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Sebwa, who has a hearing disability, spoke through a sign language interpreter. She urged including children with disabilities in COP28. “Our ideas, our voices are very important, so please consult us when making these changes,” she said. “Children with disabilities must be included in the discussions about climate change.”
Prof. Pedro Arrojo-Agudo, United Nations special rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation, cited statistics from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations: 70 percent of fresh water is used for agriculture and food production, while one-third of the food produced get wasted and a corresponding amount of water, too, gets wasted. “Thus, we need to be mindful of food production and water usage,” he said.
WCC programme director of Public Witness and Diakonia Rev. Dr Kenneth Mtata, via a video message, reflected that climate change cannot be addressed in isolation.
“There is an intricate relationship between climate change and its impact on both food and water systems,” he said. “As our planet continues to warm, it poses significant challenges to agriculture, food production, and access to clean water.”
Mohon Kumar Mondal, founder and executive director of LEDARS, a community organization in Bangladesh, highlighted how LEDARS is working to respond to the impact of climate change by improving access to clean water and providing employment and education opportunities among vulnerable communities in Bangladesh.
