It gave me a perspective to look at things in a totally different way. You study about so many things in environment science from Chemistry to Physics and Biology and look at all those things differently. And you relate it to your daily life, such as the smoke of Carbon monoxide that’s coming out from your motorbike and its impacts. Education was not limited to classroom. You would experience it every day. For example, one thing I learnt from those class days was solid waste management. Ever since then, I have been separating my waste into biodegradable and non-biodegradable.
I think we can minimize pollution from small things like turning off the engine when waiting in traffic, which makes even more sense now due to petrol crisis. I use as less plastic bags as possible and recycle cans.
The best thing for Kathmandu I believe is the theory I have developed: the 5 theories of R: Recycle, Reuse, Reduce, Recover and Remember.
People don’t care about hi-flying technical jargon. What matters to them is the pollution they breathe and the waste they smell. I make it a point to talk on environment issues on my show at least once a week. I discourage my viewers to use plastic. And they listen.
We talk about problems and the small solutions we can do individually.
The main problem I see is centralization. Everyone is here. Kathmandu has everything and it needs to get decentralized. I believe there is only a certain limit that soil can handle and we are putting too much pressure on it. Everyone here is for their basic needs and we cannot deny them their rights. If only they were provided their needs in their homes in villages. The city has seen an upsurge of urbanization but it seems massively disorganized and unsystematic. People migrate for better opportunities, its natural selection.
But the haphazard urbanization is something Kathmandu’s infrastructure cannot handle. Also, the pace of development is too fast in the capital. We jumped directly to laptops without using typewriters. And so, a lot of our plans are not sustainable because we are not used to newer ideas.
The only solution to pollution is dilution. So, we need more water, more air, more trees and more rain. It’s a natural pollutant removal process.
You cannot say that just because you house is clean means your responsibility is done. Your environment is your responsibility. You cannot throw the garbage outside your wall in the streets and claim that you are free of your duties. It does not work that way. The best thing for Kathmandu I believe is the theory I have developed: the 5 theories of R: Recycle, Reuse, Reduce, Recover and Remember.
One of our professors used to tell us that in Japan, sixty years ago, they used to have a river just as polluted as Bagmati. But then, they cleaned the sludge and now the bystanders can see fishes swimming in that river. I think we can make it happen in Bagmati as well.
(Brand Ambassador for Wildlife Conservation Nepal, Suraj Singh Thakuri, 31, took up environment science in his college because he wanted to do ´something different, something unique´ and has been a vocal advocate for cleaner environment and green projects ever since. Now, the host of probably one of the most watched shows on a Nepali channel, Thakuri shared his views to myrepublica.com. )
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