Bangladesh heads to COP30 fighting for survival, justice

When Abdur Rahim looks out over his once-fertile paddy field in Gabura Union of Satkhira’s Shyamnagar upazila, he no longer sees the golden hue of ripening rice.

Instead, the land is dull, cracked, and glistening with salt.

“The land used to sing with life,” he said quietly, running his fingers through the hardened soil.

“Now it burns the roots.”

For Rahim and thousands like him in coastal Satkhira, climate change is not a distant debate—it is a lived disaster.

Rising sea levels, frequent tidal surges, and saline intrusion have turned arable lands barren and made drinking water increasingly scarce.

“We cannot grow Aman paddy, nor vegetables. Even the fish ponds are too salty. Every day is a fight to survive,” Rahim told Dhaka Tribune.

As Bangladesh prepares its position for COP30, the global climate summit scheduled for late 2025, voices like Rahim’s underscore the urgency behind the country’s call for real climate finance—not vague promises.