The Entire World Is Our Home and All Living Beings Are Our Relatives
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Interview Advances in Agriculture and Environmental Science: Open Access “BashudaivaKutumbakkam”- The entire world is our home and all living beings are our relatives. Why we need to worry about climate change, with reference to pollution problems in the major cities of India, Nepal, Bangladesh and Pakistan Medani P. Bhandari Akamai University, Hilo, Hawaii, USA and Sumy State University, Ukraine Correspondence: Prof. Medani P. Bhandari, Email [email protected] Received: February 20, 2019 | Published: March 07, 2019 Copyright© 2019 Bhandari. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Abstract In this interview format opinion paper, Professor Medani P. Bhandari, directly or indirectly reveals the interconnected impact of geographical, and socio-cultural environment on personal motivation building. As such Prof. Bhandari tells the story of why and how he became interested in the conservation of nature and natural resources, what was the problems and how he overcome and continuously working on the same track with same focus in his entire life; however, it might be the story of each environmentalist who have tried to continue environment conservation action and activism and academic scholarships together. Prof. Bhandari is a lifelong conservationist, expert of climate change impact, social empowerment and educationalist, who has devoted his entire life for the conservation of nature and social services. This true story tells how personal background makes people’s perceptions on nature and society and what role a spiritual / tradition, Indigenous knowledge can motivate himself or herself to devote on conservation of nature and social empowerment. Prof. Bhandari shares why he thinks “VashudhivaKuttumbakam” the entire planet is our home and all living beings are our relatives. He also shares the essence of education, he uses the term EDUCARE- education for life. In this interview Prof. Bhandari explains the severity of current environmental impact on human and other living beings and explicate how and why we need to worry. He shows the evidences of negative impact of climate change on cities and how dangerous is the pollution condition in major cities of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal. Prof. Bhandari has published about 50 papers on international journals, published four books and poems volumes.A brief biography and contact details of Prof. Bhandari is included at the end of this interview.Prof. Bhandari states “My intention, of life is to pay back; give or contribute to the society in fullest whatever I have, earned, or experienced.” Hopefully readers will enjoy reading and will be benefited from this true an intrinsic motivational story with the evidences of scientifically grounded facts.A brief bio of Prof. Bhandari is available at the end of this interview. Keywords: “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam” (the entire world or earth is your famility); India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan, South Asia, Government, Climate Change, Environmental Problems, Pollutions, Floods, Landslides, Earthquakes, Cyclones/Storms, Over Population, Water Crisis, Deforestation, Plantation, Mass Media, Delhi, Kathmandu, Dhaka, Karachi, Mountain Everest, Ganges, Sea level, IPCC, IUCN, United Nations, SAARC, ICIMOD. Q: Prof. Bhandari, thank you for taking the time to speak with bio-geo-chemical cycles); Effects on Air Quality (can increase both us about your career in environmental protection and climate production and destruction of ozone and related oxidants such as change. These are obviously serious and pressing concerns for hydrogen peroxide-which can have direct adverse effects). Similarly, people throughout Asia, as well as around the world. another problem is global warming which more severe. Evidence shows that Global temperature increase 0.3-6 within last 100 years, Thank you very much for inviting me to discuss and share my and major contributor for this change are we the human. Globe is experience in this very critical issue. Environment protection and warming, and main cause is greenhouse gases (GHG) causing global climate change is a global concern. It is established notion that major warming is carbon dioxide. The evidence of global warming is rise environment concern / problems are Ozone layer depletion; Global in global temperature and rise in sea level which ultimately affecting warming; and Loss of biodiversity. As such each of these problems ecosystems of the planet. Kleinschmidt stated, “Documented has negative impact on life on earth. For example, Ozone layer increases in global air and sea temperatures over the last century depletion has Effects on Human and Animal Health (i.e. eye diseases, have demonstrated unequivocally that our planet is warming. Most skin cancer, infectious diseases); Effects on Human and Animal climatologists agree that the warming trend will continue, and at an Health (increases radiation could change species composition, or accelerating pace unless the causes of global warming are addressed change in plant forms); Effects on Aquatic Ecosystems (affect the immediately. This reality, and the urgent need for action, is finally distribution of phytoplankton’s, reproduction system alteration); being recognized by society and governments around the world.”1 Effects on Bio-geo-chemical Cycles (affect terrestrial and aquatic Submit your Article | www.ologyjournals.com/submit-article Citation: Bhandari MP. “BashudaivaKutumbakkam”- The entire world is our home and all living beings are our Ology Press relatives. Why we need to worry about climate change, with reference to pollution problems in the major cities of India, Nepal, Bangladesh and Pakistan. Adv Agr Environ Sci. (2019);2(1): 8−35. DOI: 10.30881/aaeoa.00019 9 Advances in Agriculture and Environmental Science: Open Access There is inevitable relationship between agriculture and environment [the surroundings or conditions in which a person, animal, or plant lives or operates2], it also covers climatic condition, its pattern and change. Human existent and civilization began with the development of agriculture which fully relies on climatic variations of specific location of Earth Surface. All of us have been witnessing the variation and change on climate one way or another. With no doubt, we, the humans are directly or indirectly responsible and have been contributing for this climate change, wherever we live or do; however, the degree of contribution and impact may vary. As a matter of fact, many initiatives and steps have been taken at the international to individual levels (various international treaties, policies, actions, etc.). However, still there are unmeasured and unexplored issues on “how climate change has already impacted and will affect the lives support ecosystems”. On the other hand, there are also people who actually do not support the following statements from Pachauri et al.3: A distance few of type of landscape of my play area of childhood. Photo source: “Human influence on the climate system is clear, and recent Facebook, Khusi Rai Facebook Photos4 anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases are the highest in history. Recent climate changes have had widespread impacts on human and natural systems. Warming of the climate system is unequivocal, and since the 1950s, many of the observed changes are unprecedented over decades to millennia. The atmosphere and ocean have warmed, the amounts of snow and ice have diminished, and sea level has risen.” “Anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions have increased since the pre-industrial era, driven largely by economic and population growth, and are now higher than ever. This has led to atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide that are unprecedented at least the last 800,000 years. Their effects, together with those of other anthropogenic drivers, have been detected throughout the climate system and are extremely likely to have been the dominant cause of the observed warming since the mid-20th century.” In my opinion, the people or group, only externally, oppose the statement “the climate change is occurring due to anthropogenic disturbance in natural environment” in the inner heart they know, the fact that, globe is warming and we human are responsible. I think, every one of us have witnessed or experienced the change in global environment or heard about the recent past and current situation of One of the highest water falls in South Asia with 365-meter height situated in our environment. the eastern part of Nepal. It is renowned as ‘HyatungJharana’ in local terms. Photo source: Facebook5 Q: We would like to start off with asking you about how you became interested in protecting the environment in the first place? What led you to making this the focus of your academic studies and your eventual long-term career? How I became interested protection of environment?? This is very important question. To respond this, I need to go back to my childhood. I born in the most beautiful place of the planet, at the bank of the ‘HyatungJharana’ water fall (One of the highest water falls in South Asia with 365-meter height situated in the Eastern, Nepal. It is located at the confluence of VDC Ishibu and Samdu, Terathum District), a very remote village. I grew up listening of the music of water falls and rivers. At the age of one and half, I was taken to my Grandparent (mother side) to Hwaku, where I had direct view of Tamor River, one of the tributary of the Saptakoshi River. My Grandparent’s house is located at the top of the Hill, from where one can see the several tops of Mountains, two Evergreen Rivers Phoguwakhola and Iwakhola and The daily view of my childhood- the Tamor River of Nepal. Photo Source: Tamor River where Phoguwa and Iwa merge. Facebook5 Submit your Article | www.ologyjournals.com/submit-article Citation: Bhandari MP. “BashudaivaKutumbakkam”- The entire world is our home and all living beings are our relatives. Ology Press Why we need to worry about climate change, with reference to pollution problems in the major cities of India, Nepal, Bangladesh and Pakistan.