#Its4U - It’s for me, it’s for you, it’s for everyone - with Sadaf Khalid

Sadaf Khalid is the global coordinator for the virtual Cop 28 on behalf of Rethinking Choices. She is a power woman, who believes in taking action and getting involved. I so enjoyed this conversation with a lady committed to the future of our world, especially tackling the challenges Pakistan face, the home of her birth, and she shares the harrowing experience of the devastating floods, not just in 2022, but in 2010, when her mum was stranded in the mountains for five days. This is a lady to follow. 

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Transcript

0:10

Welcome to 12 Days of Cop. I'm your host, Andrea Edwards, and we are in Pakistan today with the very lovely and inspiring Sadaf Khalid, welcome. Hi. How are you? Thank you so much for inviting me to your, discussion and your interview today. I'm I'm so happy too because I think, you know, this is the contribution I can make To support the amazing work the whole team has done. So you're the global coordinator for Rethinking Choices in COP 28, so you're running this show. So let's kick off with some background, and we're gonna do it a little bit differently today. You've got a presentation for us. So thank you so much for inviting me today. And I'm Sadaf Khalid. I'm based in Islamabad, Pakistan. I'm the global coordinator for the It's for you campaign that we are running virtually for the COP 28, which is happening from 1st to 12 December. For people who don't know what COP is, it's conference of the parties. It's environment conference, which happens every year in different countries. And this year, it's happening in Dubai, UAE. That's a a brief professional background. So, basically, I'm from the tourism and hospitality industry. From Pakistan, I've been working in different organizations. I'm an entrepreneur business as well. I own my own resort called the Warner Tides as well. I'm also working as a global ambassador for tourism for the Commonwealth Entrepreneurship Club in the UK as well. How I ended up in sustainability and, environment, I'll share my story later, but I worked as the CEO for this SDGs academy in Pakistan as well. And, currently, I'm running as I mentioned, I'm the global coordinator for It's For You campaign, which we are running. Our event is a virtual one for COP 28. So now I'll come to my, first participation in a COP, which happened at COP26, which was in Glasgow in UK. That was a great learning experience. These are Just few of my pictures that I wanted the views to see, how interesting they've made even these from the fresh Plants because we're talking about environment and climate. That's an interesting, capture that I took there while I was there. So this was the picture that I really I don't know why. I was just walking down the streets of Glasgow going to the, green zone for my Talks over there. So I saw this picture, funny picture, where some artists must have put it down, Greta Thunberg and all the leaders And calling them the 40 club band for climate change. This was just an interesting picture, which I thought I'll share. This was also, this was really interesting. All the leaders, it was a protest going on in George's place in Glasgow, and I was just, blogging for my online, viewers for that conference. And I saw all these leaders, you know, they've tied up to a chain and They're, like, trying for climate change. India is the biggest polluter. Trump was also there. So it was quite to see the protests going on. I don't know Well, the such protest can happen be allowed into Pai, but that is Glasgow in UK. And, that's what it was, like, quite interesting to capture that. So I just wanted To share this also, and they're calling them climate criminals, you know. Yeah. We're just in here. Russia's there. You know, China is there. China didn't even I think, in the last COP 26, if I recall. So that was quite interesting, the effort that they have put. So yeah. So I'll now Todd, I'm, I was a member of the Rotary Club of Nottingham in UK. For people who don't know, Roadtree International is a huge network globally, and I would request people who are passionate about climate change. They have a club for Young people, we just call the road track and for, about when you're 30, 40 plus, you can join the main road free clubs. And the picture I really put is that if you see that there's a tree, there's a young, children and they're planting this tree, and they've put their logos in there. So, that's the start, of Fruit Tree Club, introduction. So this was the project that I did there, for Christmas trees recycling. It was a very interesting project which we did With our Rotary Club of Nottingham. And the reason I wanted to share that, you know, all over the world, you know, Christmas is celebrating, and I know that so many people are Buying expensive Christmas trees and putting them, and then I don't know where those these Christmas trees go. So what we did was that, with the Nottingham Hospital Charity, we they contacted us and we picked all the Christmas trees, in different locations for 3 days, and all the money that is being collected goes to the Nottingham Charity Hospital. So that was a great project, Which I wanted to share with the viewers, which you can do if you're a member of the Rotary or even individually you can do as these are some our Rotary club, members volunteering, for this, campaign that we did. So what they did was that, as I mentioned, They, with the help of this charity, they are, connecting annual Christmas tree collection for the recycling scheme. So that's me in the picture with my friend. It was like freezing cold and the motivation behind it was minus 3, I think. It started spring also, but we still like, we did it, and it was, like, great fun. Mhmm. So this is what we did. Then we did another project because I had recently come after COP 26 and all my members. I had recently joined the Rotary Club And I said, let's do some garbage picking lecture day, and we have a key. So it was a fun activity that we created with our team members. Basically, Rotary members, they're all retired, nice professionals, and, they if you bring in an idea, what I'm saying is that they will support you. This is one activity that we did around there, with our rotary club members, and, we collected garbage And, it was fun activity that we did. So I just wanted to share this as well that if you have ideas, they'll promote you and, They will, like, say that, oh, let's do it. So there's another few I just wanted to add, I I I I'm extremely impressed with Rotary Worldwide and what they're doing, there's some real momentum there, and that commitment to sustainability was really was about a couple of years ago when when it when it sort of changed its sort of thinking. So, yeah. So great. Really, really awesome to see the work you've been doing. Sorry. Yeah. Yeah. No. That's fine. So I I my presentation, well, I won't talk that much. It's a quick presentation, but it's just better than talking to state. You know, to show people, you know, through pictures so that, you know, it's more, interesting. So this is a tree plantation project we did. I organized a circle summit during COVID, which Inger met. As you know, she was also part of it. So we took all this. So Gavadur is like the, from Karachi. It's like a 8 hours drive. It's the new upcoming, China Pakistan economic corridor project, we call the CPAD. And I just got this idea that during the conference, why don't we just take trees and plant them there? So this was that we did some tree plantation there in Gavadur. And, whenever I do some projects like tree plantation, I always, like, Search for some interesting quotes and I just had an idea that, you know, you can just name he or she who plants a tree, Dance a hope. So that's like an interesting thing. And then when the tree grows, you can see those who planted the trees with the sign. And this quote also I really like. I always use it like life without love is like a tree without blossoms of fruit. So these are all my friends. This is one of my friends. She came all the way from UK for this conference for Zana. She also participated, in this, tree plantation project. So oh, so now this is very close to my heart, which I wanted to share. And, this was like I was just traveling from, Visiting my family last year in August, and we have this resort, up as I mentioned earlier. And suddenly, I was caught up in this, picture that you see, massive floods. And exactly 2010, Floods came in Pakistan. A lot of destruction, a lot of infrastructure was damaged, and exactly after 10 years, this picture is from last year. And the reason that we've having these floods frequently is the massive deforestation up in these areas. The the governments, they're not interested. There's poverty. We don't have alternate energy. So it's, like, quite scary. And this is the the the high class. If you see in this picture here, this is the hydro project which gives electricity, but it's not enough there. So this was quite an ex ex like, experience which I went through myself. This was like the river. This was Hi, Frank. I saw this is the picture that I took basically on my phone. I haven't Googled it, by the way. I saw these scenes from my own eyes, all these buildings collapsing. And then I was be rescued in a helicopter. And in the end, I would like to end my presentation. This is my one of my favorite quote that I say, The journey of a 1000 mile miles begun with a single step. If you want to change anything, thank you so much. Yeah. So those, floods in Pakistan I'll I'll just I'll make a speaker so we can see you. That was from a glacial lake outburst. That was the main cause of it. Right? Well, it's not that. So, basically, in that terrain, We have, like I said, this massive deforestation going on because the poverty level is so low. The survival because it's a full year, we get snowed. It's minus 15, minus 20. And those people, they can't, mitigate or come to the city. So they're there around the air, so they don't have power. They cut the trees. They Survive on that. They are cooking their food on it. They're using it as a heating for themselves. They and they, pass their survival. So Yeah. Since, like, I've grown up in that area, like, I go like, since 91, I'm visiting that area. I am into hiking and camping, all those beautiful Terrain is when I used to hike. When you go now, there's like, you don't see any trees there. So that's also, I think, one of the reason that we're getting these frequent And as climate change, as you said, that glaciers, outbursts, I started like, I've done sustainable development conference in those areas. I took the media In my capacity, what I could do and raise the voice because, as you know, Pakistan has challenges and, they're not interested. So but, you know, I tried my best, but floods are coming. It's everywhere. It's not in Pakistan. You know? You see globally, look at the hurricanes, typhoons coming in Vietnam this year. Look at the the wildfires in Greece that happened this year. Yeah. So, yeah, so there's a lot happening around the globe. Yeah. And especially, you know, right now watching the heat rolling through from South America to Australia and soon across the Asia Pacific and and Africa, We're gonna be seeing the heat extremes hit from from February, basically, so I'm quite concerned. So if you could If you could give me a moment in time where something happened or somebody said something where you started to realize that you needed to become Or not not realize that you wanted to be part of the solution. Do do do you remember what that moment was? Sorry. So what you're asking is that if somebody mentioned and I mentioned or advised that this is done? Just just that moment for you when You became a climate activist, you know, when you realized that we had a big problem. Do do you remember a moment? Yeah. So this was this was the one that I personally Experience last year in 2010 was the eye opener where my mom was all alone in this area and, She but that was the, like, massive floods. And then I, like, I was so scared that I could have lost my mom, my family. She was stranded there. And we were in the city, and she was rescued by helicopter after 5 days. That was an eye opener for me when I started into and seeing what Sustainable development goals are, what the challenge is, how can I raise my voice? At least even if talking about it, maybe somebody will hear my voice. You know? And now things have changed. I don't know how much you follow Pakistan, but there's so many youth networks have come up. They've created Platforms mobilization has started. They've taken started interest in it. They know climate change is there. They need to do something. So maybe I think that When I started working on these projects, they didn't even know what STGs are, what sustainable development goals are, and I've laid that seat, as I said. And now they're taking it up, and now they're working on it. So I'm happy to see at least something is happening. Yeah. Brilliant. And, you know, the The power of 1 voice to create change, you know. I think it's so important that everyone claims their voice right now and fights. So that's really inspiring. I actually got some, goosebumps when you were talking about the the youth movement because we're also seeing that across Africa as well, you know, that real Young people coming together, but also women women in rural communities on the front line, that's another message that's coming really clearly through that They're just getting on with it. They don't even know, in many cases, a lot of the people on the front line don't even know what's going on on the global, you know, on the global stage. They're just seeing a change in their environment, and they wanna be part of it. So has anything happened so far? I know we're still pretty early into proceedings, but has anything happened at COP 28 that's Giving you any sort of sense of hope? Well, frankly speaking, you know, the reason I could have gone to Dubai, you know, it's not that, I could not afford it or I the reason I didn't go this time, because I have been attending these conferences internationally, Locally, Pakistan as well. And it's just talk and the amount of money people spend. And our As you say, it's for you campaign. When I started working with this initiative with David and Richard and Inger is that we are saying that we want to put a halt to oil, coal, and gas, and The carbon emissions, all across the globe. Imagine the amount of people flying into Dubai Yeah. In these airplanes. They're staying there. They're using the public transports. I know Dubai is like I've been to Dubai. I don't know whether you've been to Dubai as well. They have, like, a facility, but, Like, what is the and it's currently and the other thing that I put me off is that I don't know. I have my own opinion. The war going in Palestine, It's just next door, the Middle East crisis. And you're having I thought that maybe they'll postpone because there's a lot of serious thing happening there. People are sending money, donations for the refugees. I know climate change is a like, a top topic and but I thought it will be postponed, but unfortunately, it was not because there's a lot of investment that they They built up the whole city in Dubai because they have the money. The oil guy is there. I don't want to name him. But so far that I followed, They are kind of a lot of people have not faint have not participated in Dubai because of the Middle East crisis. A lot of my friends, they did go. And secondly, the talking Charles had a great opening I saw. I don't know whether you saw that as well. He's a great environmental he's Running the Charles Foundation is where he's quite active in that. A lot of leaders are coming together talking about I mean, they talk about climate change, but in the end, As I said that what happened after Paris Climate Agreement? You know? We've seen that. And the thing is that the decision makers are there. They go. They take pictures. They're Sure. They're they're there. But what happens when they go back after the COP? That's my question. What is China doing? What is India doing? You know? Recently, there was a conference, at the g twenty in India. You know, Modi was leading it. There was a lot of opposition. I don't know whether you saw it. I was watching this news, on BBC, they were showing that for the g twenty summit in Delhi, they had to evacuate the the the poor people, the gypsies, and they've made this world around, you know, just for the g twenty for security reasons. And so there's a lot negative and positive things when such part of this take place. But so far, I don't know. Let's see. They're 12 days. There are a lot of discussions going on. I don't know. But my question would be, when you go back after COP 28, What are you doing for your conscience? Yeah. Yeah. Absolutely. And you've got a a a vociferous Rooster there in the background, which is always lovely to hear. Okay. So it's for you. What does that mean to you? Of the things I've really enjoyed about these conversations is how it's different for everyone. So what does it mean to you? It's for you is, like, The reason I liked and why I got into is that that the slogan is it's for me, it's for you, it's for everyone. And we say COP 28 is not only Dubai. It's in your home, in your communities, in your countries. That's what really motivated me to join this campaign. Because as I said, a lot of good things are happening in your countries. You don't have to go to Dubai to talk about You don't have you can just make up, like, the platform that we are providing globally. So world should submit. It's free. We're not even charging them. And you can just come up, share your story whether you talk about we have these beautiful segments, 12 segments that we've made, nature and dignity, Ultimate book of trees, peace. We're singing. We're having comedy shows. We're making it fun, you know? And we're trying to give that platform so that they can come and share their story and people will get motivated. You know, you don't have to go to Dubai to spend so much money and just to give your presentation on a PowerPoint and saying that, oh, I'm from Pakistan or I'm from Somalia, And we are doing this I mean, that's what for me, that's what It's For You is. It's for everyone. Yeah. Beautiful. I love it. Alright. So your community, to get them involved, what can they do? I've got the sign up link here, and I'll all the contact and social media in the show notes, but what are you encouraging people around the the world to do? How can they be part of this? Well, I would like to tell them to invite, join our campaign. As I said, it's free. You can just come up, sign up for it's for you campaign, Share your story with your video, with your pictures, even just the talk. If you're representing indigenous communities, you're working on tree plantation, working on Plastic pollution, anything related to climate, let's make it fun. It is conference of the parties. It is COP 28, you know. Let's hear your global stories and be part of the it's for you campaign that we are offering internationally to everyone, whether you're a youth network, whether you're a corporate, whether you're Private. Whether you're an educationist, whether you're a social activist, it's for you. It's for me. It's for everyone. Yeah. Nice. I love it. Well, look, you're working really hard. I watched the, the launch livestream, and I thought it was really inspiring. And it was so amazing to hear everyone's stories. You're bringing amazing people into into the communication that you're sharing, and, just encourage everyone to follow you on social media on you're Active on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram. You can sign up into any of the areas that we're talking about, like, I love the dignity one. Oh, I'm also thinking of doing a A a a video where I'm gonna talk about my memories of trees. I love the idea of the book of trees because I think every one of us has got a tree memory, but I've I've actually got tree memories that sort of go throughout my life, and I thought that's such a beautiful idea. So, I know that you're gonna be Exhausted by the end of this, but, thank you thank you for your work, and also thank you for just being a positive message Messenger out there in the world because we need that, and and I I love this campaign. So congratulations, and thanks for joining us today. Thank you so much. It was really nice talking to you, and I love to be in touch with you. I I'll I'll ask you. I know I I host, shows as well. It's that you are interviewing me. And but I would like, what do you think about climate change? Because it's everywhere. And what are your thoughts about it, and what do you feel about COP 28? Yeah. Meet look. It's, we're gonna do another show. And I also host another show called Climate Courage. I'd love to to you about travel and tourism because I think that's such an important topic within the climate conversation. But for me, you know you know, I I I stay on top of what's going on, and I'm very, very, very concerned. You know, what's happening in the Amazon at the moment, you know. I I always knew everything was coming faster anyway, but I Really wasn't expecting what we're seeing in the Amazon at least until 2040, 2050. So that's really, really freaking me out. What's going on in Antarctica? Ecosystem collapse. I'm collecting a document. I'm gonna publish it as a blog soon on all of the extinctions and, you know, mass die offs that are happening around the world, and I really believe that every extinction event, every extreme heat event, Every ecosystem collapse brings us closer and closer to the edge, so we're really, really out of time, but we're not on the edge yet, you know. So We've gotta rewild our world. We've gotta take care of this world. We're gonna do everything we can, you know, to to to pull back from the brink. A lot of people think we're too late, but I actually think we could get 1,000,000,000 people across the world together and acting and doing what they can and rewilding their communities and And making sure the communities are safe, so adaptation's a big thing for me, especially with the heat that's coming for all of us next year. It was hot this year, but next year, Yeah. And I know in Pakistan, you you you have experienced much more severe heat in India and Bangladesh. Obviously, in Iran, they but then we, you know, we had 59.7 wet bulb temperatures in Brazil before it was even summertime. I mean, And so, yeah, I'm I'm concerned, and that's my message. A 1000000000 people getting together, acting, changing, rewilding, doing everything we can to pull us back from the brink, and that's, To me is our best chance, so that's where my focus is these days. But always always keeping the hope in the mix, you know. I don't like the word hope. Positively because In the end, I would just like to add because I missed out. I'm also working very passionately, I said about tourism and sustainability, Ecotourism. I would like to add in the end that ecotourism results concept has come all across the globe. You're a traveler. I'm a traveler. A lot of people are investing in these ecotourist lodges. I think that's a good start. And we have a long way to go, but we have to follow the proper guidelines. My dream I don't know whoever was watching my interview. I don't have the investments, but I would like to be the first one to have a proper eco Tourist lodge in Pakistan in the northern areas. I have interacted a lot of people, companies across the globe, but I wish that we start with this journey because Tourism is also playing a havoc for environmental challenges. The plastic pollution, we we go to these beaches. We go to these beautiful places. And I don't know. I mean, India, Pakistan, and all these places, we're polluting it. Domestic tourism is like a mess when you come, and I literally have tears in my eyes because I'm a nature lover, and when I just go and sit around that lake and see so much plastic pollution, I stopped visiting those places because it's so sad to see them, And our humans are destroying our beautiful surroundings. So that's an interesting topic. I would like to have a discussion with you separately on sustainable tourism, Ecotourism and green tourism. Yep. I look forward to that. Alright. We are gonna we are in touch, and we will stay in touch. Alright. So thank you. Thanks for joining me. It's been really great to meet you. And, yeah, take care of your energy levels in the next couple of weeks. Okay? Bye. Alright. Bye.