Climate change crisis in Bangladesh

In a recent address to the Church of England Synod the Director of the Christian Commission for Development in Bangladesh Mr Joyanta Adhikari painted a grim picture of the emerging catastrophic impact of climate change on Bangladesh. He made a plea for action and solidarity by all who would care enough regarding this emerging crisis.

These are some of the facts that were shared with the Synod:

• Approximately 17 million people losing homes and livelihood if sea level rise 1.5 by 2025. This will lead to 16% loss of land affecting approximately 15% of the population.

• Currently sea level rise is and the intrusion of salt water is having an impact on rice paddies, affecting the agricultural base of the economy.

• The loss of arable land in the north and south of the country is creating migration to urban centres like Dhaka which is leading to increased social dislocation.

Mr. Adhikari indicated that efforts at mitigation such as floating gardens and salt resistant varieties of rice paddies are only part of the solution. He concluded "This world has enough for our need, but not our greed. We are all God's creation and we have to live responsibly to ensure God's world is not destroyed. We cannot solve the problem of climate change alone; we need the help of people in other countries to reduce pollution."

Even as creation groans the church is being called to take a firmer stand on the side of those who will suffer the most amidst political intransigence.