Today, societies have various issues. Climate change is considered one of the biggest emergencies societies face, because it keeps expanding and getting worse. Dr. Giles Sioen sat down with delegates and the media to discuss sustainable cities and their resilience to disasters on day two of JEMUN 2019 in Osaka.
He stated, "We have learned various things from past disasters, in that, when they occur, several disasters can happen at the same time.”
Since learning about damage caused by climate change from the past, it is time to think about what is important in order to create sustainable societies. He suggests some ideas such as improving building capacities, people’s quality of lives and technology, reduce temperatures, cooperating with other countries and developing education systems. At this time, will focus on cooperating with each other and improving education systems.
The cooperation of countries is fundamental. He mentioned, “I know each country, city, area have the different policies and targets, but to solve large scales climate issues, it is essential. Also, cities within countries cooperating together on a national scale is important as well.”
He also introduced two good examples that are working to prevent further damage to the ozone and restrict plastic use. Lots of countries are working together for the same target through understanding each policy. For example, those who are good at science can send specialists and educating local people in other countries.
Improving education systems is an important part as well. He states that the skill of recognizing information is fundamental. It means people should have an education so that they have the skills necessary to understand information correctly. He also mentioned that learning about climate change and disasters at a young age is a good way to improve curiosity. Children can easily pay attention to climate change. These education systems will help in creating sustainable societies.
He was talking about future goals as well stating, “Dealing with global changes is always important and releasing available information is necessary for sustainable societies.”
Lastly, he gave messages to JEMUN 2019 participants, “By participating in this conference, you guys will make changes to yourselves, your private lives and to your universities or colleges for sustainable societies.”
He is looking forward to seeing how the participants experiences at JEMUN 2019 impact their futures.
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