Friendship highlights impact of climate change on marginalized char communities in COP28

Staff Reporter :
Friendship, an international Social Purpose Organization, is participating in the 2023
edition of the Conference of the Parties (COP28) that is taking place in Dubai, United Arab
Emirates (UAE) for the third time.

The organization is taking the grievances and struggles of marginalized people in the country to the centre stage. It is advocating for the adaptation and financing for loss and damage of the impacted people.

Friendship organized five side events in the conference.

Notable dignitaries including Saber Hossain Chowdhury, Chair of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Runa Khan, Founder of Friendship, HRH Esmeralda of Belgium, Chair of Friendship Belgium, Md Shamsuddoha, Chief Executive of the Centre for Participatory Research and Development (CPRD) and Professor Jean Pascal
Van Yperselle of Climate and Environmental Sciences at the UCLouvain in Belgium, attended the events.

Friendship founder Runa Khan said, “Over the last 21 years, I have seen the impact of adverse climatic events such as cyclones, tidal surges, floods and erosion on the people living in climate impacted areas of Bangladesh.

We have witnessed how climate change affects the people financially and push them towards poverty.

To ensure the opportunity, dignity and hope for these people, there is no alternative to investing in adaptation and making loss and damage funds available.”

For the first time ever, two eight-grade students from Friendship secondary schools
Mosammat Biuti Akhter and Mosammat Ronzina Akhter travelled to Dubai to participate in
this year’s COP.

Friendship’s successful projects in climate impacted areas, such as the floating hospitals, solar electrification, plinths, mangrove afforestation, etc are being highlighted in the summit as well.