At the lavish India International Convention Centre, Dwarka, Delhi, legislators from the G20 and guests, including the recently admitted African Union, gathered to discuss the lifestyles that must be adopted for the future of the world.
On the day before the ninth G20 Parliamentary Speakers’ Summit (P20) officially opened, lawmakers shared their perspectives on the common challenges facing humanity and the best ways to address them at the national and international levels at the Parliamentary Forum on LiFE (Mission Lifestyle for Environment).
“A New way to deal with contemporary challenges such as climate change”
Shri Om Birla, Speaker of the House of the People of the world’s largest democracy, highlighted the LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment) Mission by Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a comprehensive approach to environmental protection. He emphasized that LiFE empowers people to reduce, reuse, and recycle, and has become a global movement. Birla noted that many countries are now developing policies and action plans based on LiFE’s idea, taking into account their geographical and socio-economic conditions.
“No country untouched, need to confront climate change head-on”
The Lok Sabha Speaker said that in today’s times, climate change and its impact is deeply interlinked with the common future of humanity. “No country is untouched by the impact of climate change. Hence it is only natural that upon India’s initiative, environment-related issues have been unanimously placed at the centre of the discussions during the P-20 conference.” Highlighting the need for concrete efforts to deal with the challenges facing the world, the Speaker underlined that it is the need of the hour to confront climate change head-on.
“Policies and laws not enough, need individual and collective actions too”
Mentioning legislative initiatives taken by the Parliament of India on the topic of lifestyle for environment, Shri Birla said that extensive discussions have been held in the Parliament in this direction and laws have also been made.
Emphasizing individual responsibility, he said that only policies and laws are not enough to deal with the problem of climate change; rather, everyone needs to contribute collectively by modifying their everyday routine. “It is necessary that everyone adopts such an approach in their lifestyle which causes no harm to the environment. It is everyone’s personal as well as collective responsibility to do this.”
In order to ensure that the message of Mission LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment) is turned into a people’s movement that leads to the creation of a better world, Shri Birla asked Presiding Officers to raise this issue in all Parliaments.
“A significant step in our journey of sustainable living”
The Deputy Chairperson of Rajya Sabha, Shri Harivansh, highlighted the importance of Mission LiFE in promoting sustainable living and combating climate change. He urged legislators to be environmental guardians and torchbearers of a sustainable legacy and regenerative future.
The 9th P20 Summit, hosted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 13 October 2023, will focus on contemporary relevance topics such as the Agenda 2030 for the SDGs, sustainable energy transition, gender equality, and transformation in people’s lives through public digital platforms.
The summit will also feature the President of the Pan African Parliament, marking the first participation of the President of the Pan African Parliament in the P-20 Summit hosted in India. The P20 Summit, which began in 2010, is a significant step in the collective vision of Presiding Officers of Parliaments of G20 Nations.
The Parliamentary Forum on LiFE has brought together parliamentarians from G-20 nations, invited countries, and international organizations to deliberate on strategies for advancing sustainable lifestyles and combating climate change.
This forum serves as a platform for parliamentarians to exchange insights and successful approaches in promoting sustainable living and plays a pivotal role in increasing awareness of the LiFE movement and its objectives.
Stay Update with FELA NEWS|
Source: PIB
