The devastating flash floods in Nepal have washed away entire villages, bridges and dams. More than 5000 people, including tourists from South Africa, are missing and presumed dead. Caused by the sudden rupture of a melting mountain glacier, this disaster is “the climate crisis in its rawest, barest form”.

The intensity of this disaster is a wake-up call to our individual responsibilities towards climate change. It exposes the rapidly growing risk to global communities near mountain ranges, including the European Alps, the Caucasus, the Himalayas, the Andes, and beyond. Yet a volatile climate affects us all. Here in South Africa too, we face a hot, dry summer and another, much more severe, water crisis as the super El Niño takes effect. Further north, citizens face both drought and severe floods are affecting farmers, citizens, towns, bridges, and dams.

This is a world problem, yet as Nepali climate scientist Sunil Acharya damningly pointed out, it’s the parts of the world that contribute least to the climate crisis that suffer most. It’s all too easy to sit back and blame the idiocy of political leadership who deny climate change, or point a finger at ‘big oil’.

Can we re-imagine a future where we all take personal action to use solar, carpool, walk, bike and fly less? To vote and invest our money wisely? To step away from the fast fashion of Shein and Temu and build circular thinking into our daily lives by recycling, reusing, and repurposing our clothes, gadgets, packaging materials, bottles, bags, and shoes.

As entrepreneurs, there are business opportunities in doing the right thing too. If you would like more information on how to build a profitable, people-friendly, and planet-positive business, join the Fetola ecosystem and find out how we are partnering with Nedbank to build a healthier, greener world.

What changes can YOU make to reduce your climate footprint and build a better planet for the future?