Reflections from Paris: Mohammed Saiyeedur Rahman

Reflections from Paris: Mohammed Saiyeedur Rahman

My experience in Paris was fantastic as I was able to learn a lot. I was never into campaigning for causes such as Climate Change so I wasn’t sure if it was worth going to Paris. I decided to read up prior to the trip and saw how important climate change was and how it’s affecting the world. Therefore, I decided to take this opportunity to attend Paris, to combat Climate Change and to make sure that this was only the beginning of something big.

On Saturday morning, we were put into groups to do an activity where we were told to go to a specific location and check in. I wasn’t really sure what this was about or how it related to climate change. However, at the end we was shown an image and we were told that the locations we checked in at created the word ‘Climate Justice Peace’ on a satellite map and I was like “wow”, it was just crazy.

Later on that day we attended a public gathering of NGOs outside the Eiffel Tour which was just amazing. The unity of so many organisations and people that got together from around the world to put the word out there for Climate Change was absolutely unbelievable taking into account the horrific attacks that took place in Paris earlier. They were all such friendly people and they were only here for one thing, to combat Climate Change and not just because it was Paris with all the famous landmarks which were beautiful.

Learning from fellow activists and being part of this truly inspiring journey made me comprehend that little things such as driving cars unnecessarily, energy used excessively for no reason and other elements that take place by individuals lead to us damaging this Earth. The Prophet Muhammad (May peace be upon him) said, “Allah will not change the condition of a people until they change what is in themselves”. This hadith perfectly summarises what needs to be done in order to combat Climate Change. We need to change the condition in ourselves in the way we live and think about how our actions will change the world, how it will affect the people and how we can benefit others.

We are the only hope. We are the only ones who can make a change. We are the only option. By putting the word out there with everyone’s help we can make a serious impact and change the way people live their daily lives. In my local community in Hackney and other local boroughs such as Tower Hamlets which has a large Muslim population, I want to educate others who were just like me, unaware of the environmental issues facing us and I too want to help empower people by teaching them and given them opportunities to campaign. This is just the beginning of a truly amazing journey in the fight against Climate Change.

This is my fundraising link for Climate Change. Help me raise money and make a change in countries that suffer from this cause.

https://climatechange.everydayhero.com/uk/Saiyeedur