Bangladesh remains among the most vulnerable countries to the effects of climate change and it is a reality that threatens not only our progress and development, but our very existence.
While it is true that certain developed nations are the ones most at fault for our rapidly warming planet, and must focus their efforts on reducing their carbon emissions, one thing every nation can and must do is reduce dependency on fossil fuels and eventually embrace renewable energy as the primary source of power.
To that end, we must strive to utilize renewable energy wherever possible. For example, recently, experts have stated that the rooftops of thousands of government buildings in the country have immense potential to generate solar power.
As per the experts, about 2,000MW of solar power could easily be generated across the country on the rooftops of about 5,000 government buildings -- this is an extremely encouraging assessment, and could be groundbreaking in terms of shifting our power generation from fossil fuels to renewable.
What is required now is for the authorities concerned to follow up on these findings and explore its feasibility. This could also be an opportunity for potential investors, and indeed, experts have called for a collective effort to finance such projects.
There appears to have been reduced urgency when it comes to addressing climate change from certain parts of the world. This is a grave mistake; whether any nation likes it or not, the threat of climate change remains the most serious threat to humanity in the 21st century.
Bangladesh can do its part by investing in future-oriented, forward-thinking projects like these which will help increase the usage of renewable energy, reduce our dependency on fossil fuels, create a more sustainable economy, and provide us with a healthier environment to live in.