PAKISTAN is burning up. And so is much of its neighbourhood. The Indo-Gangetic plain, spanning the breadth of the subcontinent, is currently the hottest place on the planet. Extremely high temperatures are not unusual in these parts for this time of year, but the swing from the exceptionally wet and cool weather of a few weeks ago is hard to ignore. One can only hope that the next extreme is not a monsoon like 2022.

Then again, hope should not be the only fall-back plan. It is not as if global warming is an unknown phenomenon, or that most people are unfamiliar with the lexicon of climate change. There are many, in fact, who whip out terms such as ‘mitigation’, ‘adaptation’ and ‘resilient development’ at will. And ‘experts’ are said to be working in tandem with donors, governments and businesses to usher us towards a ‘just transition’ away from fossil fuels.

Pakistan’s quota of experts has increased markedly since the 2022 floods. They gather increasingly regularly at conferences on climate change, both at home and abroad. Consultants are hired and reports written. But virtually nothing changes.

The global political economy continues to be structured around what Swedish scholar-activist Andreas Malm calls........

© Dawn