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After Balen Shah won the local-level elections, we are witnessing a new era in politics. Most people see no hope from the parties. In the heat of this moment, many people have stepped up to contest this year’s federal elections independently. One of them is Shree Gurung. The 40-year-old is a candidate from sector number five in Kathmandu. He was born in Sankhuwasabha but has largely been brought up in Lazimpat, Kathmandu.  “Politics is not anything new for me,” he says. Coming from a journalism background, and with a doctoral degree in digital marketing and social media, Gurung believes that he has always been involved in politics directly or indirectly. But most importantly, he feels that he knows what people need and want from their elected leaders. “I have always been an observer of politics,” he says, “and I have done plenty of research on what the people want from those they elect.”  His main goal, if he wins in the upcoming elections, is to mainly focus on the four industries of Nepal: tourism, technology, trade, and energy. But his main priority is definitely going to be tourism, he says. “I believe every business, sector, and individual in Nepal can benefit economically from tourism,” he says. Being the member and project chief at Durbar Marg Development Board, Gurung has background knowledge on how tourism can flourish exceptionally in his sector. He says his work till now has armed him with information on how to collaborate with various stakeholders and organizations in Nepal that focus on tourism. “My journey from Sankhuwasabha to Kathmandu has shown me the true potential of Nepal,” he says. Having traveled to the many nooks and crannies of Nepal, he believes he has seen and knows what the country needs. Tourism, he believes, can put Nepal on the global map. Specifically, there are three things that Gurung would like to focus on through tourism; better revenue, employment, and foreign investment which in turn promotes Nepal. According to the World Bank’s data of 2019, 1.5m Nepalis benefited directly or indirectly after 1.2m tourists visited Nepal. There was an economic impact of 2.2bn. “So, why are we still wasting this potential,” says Gurung. From Nepali handicrafts to local beverages, all of these businesses, according to Gurung, have the potential of flourishing through tourism. “I want to be a voice in the parliament,” he says. He believes there need to be certain changes in policies and laws that will aid tourism in Nepal.  Talking to people and businesspersons from different parts of Nepal, hearing their thoughts and ideas and simply traveling and understanding the dynamics of different places in Nepal have given Gurung ideas on how the tourism sector can be given a boost. He sees this as an opportunity to bring more money into the country. Not only that but he also hopes to decrease the number of youths who go abroad for foreign employment. “If Paris can make itself the biggest tourist area in the world with a steel tower, imagine what Nepal can do with so much natural beauty,” he says.  Gurung says his first course of action in case of winning would be to make changes in the policies of the Nepal Tourism Board. He believes that the organization has become far more bureaucratic when it needs to be creative and autonomous to be able to promote Nepal internationally. “But it’s heavily influenced by politics,” he says.  Despite all his goals and noble intentions, there is a certain resistance that independent candidates have been facing for the upcoming elections and Gurung is no stranger to that. But Gurung has had his share of good things too. He’s received positive responses from some well-known people belonging to other parties, albeit in secrecy. They wished him luck and said they hoped he would emerge victorious. “It’s quite surprising to see people from some well-known parties be so supportive,” he says, “It just felt like even those party members were frustrated and wanted to see some change.”  Gurung says he is not against the party system but the people involved in it. “I think it’s a good institution when people with good intentions are involved,” he says. He adds that it’s not the party system he blames, but the people who like to cater to their selfish needs through politics. “If there is a chance that these parties can bring about an actual change, they will have my full support,” he says. “Until then, they will see a lot of independent candidates like me stepping up to do the work.” 

Every evening, at around 8pm, Sita Ram Chandra comes to Thamel, carrying a basket laden with merchandise, and sets up her shop on the steps of closed shutters. She has been doing this for the past seven years. Life as a street vendor is hard, but she has no other option. Chandra came to Kathmandu with her husband in 1985 and together, the couple raised six children. And over the years, the family has seen many ups and downs. “We used to sell clothes in Asan before the place was hit by 2015’s earthquake,” says Chandra, who is now 55-year-old. “My entire family depended on the clothes business and suddenly we had nothing.” With no other source of income, the family was suddenly on the brink of extreme poverty after the earthquake. That was when Chandra decided to become a street vendor. But it is difficult being a street vendor in Kathmandu. They have to be on a constant lookout, for the Kathmandu Metropolitan City does not tolerate their kind. If caught selling goods on the street, their goods could get confiscated. As I sat with Chandra talking about her life story on a recent night, there was a moment where she abruptly collected her belongings and sprinted towards an alley. She was running away after hearing the siren of an approaching police van. This is a routine that Chandra and other street vendors of Thamel go through every night. “This is the only option I have if I am to afford a living,” she says. Chandra is the only one working in her family. She lives with her husband. Five of their children have long married and settled down, and the sixth one is outside the country for employment. Her husband is an asthma patient and is unable to work. His monthly medicine expense alone is Rs 3,000, and then there is rent to pay and food to buy. Chandra says she has no option than to work that late at night, hiding from the police. “Without this work, we will be on the street with no roof over our heads and no money to buy food.” During the Covid-19 pandemic, Chandra says she had no work for nearly a year and had to rely on social organizations and charity groups for food. “What little savings we had got used up in no time. After that, we had to survive on charity,” she says. “Being the only breadwinner is hard.” Chandra resumed her work near the end of 2021. But this time, her health is not quite in her favor. She is in pain most of the time. Her back aches constantly and so does her hand. “Carrying this basket everywhere is difficult,” she says. “I don’t think I will be able to sit on a cold marble steps every night doing this” Chandra’s health scare increases with the start of the winter season. “I know it will get even tougher for me since the winter has started in Kathmandu,” she says. “And if I were to get caught by the police, that will be the end of it. I’ll be finished.” Chandra is not willing to go for a health check-up. She says she can barely afford to buy the medicines for her husband. She also doesn’t know how long she will be able to carry on with her job. “These days, I cannot stay past midnight. So, yes my age and health is catching up with me.” Asked about her plans for the future, she has no definitive answer, but she is confident something will come up. “I have made it so far and I’m sure I will find a way to survive,” she says.

Nepal has set four main agendas to present at the COP27 that takes place in Egypt later this week.  Climate change adaptation and reduction, climate finance, specific issues of mountain region, and financing for climate losses and damages will be the priorities, according to the Oct 23 media briefing by the Ministry of Forest and Environment.

The government has also released a press note on its intent to call for a global pledge on dedicated financial facilities for loss and damage caused by climate change and locally led adaptation principles. In last year’s climate conference, Nepal had submitted a research report on loss and damage attributed to climate change. 

“Relying on that document, we have framed our issues and will prioritize them,” says Megh Nath Kafle, spokesperson at the ministry. Nepal has been demanding $50bn annually as climate finance. To date, there is no exact figure as to how much funds Nepal has been getting as climate finance. Kafle says climate finance is a cross-cutting issue, where many areas overlap and interlink.  “There are no clear stats on how much we are getting in climate finance. The ministry is planning to maintain real data so that we can claim our share of climate finance.”

During the COP26 held in Scotland, Nepal announced to remain cumulatively ‘net zero carbon’ from 2022-2045 and become carbon negative after that, halt deforestation and increase forest cover to 45 percent by 2030, and ensure all vulnerable people are protected from climate change by 2030. 

Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba also urged world leaders to recognize specific climate vulnerability of the high mountains and prioritize the mountain agenda in all climate-related negotiations. He said that keeping global temperature rise to below 1.5° Celsius was vital for the mountain people.

Madhukar Upadhya, an environmentalist and climate change expert, says Nepal’s commitments and appeals for climate action on international platforms are irrelevant.  “The likes of Pakistan and Bangladesh have been much more effective in highlighting their plight in international climate forums than Nepal,” he adds. “Those countries too have internal political conflict, yet they lead the international platforms like COP.”

According to the reports presented by the Nepal government, melting glaciers, erratic and unpredictable weather conditions, changing rainfall patterns, and increasing temperatures are impacting Nepalis.  But the government has failed to draw the attention of global communities on these issues.  Nepal has been raising its climate-related issue through the group of Least Developed Countries (LDC) on climate change. The group comprises 46 countries that are especially vulnerable to climate change but have contributed the least to the phenomena.

Nepal is also a member of the G-77 group on climate change issues. Climate experts like Upadhya are of the view that Nepal’s climate diplomacy through the LDC group and G-77 is not yielding results. Instead of only relying on these platforms, they recommend that Nepal take the initiative to lead the mountain agenda by bringing all mountainous countries.

Nepal’s climate agenda COP22 (Morocco, 2016)

• Informed that Nepal ratified Paris Agreement 
• Associated with the statements made by Thailand on behalf of G77 and China and Congo on behalf of the Least Developed Countries
• Informed that the government prioritizes accessing and managing climate finance, upscaling of renewable energy, building adaptive capacity and resilience and implementing mitigation actions to achieve sustainable development goals
• Over 80 percent of the climate finance to local level with a dedicated climate change budget code

COP23 (Germany, 2017)

• Urged the global leaders to implement key areas of Paris Agreement
• Sought funding support from the global community while also urged to raise relevant funding and support for calamity-vulnerable countries
• Sought developed countries’ contribution of $100bn per year by 2020 as agreed upon during the Paris COP21
• Raised questions on adaptation, mitigation measures, means of implementation and cross-cutting agendas like climate and gender

COP24 (Poland, 2018)

• Reported the good practices that has been carrying out to support the economic status of the local people affected by climate change as well as in the areas directly related to their livelihoods such as protection of forests, soil conservation, water management, agriculture, fruit cultivation, and livestock farming
• Raised the issues that will contribute to the concept of ‘Prosperous Nepal, Happy Nepali’ that the government had brought
• Highlighted the adverse impact of climate change on the economy of the Himalayan region as well as relating this to the marine economy
• Pursued issues related to agriculture, biodiversity, development infrastructure, and technology transfer among other topics

COP25 (Spain, 2019)

• Prioritized three areas considering the unique needs and circumstances of the fragile mountainous region: climate finance, technology transfer, and sharing of best practices
• Encouraged the parties to come up with ambitious NDCs by 2020 in both adaptation and mitigation measures so that the objectives of the Paris Agreement can be achieved by the stipulated time
• Engaged in discussions of loss and damage, technology development and transfer, transparency, capacity building, climate finance, as well as formal and informal networks
• Requested to implement Article 6 of Paris Agreement with the assurance that financing will be provided and technology transfers will occur to benefit the least developing countries (LDCs), to make them more climate-resilient

COP26 (Scotland, 2021)

• Called for recognizing the mountains’ climate vulnerability highlighting that around 80 percent of Nepal’s population is at risk from natural and climate-induced hazards and in the last 40 years, natural disasters have caused close to $6bn in physical and economic damage in Nepal alone
• Announced that emit ‘no net’ carbon between 2022 and 2045 and become carbon negative after
• Committed to halt deforestation and increase forest cover to 45 percent by 2030
• Urged the parties to agree on a clear roadmap for a new collective, quantified and ambitious goal on climate finance before 2025

Bhagwati Khadka is the first international female wrestler of Nepal. Born and raised in the Ramechhap district before moving to Kathmandu in 2007, Khadka always wanted to make a name for herself. In 2007, she participated in the Bharat Tolan where she lifted 145 kg and finished third. Unfortunately, she had to give up weightlifting soon after that due to arm injuries. But her family and friends suggested she take up wrestling as she had a good physique. “I was a shy girl but I knew I wanted to be a known figure,” she says. Khadka contacted Nepal’s first wrestler known as the ‘Himalayan Tiger’ in September 2012 and began training under him. When she went on to defeat an American wrestler called ‘The Great Chinne’ in a match conducted at Sandhikharka in the Arghakhanchi region of Nepal in December 2012, she made history by becoming Nepal’s first female wrestler. “It was a proud moment for me. The media wrote and talked about me and I became well-known. I enjoyed a celebrity-like status,” says Khadka. Until now, she has participated in and won various competitions in Nepal but her ultimate dream is to compete in the WWE (World Wrestling Entertainment). As someone who wanted to be famous since the day she listened to Kunti Moktan on the radio, while working in the fields with her father, she has left no stone unturned to turn her dreams into reality. She confesses she still has to work hard to be the absolute best but there isn’t anything she won’t do to get there. She has already become a household name in many parts of Nepal, having done around 63 films and 11 television shows apart from releasing a few music albums. Her journey till now, however, hasn’t been easy. She received accolades as the first female wrestler while simultaneously dealing with her mother’s cancer. In fact, during her first-ever match when she required utmost focus, all she could think about was her ailing mother. She was ready to do everything it took to save her but was unable to do so. That almost killed her zeal to do anything further in life. But she picked up the pieces and established the Mahila Wrestling Foundation in honor of her mother. “I was in a complete state of shock and grief. But I knew I had to keep going. She wouldn’t have wanted me to falter,” says Khadka, adding the foundation has trained over a hundred female students and around 45 men till date. Khadka wants to make wrestling accessible to every woman who wants to take it up in all parts of Nepal. She aspires to ‘smash the patriarchy’ by showing society women can do everything that is traditionally considered men’s domain. She has also had some other bitter experiences in her journey. Around 2014, she was offered a month-long training course by Ohio Valley Wrestling, an American professional wrestling promotion and former developmental promotion based in Louisville, Kentucky. She had always wanted to visit the United States of America and this felt like a golden opportunity. “I had to wait around a month for a visa recommendation from Purushottam Paudel, the then-Minister of Youth and Sports. The visa was later denied as he was concerned that I might not return to Nepal. I wept a lot that day,” she says. It still bothers her that she was denied the opportunity for career growth and to represent Nepal. She wishes to someday be able to go see America and experience it. It’s one of the many dreams tucked away in the corner of her heart. Khadka has been on the receiving end of much verbal abuse and threats. She is a woman in a man’s world, doing a ‘man’s job’. It doesn’t sit well with many. Yet, she is determined to not let that dampen her spirits. She recalls the difficulties she faced while training with men. It was an uncomfortable experience, one she had to put up with to get to where she is today. With her eyes on the prize, she ignored the harassment and carried on. How the tables turn, the ones who would insult her now want to learn from her. “I make sure the ones who train under me are comfortable. I want them to enjoy the process and that won’t happen unless they feel at ease,” she says. Khadka feels there’s still a long way to go before wrestling, women’s wrestling, in particular, becomes as popular as other sports. There’s a niche crowd at the moment, she says, who enjoy wrestling. She wishes to contribute to changing that scenario by organizing big-scale competitions and offering free training to those who are interested in the sport. “I wish our national television would broadcast women’s wrestling matches. It would be a great motivational boost to women like me who want to pursue it as a career,” she says. Khadka dreams of a time when women are strong and independent and are able to take better control of their lives. For that, she says some form of self-defense training is necessary. “In order to teach young women self-defense, I want to provide wrestling training in all schools and colleges,” she says. “Wrestling can help you develop physical strength, which will make it possible for you to defend yourself from abusers and harassers. You don’t have to depend on anyone else to take care of you.”