Nepal cannot afford to treat Himalayan climate losses as business as usual

When Prime Minister Balen Shah addresses the UN General Assembly on September 24, the 15-minute speech must abandon the tired script of a victim pleading for charity. Frontline nations have catalogued their suffering for decades, only to receive polite sympathy and loans. The General Assembly is an arena for international diplomacy and legal accountability, not an international donor conference.

Nepal comes with a strong case: it contributes a tiny share of global emissions — around 0.1% in recent estimates — and just 0.01% of cumulative global CO₂ emissions since 1751.