GS Paper III
Syllabus : Envrionmental pollution and degradation
Source : The Hindu
Directions: This Article has been taken from the Hindu. Although the article was long we are providing only important points here
Context: The United Nations Chief Antonio Guterres is on a three-day visit to India, during which he will attend an event relating to the Mission LiFE with Prime Minister Narendra Modi
Current threats the world is facing
- Triple planetary crisis of climate change, pollution and biodiversity loss
- Global warming: Nine of the warmest years on record have come in the past decade alone.
- This year’s record-breaking heat waves, floods, droughts, and other extreme forms of weather have forced us to face these increasingly devastating impacts
- Climate change is a disruption multiplier in a disrupted world, rolling back progress across the global Sustainable Development Goals
- Ukraine’s war fuels devastating energy, food, and cost-of-living crisis
Stepes taken to deal with the crisis
- The Paris Agreement and the COP26 summit in Glasgow represent urgently, collective steps countries are taking to limit emissions.
- Commitments we have now will not keep warming below the 1 . 5 °C target that gives us the best chance of averting catastrophe.
- Lack of consumer participation: As governments and industry carry the lion’s share of responsibility for responding to the crisis, we as consumers play a large role in driving unsustainable production methods.
Life mission:
The Lifestyle for Environment (LiFE) campaign was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at COP26 in Glasgow in 2021. The prime minister called upon global leaders to join the movement for safeguarding the environment by adopting environment-friendly lifestyle.
- It recognises small individual actions can tip the balance in the planet’s favour.
- But we need guiding frameworks, information sharing and the scale of a global movement.
- It recognises that accountability is relative to contribution.
- Emissions across the poorest half of the world’s population combined still fall short of even 1% of the wealthiest.
- Differentiated approaches: Each ‘Pro Planet’ stakeholder is nudged according to differentiated approaches.
- Mindful choices cultivated by LIFE animate this spirit — actions such as saving energy at home; cycling and using public transport instead of driving etc. and leveraging our position as customers and employees to demand climate-friendly choices
- Nudging: Many of the goals of LIFE can be achieved by deploying ‘nudges’, gentle persuasion techniques to encourage positive behaviour
- The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) employs proven nudging techniques such as discouraging food waste by offering smaller plates in cafeterias; encouraging recycling by making bin lids eye-catching
- According to the UNEP, more than two-thirds of greenhouse gas emissions can be attributed to household consumption and lifestyles — thus it requires widespread adoption of greener consumption habits.
India’s track record
- India has a proven track record of translating the aspirations of national missions into whole-of-society efforts
- For instance, the success of the Swachh Bharat Mission, which mobilised individuals and communities across socio-economic strata to become drivers of collective good health and sanitation
- From the Panchamrit targets announced by Modi at COP26, to support the International Solar Alliance, the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure and South-South cooperation platforms etc
Onus on the developed world
- The average carbon footprint of a person in a high-income country is more than 80 times higher than that of a person in a least-developed country.
- It is common sense and only fair to call on the developed world to shoulder a proportionate share of this transition.
- In the words of Mahatma Gandhi, “the world has enough for everyone’s need, but not enough for everyone’s greed.”
Conclusion:
India is an excellent place to start. With over 1.3 billion people, if we achieve a true Jan Andolan here, the momentum generated will be enormous. As India leads, we see the world increasingly follow.
Insta Links
Prelims link
- Paris Agreement
- COP 26
- Panchamrit targets of India
- International solar alliances
- CDRI
Mains Links:
Q. Write a note on Life mission and how it will help reduce global carbon emissions.
