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We have a problem. We don’t share what we need, create stories in our heads about why others will not understand and end up blaming them for how unpleasant we feel.

How often have you wished for people around you to read what's on your mind without having to express it? How often have you expected them to understand what you wanted without communicating? I know I have. When they have failed to predict what I needed in some situations, I've aid things like, "Malai kasaile bujhdaina" or “Mero barema matlab bhaeko bhaye afai bujhi halthyo ni!”

It is understandable that we have expectations from people we live and work with. However, imagine your default being expecting from others without communicating what you need and being frustrated when things don’t go as you hoped for. Miscommunication, misunderstandings, and conflicts would ensue. This is what we experience most of the time, don’t we? When we try to save the effort of making ourselves understood, problems are bound to follow.

Empathic communication can help us. It means putting aside the assumptions and interpretations we have about each other and trying to understand what we need, what matters to us, and how we can support each other.

Here is an example of connecting with your partner:

 What went well today?

They might mention things that went well at work, how they completed a long overdue assignment or the fact that they worked out. You can then share your high moments of the day—no matter how big or small. Such a conversation will allow both of you to understand what you enjoy and hold dearly.

What did not go well today? What was bothering you?

Here you and your partner will have the space to address things or events that were unpleasant throughout the day. You two can share what did not go well for you both at work, school, with your parents, children, or some area of your life. Here your partner might even be able to share how some of your actions or behaviors might have caused them difficulty and how the same might have happened for you too. They might say, “I was looking forward to talking to you, but you didn’t pick my call earlier today.” “I was hoping to see the dishes washed after getting home since you promised to help with it.”

What are you looking forward to?

Despite the highs and lows, there might be some things or events you and your partner might be looking forward to. For your partner, it might be a work presentation, a date with you over the weekend, or meeting some friends. For you, it could be a football match, watching a movie together, or applying for a fellowship or a program. Sharing what you both are anticipating can help you find spaces to support each other.

As in the example above, we can use a simple tool—‘Rose, Thorn, Bud’ to reflect on our daily experiences and connect with each other—colleagues at work, friends and parents.

Rose is a highlight, success, or something positive that happened throughout the day. Ask yourself and others: What's a recent highlight? What's a small win or success you've experienced? What made you proud?

Thorn is a challenge or struggle you experienced or something for which you require more support. Ask yourself and others: What has been challenging? What is causing difficulty or stress? What needs your attention moving forward?

Bud is a new idea, possibility, or something you are looking forward to knowing, understanding, or experiencing more. Ask yourself and others: What are you looking forward to? What opportunities or events are exciting you? What possibilities need growth and nurturing?

Using the Rose, Thorn, Bud can help us with:

1. Self-awareness: We better understand what’s going well, what’s not and what we are looking forward to.

2. Empathy: We better understand what’s going well for others, what’s not and what they are looking forward to.

3. Empathic Connection: We give others a better chance at understanding what our inner world has been like and how, perhaps, they could contribute to our wellbeing. Likewise, we could do the same for them.

Understanding ourselves and other people is not easy, but with effort and the right resources, we can create an environment where doing so becomes a deliberate and engaging process.

The author is Linchpin at My Emotions Matter, an education initiative that helps individuals and teams learn the mindset and skills of Emotional Intelligence. You can learn more at myemotionsmatter.com

In a democracy, holding regular periodic elections is an essential practice. Thus substantive concepts of democracy and electoral integrity, rather than existing international/national laws and standards, should guide their postponement. Periodic elections strengthen the democratic system while postponing them breaks institutional certainty, increasing the risk of a democratic breakdown.

The requirement of regular elections was famously enshrined into Article 21(3) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Clear-cut provisions in other internationally agreed documents, covenants, and understandings are widely used in democratic countries. Even autocrats hesitate to postpone their faux elections as they claim to be working for the people and democracy.

There are some globally recognized exceptions that can be used to postpone elections. Article 4 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights states that “in time of public emergency which threatens the life of the nation and the existence of which is officially proclaimed, the State’s Parties … may take measures derogating from their obligations under the present Covenant to the extent strictly required by the exigencies of the situation”.

Likewise, international electoral assistance agencies have issued guidance that any emergency provisions—like postponing polls—must be proportionate, nondiscriminatory, temporary, and limited in scope. Postponement is justified during unprecedented times such as the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic or a natural disaster that may endanger the lives of civilians.

Unfortunately, incumbents often postpone elections to hold on to power. The postponement might be for an indefinite time, for example when power is seized by a military coup, as in Myanmar. Elections are also postponed to undercut opposition parties and their followers, to buy time to change public opinion, or to create a more favorable situation for winning elections. The postponement of Venezuelan elections in 2016–2018 exemplifies this latter case.

Other reasons for postponement could be a political crisis resulting in institutional breakdown, thereby preventing scheduled elections. Or there could be a political stalemate and constitutional crisis. But indefinite postponement of elections goes beyond democratic norms and is thus unacceptable.

Nepal’s Election Commission urged the government to fix a date of local elections. The ruling alliance partners immediately invoked the contradictory provisions in the constitution and local level election laws, trying to justify postponing elections for time being. According to Article 225 of the constitution, election to local bodies should be held within six months from the completion of the five-years tenure of current local representatives. However, Clause 3 of the Local Level Election Laws clearly stipulates that local elections should be held two months prior to the expiry of the term of these representatives.

Constitutional experts advised the government as the constitution is the supreme law of the land, it should prevail in disputes. The government intent was to amend the local level election act to make it compatible with the constitutional provisions. But leader of main opposition party KP Oli ruled out any postponement on any pretext. He accused the ruling parties of searching for ways to postpone elections that they feared losing.

Comrade Puhspa Kamal Dahal proposed an election of the House of Representatives prior to local level elections. But that would entail dissolving the parliament prior to the announcement of elections. It would also be in clear violation of an earlier Supreme Court verdict. Thankfully, all local election postponement plans seem to have failed—and rightfully so.

Election postponement may be democratically legitimate in a variety of circumstances, including during natural disasters or humanitarian crises. But in the case of Nepal, there was not a single good reason to postpone local level elections. This might be the reason that the Government of Nepal has at long last agreed to hold elections in line with the proposal of the Election Commission.

The author is former Secretary, Government of Nepal

My evening meals usually comprise rotis (wheat-flour flatbread) because I’m a diabetic—I came down with it some 20 years ago. The earth slipped under my feet when I first learned about it. The world seemed to end.

It did not. Nothing to fret over; life goes on—a diabetic friend tried to empathize with me. All you gotta do is stick to certain no-nos regarding diet and give a tweak to your lifestyle.

The dietician cautions: no sugary treats, no potatoes, and asks you to cut down on the portion of rice to almost half; he also recommended switching from rice to roti for supper—I was.

There were no gadgets called roti-makers in the old days. Radhika, my wife, made them with the chapatti-board and rolling pin. Then the “wonder machine” called the Roti/Chapatti-maker invaded the market.

YouTube was chock-a-block with videos on the charismatic appliance. Media hype gave it a jump-start. Womenfolk watched in awe on TV as the rotis magically puffed up—looked mighty simple! Also, Radhika got lured by the catchy videos, and we bought the machine.

So began our quest for the perfect roti; we were pretty psyched up at the thought of whipping out pop-up roti after roti.

The first roti proved a disaster; more flops followed suit. Soon, Radhika got pissed. I buried myself into the instruction manual again, and we tried afresh, following every step to the letter. To little avail, though. When my wife quit, I offered to try my hand. “Be my guest,” she said.

I did none the worse; nothing worked. In my frustration, I scorched my fingers, too. We tried for a month or two; watched a score of videos. Our efforts seemed to work but fell through after a few fiddling hits.

We assumed it would be a cakewalk, and as shown in videos, every roti would puff up and presto, push the lid up. No such thing happened.

Also read: Opinion | Capturing carbon in soil

Months passed, but the results made no strides. One fateful day, off went the roti maker into the cupboard to rest. The “wonder machine” sucked.

In January 2020, my wife left for the US to see our only offspring, two daughters, settle there. By early March 2020, the US was in the pandemic’s grip. Radhika got stuck and extended her visa from six months to a year.

I got home alone. As my suppers missed out on rotis, it crossed my mind to try the roti-maker languishing in the kitchen cupboard. Roti making, the traditional way, was not my cup of tea.

I toyed with the idea for a few days but could not screw up enough courage. I also realized rice for lunch and supper was a sure ticket to a blood sugar spike.

Thus began my daunting task of roti-making. Needless to write, all my endeavors ended in frustration. It once in a while snowballed into a rage and led to tossing the botched rotis into the trash.

My first month’s score averaged 30-40 percent. I jumped with joy to watch the flattened dough puff like a balloon pushing the lid up. I’d get near euphoric; roti-making for me became not only a challenge but an exciting game. It was still all touch and go, though.

The aggregate rose to 50-60 percent in the third month, but not without times when it disastrously dropped to rock-bottom. Those would be my saddest days. I kept on, however, trying to get the nitty-gritty of the process, and stuck to improvising each time.

They included the finer points like kneading, consistency of the dough, right temperature of the hot plate, the correct timing for flipping the roti, and finally, the crucial moment of putting down the lid.

Six months into my roti making, I’m proud to write eight to nine out of my ten rotis puff up—10 in 10, too, once in a while. Never a dull moment passes, even when I churn out 25 rotis at one go.

Guess what! From friends and relatives, particularly women folks, I learned their roti makers had turned literally into showpieces adorning their kitchen shelves. Some for two, others four, and a few for over eight long years.

Covid-19 has been terrible to this world. But there is something worse we could face: a full-blown climate crisis. If you want to understand the kind of damages that climate change will impose, as Bill Gates puts it, look at Covid-19 and spread the pain out over a much longer period of time. The loss of life and economic misery caused by this pandemic would be much less compared to the damages wrought by carbon emissions.

The world did not do enough to prepare for the pandemic. We can avoid making the same mistake with climate change. There is no single silver bullet to stop climate change but increased soil organic carbon (SOC) has been recognized as one of the best, most cost-effective, and environment-friendly options for climate change adaptation and mitigation, as well as for combating food insecurity, desertification, and land degradation.

SOC is a complex mixture of carbon compounds, consisting of decomposing plant and animal tissue, microbes (protozoa, nematodes, fungi, and bacteria), and carbon associated with soil minerals. Carbon can remain stored in soils for millennia, or be quickly released back into the atmosphere. Climatic conditions, natural vegetation, soil texture, and drainage all affect the amount and length of time carbon gets stored.

Through the process of photosynthesis, plants assimilate carbon and return some of it to the atmosphere through respiration. The carbon that remains as plant tissue is then consumed by animals or added to the soil as litter when plants die and decompose. The primary way that carbon is stored in the soil is as SOC.

The degradation of one-third of the world's soils has already released up to 78 gigatons of carbon into the atmosphere. Conventional farming or highly mechanized agriculture with a monoculture of crops and extensive use of chemical fertilizers, herbicides, fungicides, nematodes to promote plant growth has resulted in the degradation of more than 30 percent of the world's soil, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization.

Also read: Opinion | The story behind my roti-maker

If degradation of soil and business-as-usual agricultural practices continues, it is likely that more carbon will be lost to the atmosphere than can be sequestered into the soil. Carbon dioxide is the principal greenhouse gas contributing to global climate change so it must be sequestered.

Carbon sequestration is the long-term storage of carbon in oceans, soil, vegetation (especially forests), and geological formation. It includes the removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere in the form of SOC.

Regenerative agriculture or traditional agricultural practices help to enhance carbon matter in the soil. Some recommended management practices (RMP) that leads to soil organic carbon sequestration are mulch farming, conservation tillage, agroforestry, diverse cropping systems, cover crops, and integrated nutrient management, including the use of manure, biosolid, improved grazing and forest management.

Improved soil organic carbon is the best for plant growth and increased food production: it is a win-win for both world food security and global climate change.

We thus see a close relationship between soil carbon sequestration and world food security, which can neither be overemphasized nor ignored.

It is said that the soil carbon pool is 3.3 times the size of the atmospheric carbon pool and 4.5 times what animals and plants can store. Also, the soil has the potential to offset 5-15 percent of global fuel emissions.

There is an urgent need to transform our present land management practices and conventional agriculture to sustainable land management and regenerative organic agricultural practices so that our soil becomes fertile and healthy.

Healthy and fertile soil can store the maximum amount of carbon and can contribute to climate change adaptation and mitigation. Soil scientist and winner of World Food Price (2020) Rattan Lal says carbon in soil is like water in a cup. If we drink some of it, we can again fill up the cup.

The author is a student at the Institute of Forestry, Pokhara Campus