sector.

Third, investing in social norms, sustainable consumption, and production patterns. Transformation to a society with such norms would give Bangladesh a unique competitive edge at the global trade and investment.

Achieving them would require fresh and new thinking. The policy makers must acknowledge that youths are present – and not just future leaders. A McKinsey & Company study suggests that 60% of the Generation Z (digital generation) globally would reject products sourced through polluting production system. Their voices must be heard. In fact, I would actually reach out to the leaders across the globe and appeal to them to engage more youth in both policy making and actual implementation – they not only have more at stake as far as the future is concerned, but they also have the global/social networks and modern knowledge that should be harnessed to heal the planet.

Finally, at the global stage, Bangladesh must play its leadership role -as natural expectation from its leader who is a champion of the earth -in elevating the political attention on the Convention on Biological Diversity. This international effort from global south could help establishing global fund on ecosystem restoration, creating shared commitment for Net-zero biodiversity and ecosystem loss by the end of 2030. This is new and growing expectations from Bangladesh: A country that not only works to make life better for its citizens but also for the Planet.

Let me end by reminding ourselves of the message of the UNSG for today.

We are rapidly reaching the point of no return for the planet.  We face a triple environmental emergency — biodiversity loss, climate disruption and escalating pollution.

For too long, humanity has cut down the Earth’s forests, polluted its rivers and oceans, and ploughed its grasslands into oblivion.  We are ravaging the very ecosystems that underpin our societies.  And, in doing so, we risk depriving ourselves of the food, water and resources we need to survive.

We need to replant and protect our forests.  We need to clean up our rivers and seas.  And we need to green our cities.  Accomplishing these things will not only safeguard the planet’s resources.  It will create millions of new jobs by 2030, generate returns of over $7 trillion every year and help eliminate poverty and hunger.

Science tells us these next 10 years are our final chance to avert a climate catastrophe, turn back the deadly tide of pollution and end species loss.  So let today be the start of a new decade — one in which we finally make peace with nature and secure a better future for all.