#22: Dr Maheshwar Dhakal, Joint-Secretary & Head of Climate Change Management Division, Ministry of Forests and Environment, Government of Nepal

Terra.do - Solve #climatechange

Dr Maheswar Dhakal is Joint-Secretary and the Head of Climate Change Management Division at the Ministry of Forests and Environment in the Government of Nepal. He is also the UNFCCC Focal point for Nepal. He holds a Masters in Environmental Sciences and PhD in Forest Resources Economics from the University of Tsukuba, Japan. His research focuses on forest policy, economic valuation of forest products, protected area and conservation policies, and human-wildlife conflicts in Nepal.

In this podcast, Dr Dhakal talks about the role the Nepali government is playing in its fight against climate change, the challenges around food security in Nepal, his expectations from COP 26 and the role of the media in presenting a climate change narrative to the people of Nepal.

Notes –

01:05 – Dr Dhakal’s career arc

02:27 – Role of Nepali government in dealing with climate change

09:42 – Kathmandu and pollution

12:07 – Food security in Nepal

14:11 – Nepali government’s policies about wildlife crime

16:44 – Sagarmatha Sambaad

19:06 – Expectations from COP26

21:15 – Media and climate change narratives

22:42 – Call to action