26 April 2022, Tashkent — What are the real problems caused by climate change? What role can volunteers play in applying mitigation and adaptation measures? Climate change experts answered these questions at a Café Scientifique session for members of the Uzbekistan Volunteer Association, organized by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO).

The meeting’s participants learnt about the background and root causes of climate change, and the actions needed to address its environmental consequences, from Uzhydromet climate change expert Lyudmila Shardakova.

If natural resources are not used in a rational and efficient manner, Uzbekistan’s citizens may face worsening health risks linked to heat waves, and water shortages caused by climate aridity and depleting water resources. Climate change leads to more frequent droughts and other extreme weather events such as dust storms, landslides and floods, which jeopardize agricultural sustainability and threaten national food security.

"Climate change’s impacts have already negatively affected people worldwide, and the situation worsens daily. Uzbekistan’s volunteers participate in tree-planting actions, and saving wild animals to avoid their extinction caused by human activity and climate change impacts. Today’s discussion and information shared by experts made us think about how important it is to take actions to combat climate change,” said Shirin Abidova, Director of the Volunteers Association of Uzbekistan. She announced her association’s plans to conduct awareness raising meetings devoted to climate change and the need for urgent action in combatting global challenges.

The session participants also discussed the forthcoming international meeting to be convened by the United Nations General Assembly in Stockholm, Sweden, over 2-3 June 2022. “This coming meeting intends to advance the implementation of the UN Decade of Action to deliver the Sustainable Development Goals, the Paris Agreement on climate change, the post-2020 global Biodiversity Framework, and green recovery plans. It is a crucial opportunity for individuals, communities, organizations and governments to come together and accelerate the implementation of efforts to ensure a sustainable planet for all,” noted Umidjan Nazarkulov, UNDP National Consultation Coordinator for ‘Stockholm+50’.

“What I heard and discussed today has impacted me greatly, because until now I have never realized the magnitude of climate change caused by human activity. Uzbekistan has undertaken ambitious commitments on reducing greenhouse gas emissions, which cause global climate warming. We, citizens of our country, should contribute to the fulfilment of those commitments. I will soon be a young medical professional, and need to be fully aware of climate change’s impacts on human health,” said Dilnoza Sulaymonova, student of the Tashkent Paediatric Medical Institute, and a member of the volunteer association.   

This meeting was organized within the framework of the regional project ‘Policy action for climate security in Central Asia- Phase II’, implemented by UNDP in cooperation with the Center of Hydrometeorological Services (Uzhydromet) of the Republic of Uzbekistan and funded by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO). It once again demonstrated how a desire to tackle the climate change challenge has unified efforts of civil society and government agencies to improve atmospheric air quality and ensure better environmental protection.