Karnataka girl recognized as fighter for climate justice

Global Citizen Union with headquarters in New York has recognised Vanya Sayimane, a15-year-old girl from Uttar Kannada district in Karnataka as one of five women who are fighting for climate justice. Her blog ''Chirps of a Forest Bird'' advocated the need for environment conservation.

Uttarkannada: Growing up in the lap of nature, a single scratch on a tree bark would irk 15-year-old Vanya Sayimane. Quite akin to nature, she has been vocal about human activities that destabilise the balance of nature and has always been a warrior of nature in her young age itself.

In pursuit of resolving climate crisis, she started the blog ''Chirps of a Forest Bird'' in order to connect with the world. As a token of appreciation for her efforts, she has been recognised as one of five women who are fighting for climate justice by Global Citizen Union. Moreover, in order to educate herself about climate change and its influence on her daily life, she has joined a team of local youth. She is determined to fight for the future of her community.

Chirping birds, sparkling dew drops are usually the sights she watches after rising up early in the morning. Living in the middle of dense forests in Western Ghats, the chain of mountains has always been close to her heart. As she gained awareness, she realized that floods, drought, deforestation which devastate her home and everything she loves are aftermaths of human activities like the construction of dams and nuclear power plants.

"I want my forests to thrive again. I wish our people’s lungs would be able to breathe again. Change is happening now. I am determined to make a positive change," said Vanya, a student of Sri Saradamba English Medium High School in Bairumbay of Shirsi taluk.

Western Ghats plays a pivotal role in the distribution of Indian monsoon rains. As per a study, in the past 100 years, temperature has increased by 0.8 degrees in Western Ghats. Climate change in the next half a century could severely reduce the extent of suitable habitats for wildlife endemic to the Western Ghats, such as the Indian brown mongoose (Herpestes fuscus), a paper recently published in Springer Nature warns.

UNESCO world heritage centre, Western Ghats is internationally recognized as a region of immense global importance for the conservation of biological diversity. The chain of mountains running parallel to India’s western coast, approximately 30-50 km inland, the Ghats traverse the States of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Goa, Maharashtra and Gujarat. The mountain chain is recognized as one of the world’s eight ‘hottest hotspots’ of biological diversity along with Sri Lanka.