Tibetan Delegates and members of Tibet Third Pole
The Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) and Tibetan delegates cheered for the new climate change agreement reached at the Paris climate summit, COP21. However, they have expressed the need for stronger climate action for Tibet saying that its global role as the “third pole” or “roof of the world” makes it a crucial factor in addressing climate change.
“The Paris Agreement is a step in the right direction, but it’s only a first step,” says Dicki Choyang, the Central Tibetan Administration’s Head of Information and International Relations. She added “If world leaders are serious about avoiding a global environmental catastrophe, Tibet’s importance to the sustainability of the world’s fragile ecosystem must be recognised.”
Despite the role Tibet plays in sustaining life in almost the whole of Asia by being its only water source, Tibet has suffered massive deforestation which contributes to climate change. According to Tibet.net, forest once covered 25.2 million hectares in Tibet. Now, according to China’s own estimates, 80% of Tibet’s forests have been destroyed and Tibet’s major rivers have been dammed by China. China’s policy of forced resettlement of nomads in Tibet is another concern, with the damage it causes to the natural cycle of life lived by nomads for centuries and which has preserved and enhanced the ecosystem in Tibet.
The CTA has said that China’s agreement to work towards curbing the dangers of the effects of climate change should not overlook the destruction China causes in Tibet.
Worldwide, groups representing women, young people, indigenous people and others have reacted angrily to the “removal of human rights protection binding language text” from the final draft of the COP21 agreement.
“There is still so much work to be done for climate justice and Tibetans and Tibet supporters will continue to stand with other frontline communities in pressing for binding commitments to reduce warming still further,” said Lobsang Yangtso, a member of Tibet Third Pole, speaking to Phayul. The Tibet Third Pole team campaigned with Tibetan delegates at COP21 in Paris to bring the concerns of the Tibetan plateau to the attention of the conference delegates.
The Paris climate summit concluded on December 12 with representatives from 200 countries lauding the new commitment which has brought together countries, both rich and poor, to agreeing to lower planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions in an attempt to prevent the drastic effects of climate change. “For the first time, we have a truly universal agreement on climate change, one of the most crucial problems on earth,” the New York Times reported Ban Ki-moon, the United Nations secretary general, as saying
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