It was an ordinary evening. I was enjoying a cup of coffee along with my favourite book. My parents and two younger brothers were watching TV. That was until we saw the alert pop up on the TV informing us that the floods were headed our way and we were told to evacuate immediately. The floods struck my hometown that night.
I had never heard nor seen something this catastrophic.
My name is Ayesha Shaikh. I’m a 19-year-old human rights and climate change activist from Pakistan.
In June, devastating floods, driven by climate change, hit my country.
The floods destroyed the lives and homes of around 33 million people — including 16 million children. Over 1,700 people have lost their lives.
This is the story of the children I met, whose homes no longer exist. It’s a story of despair and a longing for hope.
We watched in horror at the destruction. Everything around was destroyed, crushed and swept away by the raging water.
Social media, newspapers and televisions were flooded with stories of destruction, disease and death. In the hardest-hit areas, people had lost everything. They had no shelter, food or clean water.
By some miracle our home was spared. But many of our close friends and families were impacted by the floods.
My brother Asadullah’s close friends were among those affected.
Whether we were sleeping, eating, or even just sitting together, we couldn’t help but think of the people who had nothing to eat or drink and nowhere to find peace.This is why we decided to do something to help those most in need. Even if it was the smallest of steps.
Asadullah formed a team to visit the makeshift camps and provide food and water to the displaced families there. I offered to help him organize this noble initiative. I went online and connected with other young people in Sindh who wanted to help out too. We proudly called ourselves ‘Helping Community Sukkur’.
To reach the affected areas, we had to get there by boat. When we arrived at the camps, it reminded me of another time when the world was drowning and disturbed — the COVID-19 pandemic. Even back then young people were able to find positivity and unity during those troubling times.
As with most disasters, the poorest and most vulnerable communities living in rural and remote areas were the worst affected. Most families in the camps had no time to prepare for the floods. In a blink of an eye they lost everything - their homes, crops, livestock - everything.
Children who had lost their homes were now living alongside the roads, their eyes fixed on every passing car and truck, in the hopes of someone to bring them food and water. It hurt me to see this.
Eight-year-old Asim, told us there are times when his family has nothing to eat or drink for days. He also shared that they did not have proper toilets.
Diseases were spreading rapidly in the camps, including diarrhea, fever, and skin ailments. Pregnant women had become sick and some even lost their children.
There were no schools left standing for children to attend. They were restricted to their makeshift shelters, limiting their movement and damaging their mental health. They craved the smallest things to help them forget their new reality.
Seventeen-year-old Sharmeen used to attend a local school before the floods. She now spends her time in the camps drawing to express how she feels about the current situation.
"I used to paint on paper, which the floods took away. I cannot stop thinking about it.”
Fifteen-year-old Noreen told us:
"The cat I used to feed on the street went away with water in the floods. I miss her so much. I hope to find her one day."
Eleven-year-old Mehran told me he had always wanted to become an architect and build more sustainable homes. He remains hopeful that he will get to attend classes one day, soon.
As I write this I realized it is hard to express in words the disaster and devastation we saw around us. The situation was chaotic and tough to process. At night I couldn't fall asleep just thinking of all the people who weren’t as lucky to be sleeping under a shelter.
This was a climate disaster. There is no denying that. This is what happens when our home, the planet, is hurting. We all feel the pain of disasters. And we all feel the worry of what could happen next. The weight and fear of future climate trauma to come is bearing upon us all.
Still, I am not hopeless. I am hopeful for significant change. The world can (and must) move forward in a new direction, for the sake of future generations.
I urge world leaders to take children and young people’s climate anxieties seriously and act to save millions more children from being affected like this.
Each one of us must do our part to take better care of our planet.
Let’s join hands and lead climate action by example.
About the author:
Ayesha Shaikh is a human rights and climate change activist from Pakistan. She uses her voice to engage with other young people and raise awareness about issues close to her heart like gender equality, sustainable climate action, mental health and well-being as well as promoting peace and justice in the world.
