The Future of Climate in Iraq

Articles

The Future of Climate in Iraq

By Adam Hassan

When you think of the future of Iraq, how do you imagine it? Is it an Iraq where cities and urban areas are planted with palm trees and wild oaks or do you picture an Iraq where desertification has killed what remains of the forests, where garbage accumulates in the rivers and cities, where the marshes have become dryland? These questions were the starting point for the Future of Climate Change in Iraq exhibition which took place on November 21st. This event came as a result of the partnership between the United Nations Development Programme - Accelerator Lab in Iraq and The Station Foundation for Entrepreneurship. Climate change can be simply defined as long-term changes to our planet’s temperature. Even though it might only increase a single digit, the effect it will have is catastrophic. From rising temperatures to desertification, Iraq will be hit the hardest. On top of that, the lack of infrastructure and plans for a post-oil world will cause catastrophic damage to our society. Unfortunately, this issue has been ignored for a very long time and the more we pretend it isn’t happening, the less our chances of averting disaster are! The problem was that when faced with a multitude of problems, humans tend to focus on the short term ones, it’s in our nature. That’s why the only solution we had was looking into the future. We opened up submissions for a variety of artforms, and we received 67 submissions, 19 of them were displayed during the exhibition and 9 of these competed for the final prizes. The winning entries in the exhibition were as follows: • Fine art category: Hussein Ali Hasan • Digital art category: Naba Hussein Ali • Children’s art category: Aleen Nasser Lutfi

The prompt was to imagine the future of Iraq in regards to its climate, and although we didn’t specify a certain tone, most of the submissions had a negative overtone which is proof that Iraqis are aware of the problem, even if it’s ingrained deep down in their psyche. Climate anxiety is on the rise, especially among the young. The first step in solving a problem is identifying it. The primary goal of the event was to sense and explore the future of climate in Iraq, while also raising awareness about the many issues spawned by climate change; all in the aim of increasing climate literacy by encouraging a more sustainable and eco friendly lifestyle and local solutions. Information on climate change and how to best combat its effects can also help communities become more resilient.

Tackling climate change isn’t going to be easy, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible. With innovation and art we can help save the environment and build a better Iraq for generations to come.

Both organizations will strive to tackle climate change in Iraq. The UNDP Accelerator Lab is committed to sensing and exploring the challenges and why it is not put forward by Iraqi community in the aim of finding local solutions. From partnering with eco friendly startups to internally making The Station green, this art exhibition is only the first step in a greater initiative, adapted by The Station, which will continue in 2021 and onwards.