The global pandemic hijacked 2020 and reset priorities, but countries now need to regroup and renew their commitment to cap global warming at well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels, as agreed in Paris in 2015.
The coronavirus pandemic was a
respite for nature everywhere. The
air was cleaner, trekking trails were pristine, the summit of Mt Everest
was deserted, and worldwide carbon emission dipped by -26%.
The number of Nepalis suffering from mental health issues is increasing with the prolonged COVID-19 lockdown, and the lack of treatment and counselling means the country may be facing an epidemic of psychosocial disorders.
For those who think that Nepal is too underdeveloped to make full use of
artificial intelligence (AI), think again. That is exactly what they used to say about computers and mobile phones in the 1990s.
For the first two decades after 1990, Nepal took great strides in reducing malnutrition. But progress has stalled.
The
nutritious grain that mountain peoples of the Americas and high Asia cultivated were displaced by wheat and rice, but they are staging a comeback thanks to growing public consciousness about health.