Climate resource portal launched in Capital

ISLAMABAD: IRADA on Monday launched Climate Sangat, a web portal created to support the sharing of what organisers described as reliable information and resources on climate change.

The launch took place during a consultation titled Climate Baithak, organised by IRADA and International Media Support (IMS). The discussion brought together journalists covering climate and environmental issues, academics, fact-checkers and representatives of civil society organisations to examine how digital knowledge-sharing can strengthen climate communication and improve public awareness.

Waqas Naeem, a technical expert and co-designer of Climate Sangat, gave participants a detailed presentation on the portal and its features, including access to climate-related content, research material and knowledge resources. He said the platform is divided into three main sections.

According to Mr Naeem, the media hub is intended to assist journalists with news resources, research, data and reporting tools. The community action section highlights community-led climate initiatives, local solutions and success stories. The learning centre provides educational material, including an Urdu glossary of climate change terminology developed to help promote a shared understanding of climate concepts.

He also said the platform includes a climate directory listing experts and practitioners working on climate-related issues, with the aim of helping journalists, researchers, policymakers and civil society groups connect and collaborate.

Muhammad Aftab Alam, executive director of IRADA, said the platform was developed in response to the spread of inaccurate and manipulated climate narratives. "Pakistan’s climate-related information ecosystem is being polluted with false, misleading and politically manipulated climate narratives that often proliferate at unprecedented speed. Climate Sangat, a dedicated web portal, is designed to facilitate the exchange of reliable information and resources on climate change,' he added.

Participants at the consultation welcomed the portal’s launch and proposed a number of additions to strengthen it further. These included preparing policy briefs in multiple local languages, adding historical weather data and creating interactive climate maps to improve public access to localised information.