The National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST) has formulated a plan for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and mitigating the impact of climate change, WealthPK reports. The Climate Action Plan was shared with experts and stakeholders at a conference. NUST organised the first-ever Partnership for Climate Action (PCA-2023) conference in Pakistan in collaboration with Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), German Red Cross, Pakistan Red Crescent, International Federation of Red Cross, International Rescue Committee and Welt Hunger Hilfe.

The conference was meant to bring together and connect youth, academia and other stakeholders to build meaningful partnerships for addressing climate change challenges. The conference also provided an opportunity for NUST to showcase its climate-resilient technologies for potential deployment and commercialisation and closely engage with stakeholders from the government and development sector to accelerate progress toward a sustainable future.

Dr Rizwan Riaz, the pro-rector of NUST, said that the university took its social responsibility seriously and aligned all its core functions to the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Most significantly, NUST has been proactively engaged in developing innovative technologies and devices to address the challenges of climate change,” he added.

He also highlighted the importance of Partnership for Climate Action, a platform to share best practices, collaborate on new initiatives and leverage collective resources to drive progress. He said that the NUST Climate Action Plan was an important step for making a real impact.

The three-day conference covered climate action policy simulation, youth activity, expert panel discussions, conference and exhibition, followed by the launch of the Climate Action Plan and signing of a memorandum of understanding. The Climate Action Plan, formulated by NUST Research Directorate, entails a strategy for reducing greenhouse gas emissions within and beyond the university and mitigating the impact of climate change.

The two main panel talks on the second day of the conference provided information on national and international root causes of climate change, and steps to overcome the challenges by promoting renewable energy, energy efficiency and sustainable transportation.

The first panel discussion, moderated by Anam Zeb of the German Red Cross, focused on creating a partnership for climate action, the importance of public awareness about the urgency of the climate crisis and the actions needed to mitigate its effect. The panelists included Dr Imran Khalid, Director Policy and Governance WWF, Ali Shah, Member NUST Climate Panel, and Maheen Zahra, Oxford Policy Management Institute.

The second panel discussion, moderated by Ameera Adil from NUST, focused on the role of academia in climate resilience and sustainable development, the importance of green land, establishing energy efficient measures, ensuring net zero campus waste and implementation of renewable energy generation plan.

The panelists included Prof Salman Atif, Member Climate Panel, IGIS NUST, Waqarul Shams, Innovation and Information Coordinator AnthroInsights, Prof Ilhan Niaz, KLF Award Winner, Chairman Dept of History QAU and Dr Zainab Khalid, Comsats Centre for Climate and Sustainability (CCCS).

Credit: Independent News Pakistan-WealthPk