Breathe Pakistan: WHO estimates 5m deaths globally between 2030-2050 ‘driven by climate change’

The second day of the second edition of the Breathe Pakistan International Climate Change Conference, organised by Dawn Media, is currently underway in Islamabad. Despite contributing minimally to global emissions, Pakistan remains among the most climate-vulnerable nations, underscoring the critical need for coordinated, locally grounded, and globally informed responses. The two-day conference is bringing together policymakers, experts, and stakeholders from across sectors to examine intersecting challenges and chart a path forward. On the first day, federal ministers, government officials, business leaders, and agriculture and water experts were among the various speakers who presented their perspectives on tackling the climate crisis. View the full agenda here. 4:11pm — Political will required to really engage women, girls at every step: UN Women official “What if half of Pakistan would not be able to breathe?” asked UN Women Pakistan’s deputy country representative Fahmida Khan, referring to the country’s female population. “The women and girls of Pakistan carry the heaviest load of a fire they dd not ignite,” she said, calling for the “right systems” to be built to include women and girls within the processes of makimng and implementing documents. “It will take a political heart and a will to really engage women and girls at every step, no matter whether it’s the PSDP, ADP, or PC-1,” she declared. “Stop treating women, girls and youth’s inclusion as a faour and start streating that as a condition of survival,” 4:08pm — Activist Fatima Faraz calls for better support for youth-led initiatives Fatima Faraz, a youth advocate, stressed the need for youth-led climate-related initiatives and called on the audience to provide young people with platforms to speak about the environment. She also emphasised that authorities must take action rather than making “empty promises”. She asked, “Until how long will we be participating in conferences like these, because honestly, t