A state level public hearing on climate change will be held in Jaipur on October 5, wherein farmers, livestock owners and small producers from different agro-climatic zones of Rajasthan will present their testimonies on impact of climate change on their livelihoods. An eminent panel of jury members will listen to the testimonies and announce their verdict.
The public hearing will be organized by a Jaipur based NGO, Centre for Community Economic Development Consultant Society (CECOEDECON) at their academic campus at Swaraj in Sitapura from 10 am to 4 pm. on Ocober 5, 2010.
Alka Awasthi, co-director of CECOEDECON said during the public hearing, various government departments, research institutions and other agencies to mainstream climate change aspects into their work plans would be sensitized. About 150 representatives across the state will participate. She pointed out that Rajasthan has witnessed impacts in the form of highly variable rainfall playing havoc with agricultural cycles, in turn leading to food insecurity and loss of livelihoods in rural Rajasthan.
Achieving the Millennium Development Goals of reducing hunger, poverty, infant mortality rate, etc is going to be even more difficult in the face of climate change. She said that studies conducted in Rajasthan have already indicated the warming of weather, prolonging of the summer season, and unpredictable and highly variable rainfall.
This hearing will be aimed at sensitizing state level actors-research organisations, agencies working on livelihoods, media etc to focus their programme on addressing climate change. The sufferers of climate change will themselves - in front of eminent panel of judges, scientists, bureaucrats and social scientists - present the selected testimonies in this hearing.The verdict will be shared with the State Government officials, so that concerns of the farmer community can be mainstreamed in their agenda for climate change.
