PUTRAJAYA: Every pandemic that threatens the lives of humans has a vaccine to prevent the loss of life, but not so for climate change, Prime Minister’s special advisor on public health Tan Sri Dr Jemilah Mahmood (pix) said.
Using the Covid-19 pandemic as an example, Dr Jemilah said the vaccine for the pandemic was successfully created by Messenger RNA (mRNA) technology which is safe for humans.
“Now we are faced with Covid-19, which can be fatal, but the vaccine has been found. There is no vaccine, however, for climate change, even if it has similar effects.
“Climate change is caused by uncontrolled development till it destroys the environment. This is a bad sign as environmental destruction causes wildlife to lose their habitat, which will affect humans,” she said at a webinar entitled ‘Malaysia’s Role to Combat Climate Change,” today.
The virtual session was organised by the Environment and Water Ministry (KASA) in conjunction with the 2021 Earth Day, which was joined by KASA secretary-general Datuk Seri Ir Dr Zaini Ujang and Bursa Malaysia chairman Tan Sri Abdul Wahid Omar.
Therefore, Dr Jemilah said knowledge about climate change needs to begin in school to increase the level of awareness about the challenge.
Meanwhile, Zaini invited Malaysians to adopt 10 practices towards a sustainable environment, including recycling, using electricity and water prudently, planting 12 trees a year, and adopting a green lifestyle.
All these practices would reduce the impact of climate change, which will pave the way towards an effective solution in the long term, he said.
He added that his ministry was developing a Long-Term Low Emissions Development Strategies (LT-LEDS) plan to be tabled at the United Nation’s Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
He said a low emissions pathway approach is among the country’s strategies to achieve its greenhouse gas emissions target in the long term.- Bernama
