Report roots for behaviour change for a sustainable world
One of the heavy machinery used in the mining in Lwera. Photo by Martins E. Ssekweyana
What you need to know:
- Global action for a sustainable future looks to be in limbo as the United States under President Donald Trump and European countries significantly reduce their official development assistance to the Global South. However, Uganda can do more to protect its environment. There is a huge need for a mindset change. The Late Pope Francis called environmental degradation a moral sin and called for sustainable living. One family does not need a 20-bedroom house and/or 1,000 hectares of land. Neither do they need two cars. Christopher Bendana brings us this report.
Co-existence and not control of nature, managing the environment as a future benefit and not only a current one, and managing it as a community and not as individuals, are some of the recommendations by the United Nations University - Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU-EHS). The 2025 Interconnected Disaster Risks report, Turning Over a New Leaf, released in April, blames human’s love for fossil fuels to run combustion engines for much of the current environmental challenges.
This love has been growing since the advent of the Industrial Revolution, and oil-producing countries and powerful oil companies have fought efforts to limit the extraction of the fuels. Fossil fuels emit carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases that are blamed for climate change, which has intensified in the recent past with ravaging floods, drought, and high temperatures. The effects of climate change are seen in food shortages, waterborne diseases, disruption of communication lines, and economic activities at levels never seen before.
This has affected poor countries like Uganda which have limited technologies and resources to respond to the emergency. The report states that societies must analyse and address the root causes of flooding, drought, deforestation, and increase in temperatures, rather than undertaking activities like suspended roads to solve the problem of flooding. “Many of the actions we take, as well-intentioned as they are, will not work as long as there is a whole system working against us. We need to go deeper - envision the world that we want to live in and change the structures to match that vision,” says Caitlyn Eberle, a researcher and lead author of the report. Key questions from Uganda would be: What is causing drought in Katakwi district and flooding in Kampala city? Why is the air in Kampala polluted? Science tells us that the drought is caused by deforestation for small and large-scale agriculture. Flooding is also caused the clearing of wetlands which act as storm water sponges while old vehicles with poor emission systems have significantly contributed to the poor air quality in Kampala City.
Theory of Deep Change
The report emphasises the idea of mindset change and designing solutions (Theory of Deep Change). The Theory of Deep Change (ToDC) interrogates the root causes of global problems and identifies structures and assumptions in society that allow them to persist. The report authors use the analogy of a tree where bad fruits are a result of bad roots. Therefore, to solve the problem, one has to fix the roots. Some of today’s solutions are surface-level fixes . To create sustainable and lasting change, we need to question the societal structures and mindsets that perpetuate these challenges. "Society is at a crossroads. For years, scientists have warned us about the damage we are doing to our planet and how to stop it. But we are not taking meaningful actions. We know climate change is worsening, yet fossil fuel consumption keeps hitting record highs,” says says Shen Xiaomeng, the director of UNU-EHS. He adds that the world already has a waste crisis yet household waste is projected to double by 2050. “Time and again, we see the danger ahead yet keep moving towards it. In many cases, we see the abyss, we know how to turn around, and yet we confidently keep walking towards it. Why?” he asks.
The scientists highlight two ways change can be achieved. First, on the inner levers - where we can change the current assumptions or our systems; including mindset change that gives people options for doing things. Secondly, on the outer lever - where new goals are turned into practical structures to produce more positive outcomes. These may relate to changes in policy, institutions, or education. The report highlights five areas where deep systemic changes are urgently needed. First, we need to rethink waste - from trash to treasure. It advocates for a circular economy where durability, repair, and reuse are key concepts. For instance, Kamikatsu town in Japan embraced circular strategies that include compositing, upcycling, and waste separation. This is a new world for Kampala City where the concept of prudent waste disposal like the separation of waste is akin to rocket science. Ordinary wanachi have failed to pick up the concept of kavera re-use, and usually dump waste in water drainages during downpours.
Residents of Kyarumba in Kasese District cross River Nyamugasani using a makeshift bridge after the May 2014 floods swept away the main bridge. Photo by Enid Ninsiima
Second, we need to realign with nature - from separation to harmony. It suggests that humans must not separate themselves from nature. Deforestation, species extinctions, and ecosystem collapse are a result of humans trying to control natural processes instead of co-existing with them. This is vivid in Uganda as smallscale farmers clear rainforests and wetlands disrupting the ecosystem of amphibians, birds and primates, some yet to be discovered and recorded. Third, we need to reconsider responsibility - from ‘me’ to ‘we.’ The report highlights the high greenhouse gas emission by the rich and the high climate change effects felt mainly by the poor who emit less, but have limited technology and resources to adapt. Its proposition is that together, we win hence a call for collective action. The report also discourages shifting climate change programmes including carbon credit offsetting programmes highly recommended by the Paris Agreement. Fourth, we need to reimagine the future.
The report calls upon the current occupants of the earth to think of the incoming generation and not mind about themselves alone and what it calls the problem of presentism. It questions what kind of world we will leave to future generations; a world of more challenges than building blocks for success. Pollution of Lake Victoria and over exploitation of some herbal trees would be examples from Uganda. Lastly, we need to redefine value - from economic wealth to planetary health. The report questions why, in some areas, deforested land is of more value than forested land. It questions the gross domestic product (GDP) model which emphasises monetary values as the measure of success. The model has created much inequality, and is responsible for the environmental degradation all over the world.
Floods in Kasese destroyed gabions that were constructed by Ambitious Construction Company Limited on River Nyamwamba in Kasese Municipality. PHOTO/JOEL KAGUTA
Ugandan experts weigh in The National State of the Environment Report 2018/2019 by the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) reveals a dire state of the environment with forest cover and wetland coverage declining and air and water quality deteriorating. Forest cover was reduced from 23.8 percent in 1990 to 9.9 percent in 2017. However, the cover is going up again through the National Forestry Authority’s promotion of plantation forests. The decline has been mainly through conversion of forests to agricultural land. Wetland coverage reduced from 15.5 percent of the land area in 1994 to 13 percent in 2017. The report also spells doom over the air quality with particular matter and nitrogen dioxide levels above the World Health Organisation (WHO) recommended levels. A recent 2024 study, Air Quality and attributable mortality among city dwellers in Kampala, Uganda by Lynn Atuyambe and others from Makerere University School of Public Health, published in the journal Nature, found the particular matter not only above the WHO Air Quality Guidelines Value but that 17-19 percent of deaths in Kampala City between 2020 and 2021 were attributed to particular matter related to air pollution.
Dr Patrick Byakagaba, an environment and natural resource governance expert and senior lecturer at Makerere University’s Department of Environmental Management, concurs with the authors of the report that humans are causing the greatest damage to the environment. “Humans should stop the arrogance of taking themselves as the key species on the planet and exploiting the natural resources without thinking of the consequences. We are a small part of the ecosystem. We might not even be the most critical. We need to recognise the value of other organisms and the non-living environment and live harmoniously,” he says. As forester, he is worried about the current rate of deforestation and advises Uganda to learn from countries like Sweden and Costa Rica in protecting their forests. “Look at the value of the tree in an ecosystem. It can contribute to the regulation and maintenance of the water cycle, hold the soils together, provide shelter and food for birds, and sustain pollinators critical for agriculture, among other uses. We have to look at the cost of losing all these benefits when one cuts a single tree,” he explains.
Dr Byakagaba notes that forestry in Sweden is recognised as a strategic sector to an extent that 50 percent of forests are owned by private individuals who are required to follow sustainable forest management principles. “Costa Rica has almost 51 percent of its land covered by forests. This is mainly because of its innovative forest conservation and management programmes that involve direct payments to private forest landowners for forest ecosystem services. This is an important incentive for forest conservation on privately owned land,” he says. Dr Byakagaba suggests the adoption of the Natural Capital Accounting (NCA) approach which requires integrating the cost of economic growth on natural resources. “Environmental sustainability is premised on three pillars. First, is morality. There must be a question in one’s mind about whether what they are doing is right or wrong for the environment. Second, what are the virtues of the community where we live and how do they relate to forests or nature? Lastly, does society appreciate the consequences of degrading the environment?” he asks. Frank Muramuzi, the executive director of the National Association of Professional Environmentalists (NAPE), says sometimes people do things out of ignorance, wondering why the country is investing in oil exploration that will alter the ecosystem in the Albertine region and not investing in renewable energy like solar, small dams, geothermal, and wind energy.
“A lot of time and money has been wasted on this oil business. We would have made giant strides as a country if we had invested it in renewables. Everyone in the developing world is investing in electric vehicles. Fossil oils will not be feasible 20 years from now,” he argues. Muramuzi calls on the government to prioritise the protection of the environment instead of remaining silent when freshwater bodies and catchment areas are being polluted by industrialists. “The government needs to get serious. Local governments are given Shs8 million to manage the environment annually. What can that amount of money do for an entire district?” he asks. There have been successful sustainable projects, though. Dr Byakagaba praises the National Environment Act, 2019 which has provisions for protecting nature including the right of nature to exist and holding those responsible for degradation culpable. On the other hand, the Climate Change Act 2021 compels ministries, departments, and authorities (MDA) to allocate reasonable finances to climate change activities.
“We have 1.5 million hectares of protected areas in the form of wildlife conservation areas, forest reserves, and wetlands including the renowned Bwindi Impenetrable forest. The National Development Plans have had themes that have been critical in promoting conservation and environmental sustainability,” he says. Muramuzi believes creating an environment police unit is a good step but wants all police officers trained in handling environmental crime. “I am positive about collaborative forest management where communities neighboring central forest reserves are supported by the NFA to form associations. The members are involved in the protection of the forest and in return, they are allowed some benefits from the forest.
Produced by Nation Media Group in partnership with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
General Manager Editorial Daniel Kalinaki, Acting Managing Editor Allan Chekwech
Editor, Sustainability Hub Gillian Nantume, Features Editor Caesar Karuhanga Abangirah, Contributor, Christopher Bendana.
