Questions from Gymnasium Seefeld, Thun

I think that the strange and quick climate change is all because of global warming . As lots of cars and factories are being made on this materialistic world . So because of the smokes it is leading to the strange climate that we are witnessing now. .........Yangkyi( XI Sc.A)

The change in the climate is resposible for the natural calamities that we are witnessing now a days in different parts of the world . whether one believes in it or not in another case , but i really do feel thats the only reason if we want to rate , then it causing the disaster will be very high . We just cannot be ignorant . we must wake up...... Ngodup( science teacher)

ACcording to me what ever the above two persons have said is absolutely correct , we must wake up .. Education seems to be the only possible means to rescue our earth from this great danger . So let us all study hard and work for peace and prosperity of our planet

Dharamsala is located in the north of India, in the state of Himachal Pradesh. It is nestled in high wooded hills that hint in muted tones of the majesty of the Himalayas beyond. The Himalayas are the world's greatest repositories of snow and ice outside of the polar regions, and yet they may melt away in just 20 to 30 years, leaving more than a billion people desperately short of water.The Himalayas–Hindu Kush and nearby mountains, along with the high-elevation Tibetan Plateau that spans 1.6 million square kilometers, are the water towers of Asia and feed its great rivers – the Yellow, Yangtze, Mekong, Salween, Indus, Ganges and Brahmaputra. Sometimes referred to as Earth's "third pole", the snow and ice in the region provide the largest river run-off from any single location in the world.

Data from the International Commission on Snow and Ice in Kathmandu, Nepal reveal that the Himalayan glaciers are shrinking faster than anywhere else and could totally disappear by 2035. Snowfall is also in sharp decline in much of the region, Kennel said. This region has been frozen for hundreds of thousands of years and the incredibly rapid meltdown is the result of three converging factors, he explained.

Like the Arctic, temperatures in this cold part of the world are climbing far more rapidly than elsewhere. Over the past three decades, the average temperature has increased by almost 1 degree Celsius, and Chinese climate scientists predict a further temperature rise of between 2.0 to 2.6 degrees Celsius by 2050. Some of this temperature rise is due to soot, otherwise known as black carbon, from burning fossil fuels - especially diesel and coal - as well as burning wood and other biomass.

Black carbon heats the region in two ways. The dark particles absorb heat from the sun and collect at mountain latitudes. Secondly, this soot coats the snow, turning it grey and reducing the snow's albedo - ability to reflect sunlight - accelerating the melt.

18/7/2009. ClLIMBDOWN ON 2 DEGREE CELSIUS CLAUSE DONE AS A LAST RESORT :

India's chief climate change negotiator Shyam Saran spoke exclusivley to Times of India ( one of india's news paper ) as he tried to explain the Indian position on the crucial negotiations which will intensify in the long run upto the Copenhagen 15 .

While the 2 degree is a compromise , PM''s special envoy Shyam Saran told journalists in Italy , " We do not regard this as an arithemetic target ; we regard this as a political decision because there is great deal of uncertainty with respect to what would be actual rise in temperature , what would be the consequences of the that rise of temperature . It's the compromise on 2 degree C" that the former negotiator ,Surya Sethi has challenged , saying it would hinder India's development .

So this news about india compromising and its negotiator saying that they regard it as a political decision and not a arithemetic target in my opinion is really a sad news . Developing countries like India , instead of always blaming the westerners needs to keep in check their own pollution rates and must deal with it firmly . By doing that they can easily pressurise the westerners to clamp down their carbon emmision . Lets not always keep on fighting for who gets the bigger bitter cake .

For me when this topic of climate change arises , i become motivated to do something to combat this problem . And for that i try y best to educate people around me about it . This issue really is a very critical one and all of us needs to raise our hands together to start working on the issue.

The climate change and global warming is an issue from which we can cannot stay away and or try to be innocent or ignorant about it . Every one has a responsibiltiy , A parent must teach the child about the importance of keeping the surroundings clean , A teacher must educate the child about the consequences of pollution, where as a student must develop the habit of working for our beloved planet . We must start in our own ways before it gets too late .............Tenzin ( science teacher)

If the whole world would be listening to my comments about the climate topic then i would say that climate change is not only caused by environmental pollution , but its due to selfishness and thoughtlessness of mankind . Dirty smokes release into the atmosphere by factories , industries and vehicles etc. which cause environmental pollution ...........Choedon ( class VIII D)

Our place , Dharamsala is a beautiful place situated in the northern part of India . But from about five to six years we have problem of climate change .We used to have lots of snow during the winter time and it was really fun for us as we waited for it just as we welcome the spring too . We used to have snows which will be touch the room of our small house and me with my family used to take off the snows , it was really fun .

But now i wonder why , within about 5 to 10 years , its completely changed . In 2008 winter we had very little snow fall during the winter time and this years we didnt have any snow fall in the month of jan and feb . it is really making me feel bad . there is no other reason but human activities behind this .. we must do something ...

As far as i am concerned in order to make things better , i would surely like to become a environmentalist in the future so that i could solve the problem atleast in the place where i live . But i know that it will not be a easy step to change the things around us as we all know that due to too much material development , people need more and more . So i will need to change the thinking of the people towards life and this is very important thing called CONTENTMENT .How much we need more , that is really the question . Contentment doesnt mean foolish , It is about having satisfaction towards your work , its about living in harmony with the surroundings. When we get a cycle , we desire for motor bikes , when we get a bike , we long for cars , and when we get a car , we want two cars and so on . Thats really annoys me when i see such aorund . So i am going to practice contentment through out my life .

My biggest fear about climate change consequences is that due to the bad action of the developed countries on handling of the climate change and global warming , the countires which will have maximun loss of life and hard time will be the poorer and the developing countries which to be frank are not the real culprits .

My second fear is for all those beautiful animals around us which will also die when our mother earth can no longer hold on . These animals are same like human beings , they will feel sad , happy, breathe in air ,jump around ,have families, look after their babies. But the difference between animals and human beings is that , the animals do not pollute environment intentionally but human beings do. i really dont wanna see the wonderful and innocent animals becoming extinct one by one ,day by day.

Himalaya includes the vast ranges which extends a long way in the continent Asia,. i am born in INDIA even though i am a tibetan . Our country is TIBET which is right now under the invasion of People's Republic Of China. My parents fled from TIBET around the 1960s when they were young children . So this country called INDIA is like our country , even though not real . Thats why we really miss our country .We cannot go back right now because if we go back , then we will be caught and put in prison by the chinese strong military regime . Our leader HIS HOLINESS THE DALAI LAMA who also fled from Tibet in 1959 because of the Chinese invasion .When he came first in INDIA he worked very hard in setting up of the schools in which we the tibetan students can study and get back our freedom from CHINA . Now about nearly 50 years have passed , we are still doing our best as we know the education is the only way to get back our country .

So , from the books and movies that i have seen ,TIBET is the highest plateau of the world . From it a lot of rivers pass through many countries like india , china , bhutan etc . Its a cold area with beatiful animals like YAK , PANDA ( which is vey famous ) , Gazelle, and many other species . Tibetans ( the people of Tibet ) mostly are Budhist and preach non violence and love . We also have a saying that " My religion is simple , my religion is kindness ".

As far as environment is concerned its known for its beauty but now a days we hear from news that chinese government is causing lot of destruction out there . So we must do something about it also .

TIBET is a beautiful place , hope you guys can visit there some day . For us right now we fear to go even inisde our own country.

If it would be possible to turn the clock a hundred years back , we would be then taking care of the beautiful and environment and we will keep it green and forever like hundred years back used to be ............

let us not think so much about the past , if we see the present then we can know that there is lots of peculiar changes taking place like droughts , typhoons etc are all result of climate change . let us do somethings for present and future.........Tashi dolker and Palkyi( class VIII D)

If i am able to freely choose , i would surely want to lead a simple life and hopefully when i will be older i could be an engineer . i really dont want to become very rich neither do i wanna lead a life of poverty . I know if i become too rich then i will have this fear of who will be stealing my money or kill me . If i am too too poor , then i will not be able to help my parents . ................kunsang ( VII D)

i really like to do things which can be of some purpose especially related to protection and cleaning of the environment . So thats why i am also co ordinating our school eco club known as my climate .

The reason why i cannot work on this all the time is because , i am also a science teacher and in india , we have to follow some strict syllabus which should be completed in a limited period of time . So mostly i carry out my hobby after the school hours . Anyhow it really feels great to be taking part in such a programme. Tenzin

Switzerland and India have a lot in common . Both are two proud democratic countries of the world where people have the right to speak about their minds and thoughts .

Tsundue IX D

Switzerland and India are two different nations , the only thing common is that they have the same human with different emotions and behaviours in it . And i also think that both of these countries must be having the same environmental problem especially the gobal warming .

Tenzin .....

People hesitate to act because either they are too inviolved in their work and also now a day with the material development , people have time only for how to make money and all these things and do not care about sensitive issues like that of climate change . But this is the most dissapointing part because by doing like that we are closing the way for our future generations .

Another that why people hesitate is because , sometimes we just tend to be ignorant because we dont have any habits of keeping our surroundings clean and for that matter how can we act on a larger scale . I think , by performing projects like this will certainly open the eyes of many people and most important thing is that the students who are future nation builders are educated and tuned towards contributing something beneficial to the earth . ..............................Kunchok Tashi IX

I think one person is worth acting . Looking at the past we have seen so many individuals making a huge impact in different domains of life . Some known for their peacefull effort like Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King where as some others known for their anger , suppression and brutality like Adolf hitler. Some individual like Einstein was a genius and stated many laws unknown to people .

So my point is one is enough to lead . As its also written on the walls around our school that " INDIVIDUALS CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE " . Personally when i first agreed with Julia Hofster to carry this task at the start of the year around April , i knew from that time that with determination and effort , i will be able to convince many students to work for the beterment of our mother nature . And i have been able to make a environmental club in our school for the first time constituting of about 50 students from class seven to twelve .

Throught the year we worked as a team . And now our project called " T.C.V.SCHOOL GOES C.F.L" which was my dream at first is now becoming a reality and i am very happy for that . i have lead my students wiith love and sincerity and thats why they also work so sincerely with full motivation .So it is worth acting even if one is the only one . (Tenzin , co ordinator of enviromental club , T.C.V SCHOOL )

As far as i know , Switzerland is a very beautiful country . I also heard people saying that Switzerland is a paradise on the earth ............Tenzin Tsephel ( X-D)

I really think that Swiss people are very good people . They are gentle and soft spoken . Then i have also seen the place in many movies . Its really beautiful .......Shakya ( X-D)

One thing i definitely know about Swiss is the great champion tennis player Roger Federer . He plays the tennis so well and also yes , he is a perfect gentleman too ......Passang Tsekyi ( X-D)

I am sure the biggest propblem will be climate change as any other country faces this problem . But i am not sure , i have not much idea about how Switzerland is being governed . .........Kunchok Tashi ( IX-P)

Is there any problem with Switzerland , i have never ever thought about that , i mean its such a beautiful place . I hope its not losing its charm with increase in the number of day today modern hi tech things . Keep it clean and nice as it is now ........Tsundue (IX -D)

My favourite place is where i am staying right now and that is my school ( U.T.C.V.SCHOOL) because in here i have my friends , sweet home where i have grown since my child hood days and i have so many sweet memories in here .....

The most famous person is His Holiness The Dalai Lama . We the tibetans are all refugees here in india and its because of him that we have got a chance to go to school . He is also a world famous person...... Sonam Yangkyi( VII D)

The most famous and the most revered person or in my words holy lama is His Holiness The Dalai Lama . After the chinese occupation of tibet ( our country ) in the year 1959 , he fled to india in the same year . Since then till now he is working for the propagation of peace and harmony through out the world and also trying his level best to get a meaningful autonomy for Tibet under the chinese . He is an embodiment of truth ,love , compassion , peace , hardwork , patience and humour . Its been about 50 yrs since we have been in exile but still then the chinese government is not responding to our cause and intensifying the rude behaviour in Tibet . His Holiness The Dalai Lama always advises us to never give up , no matter what is happening around . Today what ever i am is in many ways all because of him . I want to thank him with my heart and soul and always try my best to do my work efficiently and sincerely...........Tenzin

The beautiful lake just a step away from our school gate had been a great pride for all of us . The playful fishes of different colours were so dear to us all . But the climatic conditions made their heavenly habitat to go dry and so many of the fishes died . So to save the others , our school students ranging from class nine to twelve jumped into action stuck knee deep in mud and surrounded by frightened fishes , our students went to work . Aiming to save as many fishes as possible . Time bore no meaning as they tolled for hours upto dark using lights . Working in solidarity what we gained ourselves is we consider a good karma . But what others say sure hurts our pure hearts . Some said , we ate the fish we caught . It sure stings like hell to hear the people say that . And all houghts of practising compassion goes up in vapours . The negative remarks are what we have earned after working to save the fishes . But we dont worry about such remarks , as we know the truth . We have tried our level best to save as many fishes as possible and that really makes us feel good ..................Kelsang Lhamo ( XII science )