3 more thoughts to take forward from the Corona Crisis to the Climate Crisis

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This post is in continuation to my previous post.

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COVID-19 has shaken all of us. And while many of us want to help, we may find ourselves locked down and isolated. Let's try to channelize the isolation to make constructive observations regarding how we deal with crises. This is an important exercise and the corona crisis could teach us important ways to think about the climate crisis.

4  Think global, act local

There are some universal aspects to the corona crisis -- such as how the virus is transmitted and how it operates within the body. There are some regional aspects to the pandemic -- such as how the people of a specific demography develop immunity to it, how aware a community is regarding diseases and pandemics and how the local healthcare system is equipped to deal with the outbreak. Like the corona crisis, the climate crisis has some universal aspects -- such as rising global temperatures and more extreme weather events. Some aspects -- such as rates of warming and types of extreme events (droughts, floods, heat waves?) -- depends on the region. It is imperative to glean all possible information from international examples and then tailor local response and preparedness.

5  Governance operates at multiple levels

Tailored responses and local preparedness requires improvement and strengthening of governance at regional and local levels. The corona crisis is demonstrating the importance of distributed responsibilities, especially the role and contribution of local administration (which must be supported by awareness at the local community level). Similarly, the climate crisis also requires strong and informed decision making at regional scale. For example, due to our vast geography and diverse demography, there can possibly not be one national climate solution. With coastal areas facing sea level rise and inland areas facing droughts and heatwaves, it is clear that a centralized response will be necessary but not sufficient.

6  Global crises are also personal

A disease that originated in China and found the next hotspots in Europe and USA, the corona crisis has hit home all across the world. What truly matters to most of us is not only "How many cases in my country / region today?" but "How vulnerable are my family and I?" and "How will this affect me / us?". Similarly, the climate crisis is not just about global warming or global weather disruptions or global sea level rise. It affects our homes, our families, our communities, our cities ... and then it affects our countries and economies. Each of us will be affected in different ways and to different extents, but facing the consequences is inevitable. The Earth is not what we should be worrying about. It's us.

India

What lessons will India take from the corona crisis to the climate crisis? Will we see stronger regional governance supported by more aware communities? Or will we continue to focus only on the national narrative that dilutes the regional and personal significance of the crisis? And what lessons will we, Indian citizens, take from the corona crisis to the climate crisis? Will we think about these crises only in technical terms? Or will we understand that instead of being mere scientific concepts or national statistics, these crises hit home and hit hard ... and are very personal indeed?

Only time will tell.


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