Pakistani artists embrace traditional tunes and rap beats to promote environmental consciousness
Climate Change and the Struggle for Resilience in Sindh, Pakistan
Climate change is having a severe impact on rural communities in the Pakistani province of Sindh, causing disrupted rainfall patterns, floods, crop failures, and increased poverty and vulnerability. Local farmers are forced to adapt to unpredictable monsoon seasons, shifting agricultural practices from summer to winter crops or from crops to livestock to cope with the changing conditions.
The 2022 monsoon floods were particularly devastating, resulting in over a thousand deaths, displacement, and destruction of homes and farmland. This has exacerbated food insecurity and poverty in these areas, with women and children bearing a disproportionate share of the suffering.
Local musicians and activists are creatively using music to raise climate change awareness and promote resilience. One such activist is Urooj Fatima, known locally as Sindhi Chhokri, from Jhuddo. Urooj has written and performed a rap song in response to the 2022 flooding in Balochistan, calling for government action and aid for those affected.
Urooj has also shifted her focus to climate change since her village was devastated by flooding in 2022 and 2024. She cites the disproportionate impact of climate change on women and girls, including problems with displacement, education, hygiene, and nutrition, which she attributes to entrenched gender discrimination.
Urooj and her sister Khanzadi campaign on the ground and on social media, protesting, visiting villages, and planting thousands of trees. However, Urooj faces controversy in rural areas, with half the feedback she receives being negative, but she is undeterred from speaking out on social taboos and injustice.
Another local musician using music to educate communities is Sham Bhai, a Pakistani folk musician from Sindh. Sham has toured a dozen villages in Sindh during the past two years, teaching people about climate adaptation and resilience through song. Sham performs in his native tongue and official provincial language, Sindhi, which is more likely to be spoken and understood in places like Umerkot than the official and national language of Pakistan, Urdu.
Sham's songs carry a message about the vulnerability of poor people's homes built on mud during heavy rains, particularly affecting women and children. Sham believes that singing informs those who can't read about climate change in Sindh.
International partnerships and government initiatives are also working to improve resilience by restoring flood-damaged agriculture and water infrastructure in Sindh. For example, a KOICA-UNDP project launched in 2025 targets strengthening agricultural productivity and solar-powered water supply in flood-affected regions, benefiting thousands of vulnerable households and supporting sustainable local farming.
In summary, rural Sindh faces profound climate challenges, with floods, droughts, and food insecurity worsening poverty. However, innovative use of music by local musicians and activists plays a crucial role in raising awareness, empowering communities, and encouraging adaptation to climate change impacts.
- Despite the severe impact of climate change on education in rural Sindh, local activists like Urooj Fatima and Sham Bhai use art, music, and activism as tools for raising awareness and promoting resilience among the community.
- The devastating monsoon floods of 2022 and 2024 have highlighted the importance of environmental science, especially climate change, in the health-and-wellness of women and children in these regions.
- In an effort to combat climate change and improve the resilience of farmers in Sindh, international partnerships such as the KOICA-UNDP project launched in 2025 focus on restoring flood-damaged agriculture and water infrastructure, as well as supporting sustainable local farming.
- Urooj Fatima, also known as Sindhi Chhokri, uses her music to draw attention to the disproportionate impact of climate change on women and girls, who face issues such as displacement, education, hygiene, and nutrition due to entrenched gender discrimination.
- Although local musicians like Urooj and Sham face controversy in rural areas, their work to educate communities about climate change, climate adaptation, and resilience through music is essential in raising awareness and empowering communities to adapt to climate change impacts.
